Extortion of the elderly

[El Cid]

34 minutes ago, Tony said:

Perhaps we need to appreciate how much things actually cost.

 

Compared to the cost of a budget hotel room for the night in Sheffield a nursing home looks cheap.

 

I agree, I would guess the care home buildings would be worth a million or two.

Why don't more people set up their own care homes and make a mint, perhaps its not easy.

[lavery549@yahoo]

3 hours ago, Anna B said:

I've just visited a very mediocre looking care home, usual set up, residents sat dozing in the lounge, nothing going on.

Out of curiosity when I got home I looked it up on its webpage. I was shocked at some of the reviews which mention bed sores,  falls, refusing beverages, and general poor care. (To be fair there were some good reviews too)

But what really shocked me was the cost. 

 

£1,450 per week!

 

That's £5,800 per month, or £69,800 per year!

How can this possibly be justified?

 

Further investigation showed this to now be what care homes are charging.  Almost £70,000  per person per year for very lacklustre care. 

Just compare that for a moment to the weekly old age pension of £180 per week which is supposed to cover living costs for pensioners' living  in their own  homes.

 

Your thoughts

 

 

 

 

 

And that is why , we do not want mum in a home 

[Anna B]

3 hours ago, crookesey said:

I was listening to R/S in the car yesterday, a woman was talking about age, she sounded very old, my guess was in her 90’s, actually she was 72 which is five years younger than me. I wondered if the generally accepted definition of ‘elderly’ being over age 65 had run it’s course. 

Old age varies a lot. Some people are old at 50 and their body starts to give way to ill health, others, Like Dame Maggie Smith, keep going strong until well into their 80s. It's partly to do with lifestyle (poor people die an average of 10 years sooner than rich people) and partly to do with genetics (Telomeres.) Some people last into their 100s and beyond. 

There's healthy old age, and old age fraught with illness and difficulties.

 

Poor memory is a big one, and is only set to get more iimportant in the digital age, where people are required to remember things like codes and numbers and continually work out new gadgets etc.

 

Early onset dementia can affect people in their 40s or be the by product of other illnesses such as strokes. It isn't regarded as an 'illness' therefore doesn't have to be funded by the NHS, hence the rise of care homes. 

 

There are thousands o care homes in the UK operating under a myriad of company names, but all are the product of just 3 mega parent companies all domiciled in the Cayman Islands or Panama, so pay little tax. They run a cartel so prices can go up at will as there is little real competition. They are mega rich and ruthless. They will close down any care home not making money and reaching its targets. Corners are cut where ever possible for fear of closure. The care assistants are the lifeblood of these places doing the work and can make all the difference, but they are usually on minimum wage, turnover is fast, and they are usually understaffed.   

 

Privatisation in a free market economy has opened it up to nothing but profiteers. It's a racket and needs government intervention which is promised but never happens.

[El Cid]

6 minutes ago, Anna B said:

Poor memory is a big one, and is only set to get more iimportant in the digital age, where people are required to remember things like codes and numbers and continually work out new gadgets etc.

 

 

Tech can also be an asset to help people remember codes and dates. I have never been an office worker and needing to put appointments in the paper or online diary, but I am starting to use my smartphone calendar to help me.

There are various care homes and hospices that are run not for profit.

 

https://www.wakefieldhospice.org/

[Anna B]

1 hour ago, Tony said:

Perhaps we need to appreciate how much things actually cost.

 

Compared to the cost of a budget hotel room for the night in Sheffield a nursing home looks cheap.

 

Not my add (however have stayed in these hotels and they're fine.

 

However have just spent 2 nights B&B in a hotel in Scarborough for £128. That's  £64 a night. I know someone who lives there, and can be visited there by carer. Don't know what she pays, but it's a fraction of the £79,000 a year. for a care home. 

[Annie Bynnol]

10 minutes ago, lavery549@yahoo said:

And that is why , we do not want mum in a home 

      There are many considerations and pressures in deciding on care.

      We had the following experience:

      At our own home the demands of becoming a full time carer and organizer resulted in our relationship- becoming that of  patient/carer.

      A year later and in a nearby home, the daily visits, activities, shared meals, trips out, involvement with other residents and staff etc. re-set our relationship to that of family. Still not easy.

 

      

[ECCOnoob]

57 minutes ago, Tony said:

Perhaps we need to appreciate how much things actually cost.

 

Compared to the cost of a budget hotel room for the night in Sheffield a nursing home looks cheap.

 

 

Excellent example.   This is what so many people always seem to fail to understand.  They bang on about costs of healthcare, medication, residential care without a clue how much it actually is in reality.   They scream profiteering and extortion without a clue on what these facilities have offer, provide, regulate beyond normal businesses. 

 

Its the same when idiots do all these Facebook/twitter posts about Cruise ships vs care homes.   Boasting about how its all so much cheaper to sail the world.  Yeah, until you need a medic for your debilitating condition halfway across the Caribbean sea or you deludely expect the cabin attendants to dispense your medications, lift you out of bed or wipe your backside for you.....

 

So using your central hotel example, that's £137 per night x 7 nights   = £959.  Even the cheapest of the cheapest 2 star guest house accommodation in the Sheffield Area is around £40 per night x 7 = £280 per week  BEFORE we even start with costs of providing three meals a day, specialist aids, equipment, administering medications, patient administration, enhanced levels of staffing, enhanced insurance policies, enhanced regulation compliance......

 

YES some of them are profit making but that's business.  To declare it "extortion" is just nonsense.   Minimum wage is currently £11.44 per hour - a 9% increase since last year and over a 75% increase since its £6.40 figure a decade ago.    Out of interest average annual care home costs in 2024 are £1160 per week.  A decade ago they were £800 so about a 45% increase.  

 

What is really causing the dramatic rises in costs.   Those "extortionate" businesses or the fleshy parts staffing it or both....  hmmm.  

[crookesey]

In many cases care homes are simply keeping alive the ones that would have died of natural causes. I’m at an age to categorically state that I will end my own life rather than face the indignity of being part of some care home owner’s life style, think what you wish.

[Annie Bynnol]

18 minutes ago, Anna B said:

... 

 

There are thousands o care homes in the UK operating under a myriad of company names, but all are the product of just 3 mega parent companies all domiciled in the Cayman Islands or Panama, so pay little tax. They run a cartel so prices can go up at will as there is little real competition. They are mega rich and ruthless. They will close down any care home not making money and reaching its targets. Corners are cut where ever possible for fear of closure. The care assistants are the lifeblood of these places doing the work and can make all the difference, but they are usually on minimum wage, turnover is fast, and they are usually understaffed.   ...

     

There are 564,000 care home beds in the United Kingdom

84% of care homes are privately run

13% are run by charities

3% by local councils.

 

The biggest private equity companies have a 10% share are:

HC-One (14,000 beds)

Four Seasons Health Care (16,975 beds)

Barchester Healthcare (12,418 beds)

Care UK (8,485 beds)

Bupa (7,663 beds)

[Tony]

10 minutes ago, Anna B said:

Not my add (however have stayed in these hotels and they're fine.

 

However have just spent 2 nights B&B in a hotel in Scarborough for £128. That's  £64 a night. I know someone who lives there, and can be visited there by carer. Don't know what she pays, but it's a fraction of the £79,000 a year. for a care home. 

 

 

So the B&B proprietor gave you four meals a day, washed your clothes, did your hair,  played bingo, had a sing-song down the community centre with you and wiped your arse for £64 a night?

 

What a bargain! 

 

 

45 minutes ago, lavery549@yahoo said:

And that is why , we do not want mum in a home 

 

Indeed, we can't have Mums spending the kids inheritance!