NHS CHC - Urgent Advice Needed

[butterfly68]

Bit of a tricky situation I'm in. I am in the midst of dealing with my Mum's NHS Continuing Health Care funding care fees, together with a company assisting us. This company sent an advocate out last Tuesday, under the assurance they'd secure an NHS CHC checklist, even though the CCG said an 'annotated' DST was to be done. I've put in a complaint, to which the response was there was no guarantee of a checklist, which they made me fully aware of. All along they've claimed my Mum should be qualifying for NHS Continuing Health Care. I am due someone senior who I initially spoke with last Wednesday to phone me again on Monday. With the choice of them writing to the CCG with their findings of the checklist that should have been completed. The other option was for them to take help me pursue the Appeal they previously claimed was too old; as it was from 2013. Which I reminded them that's what they claimed. They are now going away to re-evaluate things. I'm very worried, as I was led to believe they'd take the strain out of all this. I've been too-ing and fro-ing with different people in communication which is already a complicated matter. Which I asked if I could just stick with being in contact with one person. Their response was they are all in the same team. Yeh, with varying responses/reasoning confusing matters more. I'm just sick + tired of having to go along with their reasoning, when I'm supposedly paying for their services to help 'take the strain'. Proving more of an uphill battle. Anybody else had this amount of trouble and further complication?

[Chris From The Gulag]

Hi Butterfly ... an interest one.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

You have an Advocate acting for you in an mediatory role to ensure that the assessment guidelines are followed exactly as they should be.

You have every right to have an advocate, such as a non-practicing solicitor, attend the assessment with you.

At this stage , problems have occured.

Anything within the main CHC thread of use ?

https://www.carersuk.org/forum/support- ... inks-32532

Without knowing the answer to the logjam , one link maybe of particular interest :

https://caretobedifferent.co.uk/typical ... ssments-2/

Specialist help will be needed here ... none of us are experts in this field.

[bowlingbun]

Push for the DST to address the current issues.
Then deal with the previously paid fees later.

[Rosemary_1706]

I really do feel for you going through all this. I did come across a couple of recent articles by a company of solicitors that might be of use.

https://www.seatons.co.uk/a-different-a ... sessments/

https://www.seatons.co.uk/legal-service ... es-oundle/

[Chris From The Gulag]

An addition link from the main thread which MAY be of assistance :

https://caretobedifferent.co.uk/nhs-con ... eep-going/

One snippet which is all too familiar with many going through the process :

As someone who advised families on NHS Continuing Healthcare funding for several years and has seen many families through the process, I know how much the nonsense that goes on in the funding assessment and appeals process can really wear families down. With every new case I read, I begin to think I can no longer be shocked at what goes on in some Continuing Healthcare funding assessments, and then I find I am – again.

In my own mother’s case, my father was made to sign the Continuing Healthcare assessment notes and paperwork for my mother – behind my back – to confirm he understood the process and outcome. However, he had no knowledge of Continuing Healthcare or even that assessments had taken place. Why? Because he had dementia.

This paperwork was then used to render my mother ineligible for any funding. It was nothing less than fraud, in my view.

However, the last thing I want to do in this article is to put you off pursuing Continuing Healthcare. With the energy, resolve and stamina to carry on, it is certainly possible to secure the funding.

I think it’s also important to note that, for families, the whole thing is rarely ever about the money. Instead, it’s about the person they love and the principle of the free healthcare and nursing care that their relative has paid for their whole life – and is entitled to in law.

The crying shame is that they’ve had to fight for it in the first place.

[butterfly68]

Push for the DST to address the current issues.
Then deal with the previously paid fees later.

The CHC nurse said nothing had changed, so they get round that to avoid current issues. Plus the advocate was useless at the meeting

[bowlingbun]

If the CCG said that an annotated list had to be done, then it should have been done. Why wasn't it?
The nurse wasn't there to make a decision, she was there to make a list. It sounds like she is the "fly in the appointment". Therefore complain to the CCG that it was not done, but make sure your complaint goes to the CCG Complaints Officer, NOT the department dealing with CHC.
It is really important to work out who is blocking something, and who holds the power. There's nothing worse than getting nowhere because it's not going to the person with the power.

[Rosemary_1706]

I would agree with BB. From the links I posted today, I understand it's the ccg that is responsible.