Advocacy
An advocate is an independent person who will speak on your behalf and represent what you want.
Assessment
Understanding a person's care needs and deciding what services they will get. They are usually carried out by social and care staff i.e. social workers, and / or occupational therapists. For an assessment contact your local Social Services First Response Team.
Benefits Agency Visitor ('The Social', DSS or DHSS)
The Benefits Agency visitor comes to discuss what money benefits you might get. It is important that you claim everything you are meant to. Also occasionally they may visit because the agency thinks you are claiming something you are not entitled to. If this happens you need to get advice from the Citizen's Advice Bureau.
Care package
The community care services a person will receive for their assessed needs. An example would be to receive home care every day from 7-8am and 8-9pm and lunch from the Meals service every weekday. These services together will make up your care package.
Care programme approach (CPA)
Providing people with serious mental health problems an individual agreed care plan.
Carer
A person who provides unpaid care and support to someone with a disability, long term illness or are an older person within the home. A carer may be a partner, family member, friend or neighbour. Carers now have the right to have a separate assessment from the person who they provide care for (Carers [Recognition and Services] Act 1995).
Charging
Where people are asked to pay towards the costs for receiving community care services. This is based upon a thorough financial assessment which takes into account various factors, including income, the level of service, and savings.
Chiropodist - Podiatrist
Both the same - they visit to help people look after their feet.
Community care
A range of support services in the community for older and disabled people. This is enable people to live with greater levels of independence at home, as opposed to traditional forms of care such as long stay hospitals.
Complaint
People have a right to complain about a service where they think they have been unfairly treated, or have received unsatisfactory services.
Consultation
Providing an opportunity for people to express their views and opinions about a service area in a constructive manner.
Continuing care
Ongoing health care for people recovering from injuries, or with long-term serious illness or disability. This may be at hospital, at home or in a residential or nursing home.
Culturally appropriate / sensitive
These are services which take into account a users lifestyle, such as the language they speak, their religion and food they eat. Such services take into account these different needs.
Community Psychiatric Nurse - also known as 'the CPN'
A nurse who specialises in working with people who have a mental illness. They also give medicines and injections and can give counselling to the person who is ill. Like the district nurse they can explain to you what is going on and how best you can help.
Direct Payments
Are payments made by Social Services to disabled people requiring community care. They enable users to arrange and buy their own care. Direct payments are about promoting choice and flexibility of care. It is now a statutory obligation for councils to offer Direct Payments to everyone who is eligible.
Doctors
Apart from your own doctor (GP - General Practitioner) there are many different kinds who could visit or who you might meet in hospital depending on what the problem is. e.g. psychiatrist, psycho-geriatrician, neurologist, etc - they are all specialists in a different part of medicine and you are quite entitled to ask them what they do.
District Nurse
They are similar to a nurse working in hospital. They come to do things like change dressings and give injections and medicines. They can offer advice on what to do and explain about the disease or disability. They can also help with arranging special equipment to help you to care.
Eligibility criteria / Fair Access to Care Services
From April 2003, all social services in the UK are obliged to use the same framework to assess the risks faced by people who ask them for help. Risks must be placed in either "Critical", "Substantial" "Moderate" or "Low" categories. All social services in the country have been obliged to look at their resources and state which risks they are able to address. Like the vast majority in London, on this basis Waltham Forest can only address risks that are classified as "Critical" or "Substantial". This is in practice quite a broad range of concerns and Social Services are committed to looking at more moderate risks and providing enabling support where appropriate to prevent any imminent deterioration.
Health Visitor
Someone who specialises in the care of babies and young children at home. They are based at your GPs surgery and can offer advice, training and a sympathetic ear. They can also help you arrange to get a whole range of other services that might be needed.
Home care (also known as domiciliary care)
Services to help disabled and older people to live independently and safely in their own homes. For example, help may be provided with washing and dressing; transferring from bed to chair; eating and drinking, including delivery of meals; using incontinence aids; supervising taking of medication.
Home Care Assistant - the 'Home Help'
This is someone who is employed to come in to the home to provide practical help with bathing, washing, toileting and other practical things in the house.
Independent living
Enables people to take control over all aspects of their own lives. This may include employing personal assistants and organising when you want services yourself.
NHS Direct (0845 46 47)
A 24 hour, 7 days a week telephone helpline for all medical problems. When you ring you will speak to a specially trained nurse who will take you through a series of questions which will identify what the problem is and what the answer is. If it is a medical emergency they will summon an ambulance for you.
Nursing home: Place where at least one member of staff is a nurse, where several people needing health and social care live.
Occupational Therapist (also know as the OT)
They visit the person you care for and can advise on and provide special equipment to help with daily life, for example help with the bath, toilet or the stairs. They can teach you the best and easiest way to do things and how to use the equipment they provide.
Occupational Therapy
Provides specially designed equipment to help disabled people in their day-to-day lives. For example, equipment for home nursing (such as pressure relief mattresses); for daily living (such as shower chairs, raised toilets seats, grab rails); equipment for people with sensory impairments (flashing doorbells, text phones); equipment for people who are frail and vulnerable (falls detectors, hypothermia sensors, alarms).
Personal care
Helping people with daily care routines such as things like putting clothes on, going to the toilet or eating.
Physiotherapist (also known as the 'Physio')
They visit at home and help disabled or ill people with special exercises either to improve things or at least stop something getting worse. Sometimes they assist with special breathing techniques and can advise on special care that is sometimes needed.
Primary care
This covers health care such as GPs (general practitioners), dentists, pharmacists and opticians.
Residential home
A place where people with high social care needs (not medical) live.
Respite care
Is care for perhaps a few hours or a few days, which gives the carer and user a short break from each other. The carer can have a rest from their caring duties.
Sensory impairment
People who have dual sensory loss, are blind or partially sighted, or are deaf or hard-of-hearing
Single assessment process (SAP)
Older people will be assessed from April 2004 in line with Department of Health new guidelines. This will mean that the older person will only have to give key information once, no matter how many professionals and agencies are involved in care planning and service delivery. With the understanding and consent of the older person, essential information in an "Assessment Summary" will be shared electronically between professionals to enable a more standardised and coordinated approach to the care of older people. A copy of the older person's care plan will be given to them.
Social Services
Council department which organises social care for vulnerable children and adults.
Social Worker (also known as a Care Manager)
Social workers can help you and your family to get the support you need. This can be practical help in your home, benefits money, information about other organisations nearby that could help, a break for you from caring and information about a local young carers group. The social worker can also help you in confidence if there is anything that is troubling or worrying you.
Specialist Social Worker (for deaf and hard of hearing people)
The same as a social worker but can communicate with people who are deaf or hard of hearing. They can also provide special equipment for the home to people who have a hearing difficulty.
Supported / sheltered housing
Provides housing related support to vulnerable people. For instance the housing is id built or adapted and run with the users needs in mind. There may be support staff on duty or living close by to provide help if asked.
User involvement
Working in a way to ensure users have a say in their care or about a service as a whole. For example, setting up user groups to get their views on how services are developed in the future.
Voluntary organisations
Independent, non profit-making organisations. They can be self-help groups, advocacy groups, or charities.
