Home care often fails to meet older people's basic human rights says inquiry

Once again in a new inquiry we hear about Vulnerable people receiving poor care at the hands of Homecare staff, staff that older people often feel they have no choice but to trust.  Since the Human Rights Act came into force in 2000, the home care industry has changed from having 56 per cent of care delivered by the private and voluntary sector to 84 per cent.

As a result of court decisions, the legal safety net provided by the Human Rights Act does not extend to older people receiving home care from private and voluntary sector agencies. This means that the majority of older people using home care services have no direct human rights protection.

The recent inquiry by the Equality and Human Rights Commission found that around half of the older people and relatives interviewed were highly satisfied with their standard of care. However, in a minority of cases there were significant lapses in the care some received.

The Commission's inquiry into the home care system in England reveals disturbing evidence that the poor treatment of many older people is breaching their human rights and too many are struggling to voice their concerns about their care or be listened to about what kind of support they want.

I understand that very few local authority contracts for home care specify that the provider must comply with the Human Rights Act. This is undermining the quality of care that older people are getting. In response to the findings of its inquiry, the Commission says that legislation and regulation needs to be updated to reflect huge shifts in how care is provided.  Its recommendations from the inquiry fall under three broad categories: -

• Proper protection: Closing the loophole in the Human Rights Act which would give protection to the growing number of older people receiving home care from private and voluntary sector agencies. The law was changed in this way in 2008 to protect residents of care homes who are funded by the state.

• Effective monitoring: The government, Care Quality Commission and local authorities need to work together better to build human rights into home care and make sure that abuses are detected faster and dealt with more effectively.

• Clear guidance: Clear and robust guidance on human rights is needed for councils so they can use the opportunities they have to promote and protect older people's human rights in commissioning; older people also need guidance to help them make choices about care and to explain how their human rights should be protected.

Sally Greengross, Commissioner for the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said:

'It is essential that care services respect people's basic human rights. This is not about burdensome red tape, it is about protecting people from the kind of dehumanising treatment we have uncovered. The emphasis is on saving pennies rather than providing a service which will meet the very real needs of our grandparents, our parents, and eventually all of us.

'This inquiry proposes some steps that would make sure human rights are protected in future – including changes to the law so that, at a minimum, all people getting publically funded home care are protected by the Human Rights Act.  Currently this is not the case.

'Most of us will want to carry on living in our own homes in later life, even if we need help to do so. When implemented, the recommendations from this inquiry will provide secure foundations for a home care system that will let us do so safely, with dignity and independence.'

Human rights law in home care
The Human Rights Act states that public authorities must comply with the European Convention on Human Rights when they are carrying out their powers and duties. Centrally important for home care is the cluster of rights protected by Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees respect for dignity and personal autonomy, family life and social relationships. Other important rights include the prohibition on inhuman or degrading treatment (Article 3); and the right to life (Article 2).

Bare compliance with the Human Rights Act is not enough; public authorities also have ‘positive obligations’ to promote and protect human rights, meaning that they should take active steps to promote and protect human rights when they are carrying out their powers and duties. These positive human rights obligations are particularly important when local authorities are commissioning services from private and third sector organisations.

Equality and Human Rights Commission
The Commission is a statutory body established under the Equality Act 2006, which took over the responsibilities of Commission for Racial Equality, Disability Rights Commission and Equal Opportunities Commission. It is the independent advocate for equality and human rights in Britain. It aims to reduce inequality, eliminate discrimination, strengthen good relations between people, and promote and protect human rights. The Commission enforces equality legislation on age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation, and encourages compliance with the Human Rights Act. It also gives advice and guidance to businesses, the voluntary and public sectors, and to individuals. 

It is time we ensured all staff are offered high quality training and are trained in all aspects of their role so that they can provide the sort of care vulnerable adults require and value.

Personal Care Consultants can offer a tailored training package to Private and Voluntary sector homecare managers and their staff to refresh and improve skill levels and knowledge in all or any of the following areas:-

• Human Rights Act
• Mental Capacity Act
• Dignity, Respect and Privacy
• Personal Care
• Promoting Independence and Reablement
• Outcome focused care planning
• Health and Nutrition
• Catheter Care
• Infection Control
• Administration of Medication  
• Record Keeping & Reporting
• Risk Assessment
• Pressure Sore Prevention and Treatment
• Principles of Care
• Manual Handling of People
• Dementia Awareness
• Diabetes Awareness

For more information please visit our Training pages or e-mail training@thecareplan.com or call us on 01244 390677 for an informal discussion of your requirements.