Dear colleague,New good practice guidance on managing care home closures has been published by CQC and NHS England. The quick guide is designed to help providers and partners to reduce the negative impact on residents/service users, their families and carers, in the event of a care home being forced to close. Closure could be for various reasons: in response to poor care, an emergency, planned market exit or due to financial failure.CQC said of the guidance’s publication:‘We’ve worked in partnership with NHS England (NHSE), the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS), the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Care Provider Alliance (CPA) to agree the guide, which sets out how local and national organisations should work together in order to coordinate action, avoid duplication and prevent confusion for people using services, their families and carers, care home providers and their managers and staff.’The guidance will hopefully be a supportive resource for any provider facing, or planning, care home closure.Andrea Sutcliffe, Chief Inspector of Adult Social Care, said it was important to think carefully about the impact of home closure, and to plan ahead:‘Clearly defined roles and responsibilities, consistent communication and making sure people’s wishes and requirements are fully taken into account are vital to ensure the impact on people is as comfortable as possible.’You can view the guidance here as part of NHS England’s Quick Guides series:http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/keogh-review/Pages/quick-guides.aspx
