What is NHS Continuing Healthcare and what help can I get with care costs?
What is NHS Continuing Healthcare?
NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) is a package of care that is arranged and funded solely by the NHS. Unlike most social care, it is not means-tested. This means your savings, income or property are not taken into account.
Care can be provided in a care home, nursing home ore even in someone's own home.
How do I know if I am eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare?
To qualify you, or your loved one, must have a "primary health need". This means the main reason they need care is for their health, rather than just help with daily living, like washing or getting dressed.
The Continuing Healthcare (CHC) Checklist is the first step in the process, it is a screening tool used by healthcare professionals to decide if someone needs a full assessment.
You can request a CHC Checklist assessment through you, or your loved ones, GP, social worker or care home staff. If the checklist shows you or your loved one has a certain level of need, they will move onto a full assessment.
You can find the CHC Checklist here:
NHS Continuing Healthcare assessment process
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Look at the NHS CHC Checklist
- Have a look at the NHS CHC Checklist to see if you or your loved one might be eligible.
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Gather evidence
- Gather all the evidence you need to support the application.
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CHC Checklist assessment
- Request a CHC Checklist assessment from a health or care professional.
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Full assessment
- If the CHC Checklist shows there is a certain level of need, they will move on to a full assessment by a multidisciplinary team (MDT) using a "Decision Support Tool".
What evidence do I need for a CHC assessment?
It is important to gahter evidence for a CHC assessment. Roughly 70% of first-time applications fail at the screening stage because families don't have enough evidence.
You should gather:
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Medical records
- GP records from the last 12 months and specialist letters from any hospital departments involved in you, or your loved ones, care.
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Care home records
- Ask for the last three to six months of incident logs, behaviour support plans and daily care records.
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Specialist reports
- Any assessments from dietitians, speech and language therapists or physiotherapists are highly weighted by assessors.
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Medication lists
- A full list of current medications, what they are prescribed for and what monitoring is requires (such as regular blood tests).
Top tips for NHS Continuing Healthcare Assessment
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Document worst days
- Assessments must reflect the full pattern of need, so ensure records show incidents and difficulties, not just "good" days.
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Managed needs are still needs
- If a condition is only stable because of medication or specialist care, it still counts as a health need under the National Framework
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Request copies of the assessment
- You are entitled to a copy of the completed CHC Checklist and assessment scores before you leave the meeting.
What other support is available?
There is support available for the cost of NHS care, and for carers in Dudley borough.
Help with health and care costs
If you, or your loved one, is already in a nursing home but doesn't qualify for CHC, they might still be entitled to NHS Funded Nursing Care.
You can get help for health and care costs through a number of schemes
Support for carers in Dudley borough
If you provide care for a loved one, there is support available in Dudley.
What support can I get as a carer?
