Survey Finds Adult Care Users Need More Support

Survey Finds Adult Care Users Need More Support

A national study, conducted by NHS Digital, has found that adult social care users are requiring more assistance when partaking in everyday activities.

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A national study, conducted by NHS Digital, has found that adult social care users are requiring more assistance when partaking in everyday activities.

The study, based on a survey of councils with adult social services responsibilities, has found that the proportion of service users who require help with six out of eight activities has had a ‘statistically significant’ increase. This has risen by 0.7 and 1.3 percentage points.

The six activities included using the toilet, dealing with finances and paperwork, self-feeding, getting dressed, bathing and getting in and out of bed (or a chair). The other two activities, getting around indoors and washing their face and hands, also saw a slight increase. 

However, the study also found that 70% of people receiving services care feel ‘as safe as they want’. This has increased by almost 1% from 2015-16. Moreover, 86.4% of people who took part in the survey said that the care and support services that they receive helped them to feel safe. 

Other findings from the survey included:

•  45% of service users reported they had as much social contact as they would like
• 65% of service users were extremely or very satisfied with the care and support services they received
• Almost 70% of eligible service users were in community support settings