Experiences of people living in Housing with Care

We wanted to hear from people who are least heard, those who are isolated and vulnerable. We do not hear from people in housing with care, so we decided to speak to them about their experiences of health and care, including GPs, community health services, including opticians, dentists, community nurses and the hospital. 

We interviewed 13 people on a one to one basis and 57 people through 9 focus groups.  We also created three case studies which show some people’s experiences of health and social care, dentists, religion and difference, age and their impact on people’s experiences. 

What we heard

• People said their needs were met and were happy living in the housing with care scheme.
• People  were happy their medications were ordered by the carers or family. Delivered to the scheme by the  pharmacy and given to the residents by the housing with care staff.
• GP appointments can be difficult to get whether you are independent enough to phone them yourself or if the carers do it. Everyone who joined in said they would prefer a face to face meeting with their GP. 
• Dentistry was not seen as something important by all residents.

Learning for improvement 

Here are some comments we heard:

• Sometimes we are chasing doctors
• Services are stretched so sometimes it takes a long time for a response or something to be done
• Social workers should listen to staff more, as they know residents on personal level
• Sometimes the pharmacies get meds wrong”