NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde are calling on the public to organise Power of Attorney for welfare matters.
Statistics show that around a third of patients are delayed in their discharge from hospital because they don’t have one in place. That means more time in hospital and away from home comforts.
Currently, over 100 people are delayed within NHSGGC due to a lack of a Power of Attorney. This is roughly equivalent to four acute inpatient wards. If this wasn’t required, staff could be assigned to other areas of the healthcare system and helping people who need care today.
The impact of a delayed discharge is felt throughout hospitals in NHSGGC. Getting patients back to homely settings and freeing up a bed means an Acute Medical Unit (AMU) patient can be moved up to the ward for specialist care, an A&E patient can move into our AMUs for a rapid medical assessment, an ambulance patient waiting in an ambulance can be transferred to the A&E for appropriate emergency care, and an ambulance is freed up to respond faster to another patient in the community.
Professor Angela Wallace, Nurse Director for NHSGGC, said: “Within our healthcare system, people delayed in their discharge may not be in the best place for the point they are at in their care journey – which affects the pace and quality of care we are able to provide patients and other people who depend on our care and services.”
“Patients and families often inform us of common misconceptions, including that they thought families could automatically make welfare decisions on behalf of their loved ones and that Power of Attorney is for only older people.
“By law, no one has an automatic right to make decisions on your behalf. We want to encourage families to have conversations about what they would want to happen if they could no longer make decisions for themselves and use this to begin the formal process of arranging Power of Attorney. We also want people to realise that accidents or illness can occur at any age.
“Power of Attorney puts your future in your hands and of the ones you love and trust most.”
Setting up a Power of Attorney in Scotland is simple with the right planning and legal aid may be available to those on low and modest incomes.
You can find out more about appointing a Power of Attorney for welfare matters by visiting https://www.mypowerofattorney.org.uk. You can also find other planning tools to help you prepare for healthcare by visiting https://www.nhsggc.scot/your-health/planning-for-care/tools-to-help-you-plan/.
