Submission to the Department of Health: Introducing fundamental standards

There must be clear reference to the involvement of, and respect for, people who are carers, family members and/or representatives of the person who uses the service.

Despite the government’s intentions, outcomes relating to the full involvement of people who use services are not adequately reflected in the draft regulations.

Now that the government has taken the decision not to proceed with a ‘two tier’ approach to standards, and only to legislate for the Fundamental Standards, it is even more important that the regulations reflect these outcomes.

In particular we are concerned about, and will provide detailed comment on what we
consider to be the following significant omissions:

• The omission of carers, family members and/or representatives of the person
• The omission of the outcome that people have choice and control
• The omission of people’s right to full information with which to make decisions
• The omission of the outcome that people are supported to manage their health, care and support
• The omission of any reference to people being involved in planning their care, support and treatment

Finally, we believe that outcome-focused regulations should reflect that the primary purpose of hearing both complaints and the views and experiences of service users their carers and families should be for the improvement of the quality of the service, not as an outcome in itself or for the completion of good governance.

If you would like to read this submission in an alternative format, please get in touch.