Claims axe has already fallen on meal service
Friday 19th February 2010, 10:35AM GMT.
Elderly Shropshire residents say they have already been told their hot Meals on Wheels will be replaced with frozen ones days before Shirehall leaders are due to vote on the proposals, a meeting heard.
Fears have been growing that Shropshire Council wants to cut daily deliveries of hot meals to some residents and replace them with fortnightly deliveries of frozen meals, which need to be heated up by the client.
Councillors are to vote on a shake-up of meals on wheels, which are currently delivered to at least 1,100 people countywide, at Thursday’s budget meeting.
But a meeting of Wem and Whitchurch Senior Citizens’ Forum yesterday heard dozens of elderly and vulnerable people have already been re-assessed over the phone.
They told the meeting in Wem their needs could never be properly determined without full home assessments.
Stephen Chandler, the council’s assistant director of adult social care, said: “I’m surprised and concerned to hear some people have had an assessment to say their service is stopping or changing. I understand we have not set a definitive date for anything to stop.”
Volunteer drivers told the meeting hot meals on wheels in Wem had already been axed from Monday.
Tina Evans, co-ordinator of the Wem scheme, said as a consequence of being assessed by telephone, about half of those receiving hot meals had already cancelled.
Mr Chandler said today no hot meal contracts have been cancelled. It was not the case the Wem service would be axed from Monday. He said some people were being assessed as part of the annual cycle of reviews.
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Quite right. The council are just saving money for the things that really matter. Never know when you might need the odd half million for another Quantum Leap type statue!
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Care in the community?
Whoops, is it still politically correct to say that I wonder?
Many of the people who receive such help will be injured handling hot food heated in an oven due to their lack of mobility in their fingers.
Please councilors, don’t let this through, hopefully you will grow to the age when you will need this type of assistance as many of us do now.
It’s not only about food delivery to many, but most importantly the message that someone out there still cares. What price can be placed on that?
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i dont see why they cant have a stash in the freezer and heat them up them selves, saves traffic congestion and fuel use, saves money its not like they’er not still getting a very cheap meal delivered, its just done in a more logistically efficient way, thank god finally some one at the council is getting to grip with costs and efficiency
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Some people can cope with re-heating frozen meals, some can’t. There still needs to be a hot meal service for those who can’t. Unless they could be fed on nothing but cold sandwiches. Not acceptable.
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I think this is really very short sighted. I have a close elderly relative and between us, with some paid caring, she is able to retain some independence in her own home. She is almost blind and unless you have personal experience you cannot really appreciate how this hinders your every single moment, excaserabated by her limited mobility. She cannot use a cooker and so this ht meal is very important. This allows her family and carers to provide sufficient care the remainder of day, ie morning and evening. I have no doubt that without this service she would likely and eventually end up in a residential home – this will be far more expensive than maintaining her in her own home. The council should consider what a vital service this is – it should be considered by people who are qualified to appreciate the every move of elderly people and how this is likely to impact on them. Even if they cannot consider morally what they should do then they should put their business heads on and see this is would be a mistake and could open the flood gates to further demands on the care system.
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