
The following illustration may help:
As a care manager for older people, I assess service users that are struggling to care for themselves in the community. Mr E is 87, lives alone and has recently developed a leg ulcer which has temporarily prevented him from taking care of himself. His leg needs to be dressed every day by district nurses. I have arranged for him to have meals on wheels and some assistance at home to help him wash and get groceries. I am aware that there are increasing numbers of older people living longer and many of them require assistance to continue to live independently (AgeUK (2013) Later Life in the UK. December Factsheet). In my authority I am also aware that the population of older people is changing, with a higher number from minority ethnic communities than was the case a few years ago. I have taken some responsibility in my team to liaise with community groups in the areas where many of the minority ethnic older people are located. This has allowed me to learn more about tailoring the delivery of personal care in ways that fit that particular community and how to organise community responses. I have the authority to allocate some funding to service users as personal budgets so that they can organise their own services if they wish to; some are enthusiastic but other are not so keen, like Mr E. I am aware that in my authority we are developing the way personal budgets are used to make it easier for people to take them up. I liaise with other professionals in the health service, such as district nurses and occupational therapists, so that our work together is better coordinated.