The research carried out by leading care home reviews site, carehome.co.uk, found that only 39 per cent of owners, managers and staff said their care home had bariatric facilities, with 13 per cent having to turn away obese people looking for a home.
The term ‘bariatric’ is used for people who weigh over 25 stone. One in four of the UK adult population is obese and this is expected to rise to one in three in the next 10 years.
The increase has led to a growing number of care homes in the UK building bariatric rooms, so they can care for severely overweight people. However the cost of providing these specialist rooms equipped with appropriate bathing and toilet facilities and of having extra care workers for moving and handling seems to be deterring many from going down this route.
Davina Ludlow, chair of carehome.co.uk, said: “The number of severely overweight older people is rising in the UK, and while some care homes have started building bariatric rooms to accommodate residents who are obese, over half are unprepared for this and have no specialist facilities.
“With obesity on the increase, it is vital that the care sector is able to cater to the needs of bariatric residents. Care home developers need to become more inclusive and start building specialist bariatric suites in new care home developments.”
She also called on the Government to acknowledge that care homes face higher costs if they care for bariatric residents due to installing specialist equipment and requiring more care workers for moving and handling. “It is much more expensive caring for morbidly obese people and care homes should receive more funding from the local authority for residents over a certain weight,” she said.
Severely obese people are more likely to suffer from complex conditions such as cardiac disease, hypertension, respiratory disease and diabetics. In addition, they often require specialist management of their skin as severely obese people have an increased risk of pressure ulcers, wounds and reduced prognosis for wound healing due to their immobility.
Zara Ross, head of care at St Monica Trust, which has a specialist bariatric suite in its Sherwood Nursing Home points out that it is not just about the physical care, as a person who is severely obese will often have emotional and psychological needs as people often feel very unhappy with their personal image.
She said: “They have to cope with the comments from people who are not obese and who can be quite intolerant and often do not understand why other people are overweight. They can also be viewed as a drain on resources such as the NHS.
“Obesity – whether associated with medical conditions, or for other reasons – is a major concern for health and social care providers currently, and over the next ten years.”
The figures were sourced from a survey completed by 1,154 care home owners, managers and staff as part of the carehome.co.uk Summer Survey.
SOURCE: carehome.co.uk, Sue Learner
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