Your family statement for the CHC assessment

We cannot help with this one, sorry

Our pack is written for NHS Continuing Healthcare in England, under the National Framework for England. Wales has its own framework for continuing NHS healthcare, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have different systems, so a pack from us would not fit. Your local health board or health and social care trust can explain the process where you live.

This is for adults

NHS Continuing Healthcare under the National Framework is for adults aged 18 or over. Children and young people with complex health needs are assessed under a separate process, which our pack does not cover. Their GP or care team can explain it.

The first step is the Checklist

The NHS Continuing Healthcare Checklist is a screening tool with a deliberately low threshold. A family member cannot complete or submit it: it is done by a trained health or social care practitioner, such as a social worker, a GP, a district nurse or the care home's registered nurse.

• Ask the GP, district nurse, social worker or care home in writing to complete a Checklist, and keep a copy of your request.
• You should get the outcome in writing with the reasons, normally a copy of the completed Checklist.
• A positive Checklist leads to a full assessment by a multidisciplinary team. It does not mean the person is eligible. Our guide to the Checklist explains the thresholds.
• Start a care diary now: it is the evidence the team will want later. Our free 7-day care diary helps.

After a negative Checklist

• You can ask the ICB in writing to reconsider. It should give your request due consideration, but it does not have to carry out a further Checklist.
• If the needs are likely to increase in the next 3 months, a review of the Checklist should be considered. Say so if that is the case.
• The independent review process cannot look at a refusal to do a full assessment after a negative Checklist. If the ICB will not reconsider, the route is the NHS complaints procedure. More in our Checklist guide.
• Keep a care diary of what changes. Our free 7-day care diary helps.

Ask about the Fast Track Pathway

We are sorry you are going through this. When someone has a rapidly deteriorating condition that may be entering a terminal phase, the Fast Track Pathway Tool replaces the Checklist and the full assessment.

• It is completed by an appropriate clinician: a registered nurse or doctor responsible for their diagnosis, treatment or care, including hospice clinicians. Family members and care home staff can ask the clinician to consider it.
• There is no strict time limit on the prognosis, and it can be used in any setting, including to help someone go home.
• The ICB should act on a properly completed tool straight away, and the care package should usually be in place within 48 hours. Our Fast Track guide explains each step.

There is nothing to buy from us at this stage. Please speak to the doctor or nurse caring for them today.

Your pack

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