A Common Assessment Framework for Adults – Development 12 February 2008 Carl Evans Social Care, Local Government and Care Services Directorate Department of Health

Rationale for CAF Clear desire for continued improvements in coordination between health and social care services. Our hypothesis is that improved multi-disciplinary assessment and information exchange is required to: –underpin multi-disciplinary working; and –improve outcomes for all adults with complex longer- term health and social care needs (not just older people).

What is CAF 1.Framework setting out principles to underpin assessment of people with complex, long-term needs; –Based on a person-centred approach; –Builds on and uses the current Single Assessment Process and the Care Programme Approach in Mental Health Services –Needs to link to a range of developing policy & practice 2.Proposals for developing integrated electronic care records.

Assessing Needs 1 Needs will be better identified through a thorough assessment of needs, which involves: –Self-assessment (where possible) as a starting point –A contact assessment – to identify those with complex needs (i.e. evidence suggests that a targeted, rather than a blanket approach to multi-disciplinary assessment is effective) –More detailed Holistic/Overview Assessment for people who need it – covers physical and mental health and social and environmental needs.

Assessing Needs 2 –Overview assessment should identify areas where Specialist Assessments needed (e.g medical, OT etc); –Carers assessments – assessors encouraged to identify impact on carers and to offer assessment of carers own needs wherever potential need identified. »Standard information set about assessment and care plan information developed, which would be incorporated into both NHS and social services systems – enables electronic messaging; Facilitated by

Electronic Interface Model GP System Mental Health Trust System NHS Trust System Social Care Record System CAF Message Summary Care Record CAF Message Transaction Messaging Service NHS Care Records Systems Model involves connecting social services systems to National Spine Services, to enable them to interface with NHS National Spine Personal Demographics Service

Social Care PDS Early Adopter Project To link social services IT systems to NHS Connecting for Health’s Personal Demographics Service: –To provide a foundation on which information sharing can take place –To help develop the experience of IT suppliers –To share the lessons / experience more widely – LAs, CFH and DH

Integrated Records Funding Support CSR funding from April 08 has been secured for a series of pilot /demonstrator sites to stimulate local development of integrated electronic records solutions; -Pilots will be social services led, but taken forward in partnership with the NHS and other sectors, -Pilots will be expected to deliver a number of integrated record solutions to the market. Further funding will be available for the continued development of social care IT infrastructure – £15m /£16m /17m – over the next three years

Proposed scope of the demonstrators / pilots Upgrading existing social services IT systems so that they meet the necessary standards to be able to interface with the NHS Care Records Service (through the existing systems programme); Providing social services with access (or partial access) to information held on the National Spine; Using national Spine services to store assessments and care plans; Establishing assessment processes which are consistent with the principles of the Common Assessment Framework for Adults across local organisations participating in the pilots; and Evaluating the costs, benefits and risks of deploying integrated electronic care records.