Somerset Council has made a significant investment in purchasing nearly 50 new beds in nursing homes with the aim of facilitating quicker patient discharges from hospitals. The acute hospital wards in Somerset have been frequently full due to bed blocking, preventing patients from being discharged to a nursing home or other community facility owing to space or support staff constraints.
To address this issue, the council has allocated an annual budget of up to £2m to maintain ‘block beds’ in key locations across the county. This initiative is expected to enable patients to use these beds upon hospital discharge or to be directly transferred to them instead of visiting A&E. The first set of beds is scheduled to become operational in the coming months, with ongoing negotiations for additional beds throughout spring and summer.
The decision to procure ‘block beds’ was deliberated during a meeting of the council’s executive committee in Taunton. Councillor Sarah Wakefield, portfolio holder for adult social care, emphasized the importance of managing the care market in line with the Care Quality Commission’s requirements and highlighted the necessity of having block beds to control costs and market dynamics.
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The closure of 16 care homes in Somerset since 2021 has resulted in a loss of 144 general nursing placements, escalating pressure on the county’s hospitals and adult social care teams. Under the new tenders, the council has acquired 39 nursing block beds, with plans to allocate 23 in Bridgwater, 11 in Minehead, and five split between Shepton Mallet and Wells. Additionally, the council aims to procure ten more beds in the Yeovil area, which will be contracted directly later this year, amounting to a total annual cost of £2m for the initiative.
James Sangster, the council’s service manager for adults commissioning, expressed confidence in securing the necessary beds, particularly in the Yeovil area, where limited response was received during the initial tendering stage. Despite ongoing construction of new residential care homes in different parts of Somerset, concerns were raised regarding the necessity of the council’s bed investment in light of this building activity. However, Mel Lock, the council’s executive director for adult services, stressed the importance of having the right homes that offer appropriate care and support within Somerset to prevent external influx and subsequent cost escalation.
The council’s strategic investment in nursing home beds is aimed at alleviating bed blocking in hospitals, benefiting both patients and the healthcare system in Somerset.