Main heading

Operational Frequently Asked Questions

General:

1. What is Single Assessment Process (SAP)?
2. Contact Assessment
3. Overview Assessment
4. Comprehensive Assessment
5. Specialist Assessment
6. What is the Minimum Data Set – Home Care Assessment Tool (MDS-HC)?
7. What are CAPs (Client Assessment Protocols)?
8. Client Assessment Protocols (CAPs)
9. Why was MDS-HC chosen as the assessment tool to be used in Cheshire?
10. Who will use MDS-HC?
11. When will the electronic version of MDS-HC become available?
12. Why are some people going to use MDS-HC electronically and others use paper?
13. How will the implementation of electronic MDS-HC affect how I work?
14. How long will it take to fill in an MDS-HC assessment form?
15. How will the use of MDS-HC benefit service users?
16. Who will see my assessment?

Training:

1. What plans are there for training staff in IT skills?
2. How will I be trained to use the electronic version of MDS-HC?
3. Who will be doing the training?

IT/Hardware:

1. Will I have easy access to a computer?
2. Will I be sitting at a computer all day?
3. Will I be using a mobile device to gather assessment data?
4. How does MDS-HC fit with existing and future IT systems?
5. How does SAP fit with the electronic record and NPfIT? (National Programme for IT)
6. How will a persons’ record be kept up to date?
7. Will I be able to print out information?

General:

1. What is SAP?

The Single Assessment Process, introduced in the Department of Health’s National Service Framework for Older People, aims to make sure older people's care needs are assessed thoroughly and accurately, but without information being needlessly duplicated by different agencies.

Older people are often confronted by requests for assessment information from a range of professionals from different agencies including GPs, community nurses, social workers, mental health workers and housing services.

Each agency gathers similar personal details and information about the person’s needs. Information is stored in personal profiles on separate databases or in paper files.

For older people repeating multiple interviews can be frustrating and stressful. For Social Services and Health partners, duplication of data is inefficient and the lack of co-ordination means that elderly people may not receive the most appropriate care to meet their needs.

Within SAP assessment is described as contact, overview, comprehensive and specialist.

2. Contact Assessment

This level of assessment refers to a contact between an older person and health and/or social services where significant needs are first described or suspected.

At contact assessment basic personal information is collected and the nature of the presenting problem is established as well as the potential presence of wider health and social care needs.

The person undertaking the assessment should be satisfied that the following issues have been addressed:

1. The nature of the presenting need.
2. The significance of the need for the older person.
3. The length of time the need has been experienced.
4. Potential solutions identified by the older person.
5. Other needs experienced by the older person.
6. Recent life events or changes relevant to the problem(s).
7. The perceptions of family members and carers.

3. Overview Assessment

Professionals carry out an overview assessment if, in their judgment, the individual’s needs are such that a more rounded assessment should be undertaken than provided by the contact assessment.

The need for an overview assessment may be immediately apparent, and should be commenced once the basic personal information has been collected.

At other times, a contact assessment may have been carried out. In some situations, a specialist assessment of a ‘specific’ problem may have been undertaken first, with the overview assessment providing subsequent contextual assessment information.

4. Comprehensive Assessment

A comprehensive assessment may arise in several ways. For example, from the outset, it may be obvious to a doctor or other qualified professional that, based on their professional judgement, the needs and circumstances of an older person are such that a comprehensive assessment involving specialist assessments of all or most of the domains of the single assessment process should be commenced.

In this situation, conducting an overview assessment would be unnecessary and could delay getting the right help to the older person.

Alternatively at initial contact there could be less certainty, and an overview assessment may be carried out to explore areas of concern.

When all the domains of an overview assessment have been covered, and specialist assessments carried out in most or all of them, the result is also a comprehensive assessment.

In addition, comprehensive assessments should be completed for people where the level of support and treatment likely to be offered is intensive or prolonged, including permanent admission to a care home, intermediate care services, or substantial packages of care at home.

5. Specialist Assessment

Specialist assessment offers a way of exploring specific needs in detail, and may be indicated as a consequence of a contact, overview or comprehensive assessment.

Specialist assessments should be carried out by the most appropriate qualified professional, for example, social workers, occupational therapists, dieticians.

6. What is the Minimum Data Set – Home Care Assessment Tool (MDS-HC)?

The Minimum Data Set (MDS-HC) is a standardised assessment tool which has been developed as a result of many years of international research by an organisation called interRAI. It is one of a small number of tools accredited by the Department of Health and covers contact, overview and comprehensive assessments. The electronic version of MDS-HC which will be implemented across Cheshire provides:

The facility to record assessment data electronically and map changes in need over time;
A decision support for assessors by automatically highlighting areas of concern (CAPs, see below) which might need to be addressed as part of the care plan;
Aggregated data which allows the monitoring of clinical and service performance.