1. What is an Assessment?
An assessment is a process which identifies what support an adult who has care and support needs and is living at home, could receive from the service. This could be receiving home visits from care workers, for example.
The assessment should be completed before the adult starts receiving care and support from the service.
A member of staff who has been trained to carry out assessments, will complete the assessment form with the adult, and a family member, if appropriate. The assessment may also include staff from other agencies who also work with the adult.
It is very important that the adult is at the centre of the process and has every opportunity to say what is important to them about their current circumstances and what they want to achieve from working with the service to help them stay living at home for as long as they want and is possible.
The member of staff carrying out the assessment should give information to the adult and their family about what the service provides, so they are clear about what it can offer and help them decide whether it is right for the adult.
The assessment also helps staff decide whether the service can meet the care and support needs of the adult.
The information that is recorded in the assessment form helps the member of staff to develop the care and support plan, which states what interventions the adult should receive from staff and how often.
Assessments should be completed throughout the time the adult receives support from the service, to see if their care and support needs have changed. For example, if their health is not as good as it was and they are not managing to live at home like they used to.
2. What does the Assessment Include?
The assessment should focus on the adult as a person in their own right and consider everything about how they live in their own home, and what their immediate and longer-term needs are.
It should reflect the adult’s individual needs, their wishes and their cultural background and diversity.
It should identify any risks there may be for the adult receiving care and support at home, and say how these will be managed.
The assessment should identify their physical, emotional, social needs and their personal relationships.
It should aim to reduce the risk of their health getting worse by spotting any signs of poor health quickly and making sure they get the right medical support.
The assessment should support the adult to make healthy living choices while they are living at home, for example about exercise, diet and their lifestyle.
Some adults may not be able to fully take part in the assessment, depending on their ‘mental capacity’. They may be able to say what activities they like, what types of food they like to eat and what clothes they like to wear for example, but may need support from a family member, carer or other representative, in more complicated areas that the assessment has to cover.
A copy of the assessment will be kept in the adult’s care records.
