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Definition of care home, hospital and hospice
A care home is defined (PADP regs, reg. 2 and Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010, Schedule 12, para.2)as a service which provides accommodation together with any of the following:
- nursing care
- personal care
- personal support
The service should be provided to the individual because of their vulnerability and needs. This definition of care home does not include hospitals or hospices.
It might not always be clear if the place where the individual is living is a care home. The key to this definition is if the accommodation is linked to the care they receive (PADP regs, reg. 2)
Situations such as retirement or sheltered housing are similar but are not defined as care homes. The individual may have their tenancy paid for separately to the care or services they receive. Case managers should consider this on an individual basis
Example: accommodation which is not considered to be a care home
Georgia is 72 and has applied for PADP. She has recently moved into retirement housing. This is sometimes known as sheltered housing. Georgia’s accommodation has a communal area, a 24-hour emergency alarm system and a warden.
However, Georgia does not receive support with her nursing or personal care, meals or help with daily tasks. Georgia lives independently in her retirement housing but has the comfort of knowing there is an alarm system during an emergency.
The case manager determines that Georgia’s accommodation does not meet the definition of a care home. This means that Georgia’s accommodation is not taken into consideration when making a determination of entitlement to PADP.
A hospital is an institution or establishment for the care of the sick or wounded, or of those who require medical treatment. Any reference to hospital in this chapter can also refer to similar institutions such as:
- rehabilitation centres
- addiction clinics It can also include hospices.
For applications under Special Rules for Terminal Illness only, a hospice is a palliative care institution that isn’t publicly funded and whose main function is to provide palliative end of life care for people suffering from a progressive disease at the final stages. A hospice is a separate organisation to a hospital. For more information see the definition of a hospice, see the section below, and for information on applying for PADP with a terminal illness, see the Special Rules for Terminal Illness chapter (PADP regs, reg. 21(2)).
If an individual is resident or a patient in a care home (PADP regs, reg 19), hospital (PADP regs, reg 20), or similar institution outside of the common travel area, it could affect their ability to satisfy the ordinary and habitual residence requirements for PADP. This will depend on their overall circumstances and how long they will remain outside of the common travel area (PADP regs, reg. 9(d)). An individual can be absent from the common travel area for any reason for up to 13 weeks, or up to 26 weeks where the absence is for medical treatment (PADP regs, reg 10). The common travel area comprises the UK, the whole of the island of Ireland (including the Republic of Ireland), the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
Case managers should be aware that this temporary absence from the common travel area could impact upon and individual’s entitlement to PADP. They will have to consider the potential impact in all cases involving time periods spent in a care home, hospital or similar institution outside of the common travel area. For more information on this and temporary absences from the common travel area, see the Residence and Presence Chapter.