Norfolk hospital patients sent to hotel for 'more normal life'

The Holiday Inn, pictured in 2017, will accommodate 15 patients who do not have high care needs, the CCG said

Patients sent to a hotel to free up hospital space will "live a more normal life" there than in a care home, a chief nurse said.

The Holiday Inn in Norwich will accommodate 15 patients who need extra support before going home.

The three-month trial comes after the NHS declared a critical incident.

"It's enabling them to meet up with people in the same circumstances," said Cath Byford of Norfolk and Waveney Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).

"Rather than keeping people in hospitals, which is not a great experience and increases the risk of catching other infections, we thought it's a more pleasant environment.

"It encourages them to live a more normal life, rather than in a care home setting... and just feel better about that journey home."

'Hugely increasing demands'

Patients are expected to arrive at the hotel, on the outskirts of the city on Ipswich Road, in the next few weeks and stay for about a fortnight.

Staff provided by Abicare will help them with washing, mobility and to gain independence, Ms Byford explained, adding that it was not for patients with more complex needs.

By having all 15 patients in one setting, carers could easily visit each person several times a day.

She said services faced a "huge challenge" of increased demand and reduced staffing, and the use of "care hotels" was costly but had worked elsewhere in the country.

"We have hugely increasing demands on people requiring access to social care and as much as the county council is doing to increase capacity available to patients, actual demand is just higher," she said.

"It is expensive, but the priority is about enabling people to leave hospital and keeping capacity available for people who need emergency care.

"It is only a pilot and we will be able to see if it has the impact it has needed."

The Holiday Inn said it was unable to comment due to guest and booking confidentiality.