abstract: This article draws on the author's experience of working in care homes, supporting staff and inspecting. It outlines five stages to consent in relation to older people in care homes and provides detailed explanations of these. It highlights pertinent current policy documents and explores the challenges of consent in long-term care, suggesting that consent is not a one-off episode requiring a consent form but is one stage in the continuum of service users' involvement in their care. It identifies legislative requirements and discusses consent by the service user or their representative.
authors.affiliation: Students on the Msc geronotological pratice programme at the Unversity of Portsmouth.
authors.forename: Elaine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hoysted