Caring for the nation is constant.

Whether it be in hospital or treating people in their own homes, the health of our nation is paramount, but social changes are putting a strain on NHS provision.

The treatment of people with complex needs and an increase in hospital admissions has contributed to the demand leaving hospitals struggling to cope – and with an ageing population the situation is likely to worsen.

The Future Hospital Commission, set up by the Royal College of Physicians, makes 50 recommendations – among them are minimising moves between beds and wards and organising services so clinical staff and diagnostic and support services are readily available on a seven-day basis.

According to the report, “all too often our most vulnerable patients – those who are old, who are frail or who have dementia – are failed by a system ill-equipped and seemingly unwilling to meet their needs.”

Jeremy Hughes, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Society, says: “A quarter of hospital beds are occupied by someone with dementia. We expect hospitals to be a place of safety and treatment, but for people with dementia the reality is that a hospital can be a frightening and stressful place to be, with patients being moved from pillar to post and care too often disjointed.

“We need nothing less than a revolution in hospitals in order to ensure our NHS is fit for the future, and with a million people estimated to have dementia in less than ten years, the health system needs to be designed with dementia at its heart. If the NHS fails to prepare to deal with dementia, it is simply preparing to fail.”

Several studies have shown that patients admitted to NHS hospitals at weekends and on bank holidays have higher death rates and poorer outcomes.

“Acutely ill medical patients in hospital should have the same access to medical care on the weekend as on a week day,” says the report.

Under the plans, arrangements for discharging patients from hospital will also operate on a seven-day basis, with closer links with community services and social care.

The report acknowledges that ‘tough decisions lie ahead’. “Reconfiguration will almost certainly be needed,” it says. “No hospital can provide the range of services and expert staff needed to treat patients across the spectrum of all clinical conditions on a seven-day basis.”

The report also says effective alternatives to hospital admission must be found, including better managing people in their own homes or other community settings.

A spokesman for Healthwatch Bradford and District, says they welcome the principle set out in the report that ‘patient experience is valued as much as clinical effectiveness’.

“This requires a commitment from hospitals to actively seek patients’ feedback, asking them about their experience and using this to improve care.

“The importance of patient experience is reflected in the feedback we get from people in Bradford, who tell us how important it is for them to know who is in charge of their care in hospital, to be treated with dignity and respect, to feel listened to by staff, and for family and carers to be involved.

“The ideas set out in the report about improving the quality and availability of care round the clock, and of not moving patients around the hospital will make sense to people, but the challenge will be for hospitals to implement these changes at a time when they’re under such pressure.”

A spokesman for Action On Elder Abuse, expressed concern that too many people get poor-quality care in hospital and is seeking for amendments in the Care bill to include a specific offence of abuse or neglect of a vulerable adult.

The Prime Minister, David Cameron, recently agreed to look again at proposals aimed at strengthening legislation to protect older and disabled people.

They include a power of access to allow local authorities to carry out a confidential interview with a vulnerable adult believed to be at risk of abuse or neglect as a last resort when a third party is denying access to that person; introducing a new offence of Corporate Neglect to sanction care home or care agency managers who allow a culture of abuse and neglect to continue in their organisations, and introducing a new offence of ill treatment or neglect to extend protection to vulnerable adults who have mental capacity.

Gary Fitzgerald, chief executive of the charity Action On Elder Abuse, says: “We are pleased that the Prime Minister has recognised the importance of the changes we are proposing, and will look again at how legislation can be improved. Thousands of older people are abused each year and theirs is a silent scream of pain and suffering. We need to hear it and address it. There should be no hiding place for abusers.”