Securing funding for the VENDLET: a resource for Occupational Therapists

This resource has been designed to help you prepare robust clinical reasoning to help secure the VENDLET system for your client. It includes a series of prompts, and ideas of the kind of information that decision-makers may require before agreeing to fund.

1. Outline the cost benefit

The VENDLET has many major benefits, including increased safety and comfort for carers and service users. However, another major benefit can be the potential cost savings. Does your client currently require multiple carers to attend them at any one time? This is obviously costly, and the VENDLET can reduce that cost, as it often only requires a single carer to turn a client.

Presenting the cost savings in pounds and pence may help – use our online cost calculator to crunch the numbers.

2. Present the alternatives

Even if the VENDLET turns out to be an economically-sound purchase (as we’ve just explored), you may nonetheless be asked if you’ve considered lower-cost alternatives. It would be sensible to include a list of options in your business case, with a note next to each one explaining why the VENDLET is a more suitable option (e.g, it’s less invasive, which lowers stress and anxiety for the patient etc.)

3. Remember to put the carers in the picture, as well as the service user

Along with the many benefits the VENDLET brings for your client, remember to outline the positive effects on the carers wellbeing, too. Benefits could include:

•  A significantly reduced risk of back injury, as the VENDLET negates the need for manual handling.
•  The reduced cost of care could release funds for much-needed respite for family carers (dependant on funding streams)
•  Multiple carers attending the household can be distressing – for members of the client’s household as well as client – particularly if they are very elderly or living with dementia. Reducing the number of carers can alleviate stress.

Click here to learn how to use the Likert Scale, Body Maps, the Borg Scale and Rapid Entire Body Assessments to boost your argument.

4. More dignity, less stress

As we’ve just mentioned, for a client who suffers with anxiety, or who’s emotional wellbeing is dependent on preserving their dignity and independence, a single carer attending their needs is far better than two or three. Refer to the first section of the Care Act 2014 for more information on the importance of caring for your client’s wellbeing: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/23/section/1/enacted

5. Is your client in pain?

Manually turning a patient who suffers from underlying pain can greatly exacerbate it (two carers turning a patient = four painful pressure points). The VENDLET can reduce that pain by distributing the pressure evenly as the patient is turned.

6. Avoiding tissue damage

Outline the reasons why turning a client with the VENDLET is safer than turning them manually – particularly if this is currently being done with slide sheets. The sudden acceleration often necessary when turning a person with slide sheets can cause significant amounts of friction and shear, which can lead to tissue damage. Turning with the VENDLET is also a controlled movement, which greatly reduces the risk of accidents during care visits.

We hope these prompts have been useful. If you have any questions about the VENDLET systems, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.