Plain-English guides to UK home care.

Hospital discharge and home care: what to do in the first 72 hours

When a hospital says your parent will be discharged in 48 hours, most families have no idea what to do next. Under NHS England's discharge-to-assess pathway, hospitals must ensure discharge is both safe and timely — but families often have to push hard to make that happen in practice. This guide covers how discharge works, who is responsible, what funding screening means, and the specific steps that prevent the first 72 hours at home from unravelling.