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Scottish Care calls for significant escalation in care home testing

There is international recognition that care homes are particularly vulnerable to the threat of Coronavirus. Sadly, the international statistics show that between 42 and 52% of all fatalities are likely to have been individuals who have been care home residents.

This makes it imperative that we have a clear strategy to reduce the threat and address the risks which Covid-19 poses for our care home population. Therefore, in light of international clinical evidence and measures announced in both Northern Ireland and England, Scottish Care is today calling for the following:

1. When a Covid-19 case is diagnosed in any care home that all residents and staff are immediately tested. This would enable appropriate action to be taken on isolation and nursing for residents and for staff to self-isolate. This will inevitably require additional staffing support for those care homes which are most affected.

2. All staff in care homes and providing care at home regardless of direct care roles should wear face masks in order to reduce the transmission of the virus. If it is appropriate for face protection to be worn when citizens go shopping then within a care facility it seems equally important that face masks are worn when not in direct contact and that adequate face masks are worn within a two-metre distance. We recognise that for services which do not normally wear such masks this will be a massive increase in demand for PPE. It will be necessary for these increased costs to be addressed as a matter of urgency or care providers risk going out of business during this pandemic.

3. That steps are put in place to develop a strategy whereby staff and residents in those care homes which have thus far have had no cases are fully tested.

We recognise that tests can be distressing for individuals living with dementia but those care staff who know them well will help to provide comfort and reassurance at a time when such steps are critical in the challenge which Coronavirus is posing to those accessing care and support and those working in the sector.

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Care home complaints guide

The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) has launched a new complaints guidebook for the UK care homes industry.

The guide itself and the supporting documents are available on their business companion website along with a youtube link to the video they have commissioned to support the guide.  These can be viewed here: https://www.businesscompanion.info/focus/care-homes-complaints

Care home complaints infographic
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Letter from Cabinet Secretary and COSLA: Minute’s silence on International Workers’ Day

Please see below for joint letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, Ms Jeane Freeman and the COSLA Spokesperson for Health and Social Care, Cllr Stuart Currie. The letter asks that wherever possible, for colleagues to participate in a minute’s silence at 11 am tomorrow (28 April), on International Workers’ Day in honour of our colleagues who have sadly lost their lives to Covid-19.

20 04 27 IWD - joint letter Cab Sec and Cllr Currie
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The ‘new care normal’

The new care normal

The First Minister published the Scottish Government’s strategy for coming out of lockdown on Thursday and encouraged a public debate on the issues which the document raised.

For the social care sector coming out of lockdown is likely to be very challenging. If as it is envisaged that there will be a phased and incremental removal of restrictions it is highly likely that this will mean that formal care settings will be amongst the last to be back to familiar patterns of behaviour and access. Even when this happens it is likely that social distancing will continue for some time and that staff will be required to continue to utilise a high level of PPE. It is likely that there will need to be increased staffing levels in a sector which has most recently been faced with acute staffing pressures and significant economic instability. But over all these very important and genuine concerns there should be a heightened awareness of the impact on those who are the recipients of social care and support.

Over the last two weeks in particular it has become clear that the levels of distress, of emotional and psychological harm, upon those living with dementia in our care homes and in our communities in Scotland are becoming more and more acute and worrying.

The ongoing focus in care homes in particular has been quite rightly the sustaining of life. This has led to the development of guidance which has meant that for 6 weeks our care homes have been in effective lockdown with only rare visits at the end of life and in the earliest couple of weeks for one named individual per family in situations of real distress. I fully understand and appreciate that concomitant to this have been clinical and infection control measures which have advocated self-isolation and social distancing; the end to the use of communal spaces and effectively the confinement of individuals who have been symptomatic.

Such ‘emergency’ measures have been justified as necessary and proportionate in order to achieve the legitimate aim of the maintaining of life. But I now believe that six weeks on we need to consider and actively debate both how long these restrictive measures can continue but also whether they are indeed the most proportionate and human rights-based interventions.

My personal concern is that we need to get a better balance between proportionate restriction of freedom of movement in order to attain infection control and a diminishing of normal life to the extent to which it is causing psychological and physiological damage e.g. through increased falls, impact on nutrition, effect on hydration, increases in delirium state etc. I am concerned that too many assumptions have been made in the adoption of infection control practices which fit an acute hospital-based environment without a full  appreciation of the nature of care homes and of the population that is supported within them. I am fully aware that there is growing epidemiological evidence around the nature and rate of transmission of Covid-19 in care homes and that we are some distance from the peak of the challenge. However, we have to more fully recognise specifically that the levels of acuity in care homes are exceptionally high and in particular that the vast majority – probably about 90% – of residents have some form or another of dementia.

Lockdown from the perspective of someone living with dementia has been in many instances quite frankly, simply hellish. Staff have spent a lot of time reassuring, being present, reminding and reaffirming what individuals about what is happening. They have supported people to understand why family have not visited and have used technology to help people to remain in contact. But sadly, such measures have only worked for a minority. For many more this has been a maze of confusion, distress and very real emotional trauma. The familiarities of touch, eye contact, physicality and presence have been denied them. The rhythms of routine so fundamental to someone living with dementia have been replaced by strictures and detachment which is causing real harm. Despite all the best efforts of nursing and care staff, care homes even where there have not been cases have changed.

Outside in the communities we are hearing equally distressing stories of individuals without family support who are immensely confused and disturbed by the changes in the pattern of their encounters with homecare staff, with neighbours and with friends.

I am convinced that we need urgently, not just as a care sector but as a whole society, to think about how we are going to support the ‘new care normal’ in care homes and in communities.

If we are to continue with some form of restricted access for some time then we need to appreciate that a care home is not an institution or a unit – it is someone’s home – and we need to get back to that understanding as quickly as possible. We need to re-connect care homes to families and vice-versa taking appropriate precaution but balancing risk against the reality that for many individuals their lives are greatly diminished and risk being fore-shortened by current measures. We need to create a real army of volunteers and others prepared to support the added demands of staffing which will be necessary with new models of care which need to maintain their human touch and person-led focus. Critically we need to urgently move from self-isolation to safe social distancing within the confines of the physical environment of a care home supporting re-connection and re-membering.

Within the wider community I am also concerned that some of the narrative which we are hearing in the media is presumptively assuming that there will be the use of age restrictions in our exit from lockdown, so for instance those over-70 may be in lockdown for a longer period of time. Just as withdrawing treatment based upon age was unacceptable as an ethical choice so I would contend such restrictions would be equally unacceptable. Setting different rules based on age is a blatant form of discrimination. It is one thing to seek to shield those most at risk because of underlying health conditions it is quite another to use blanket catch-all prohibitions.

The ‘new care normal’ needs to be molded by families and residents, citizens and carers, clinicians and professionals, so that together we get the right balance between risk and life. We urgently need to have this care conversation as part of the national conversation the First Minister started on Thursday. Put simply there is a difference between existence and living and for many living with dementia at the present time that balance seems not quite right.

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The journey thus far – blog from Verity Monaghan

The Journey Thus Far

The last two months have been a tumultuous time due to the outbreak of COVID-19 which has sent shock waves through the world and has had devastating effects on families and services and restricted the lives of many . However, on a more positive note it has also been a time for deep reflection and re-connection of what is truly important and to look at how we can be more creative in our approach to meet our human rights and needs.

Moreover, for those who do not know, this is my final week before I go off on maternity leave and so it feels like the right time to reflect on the fantastic progress of the Rights Made Real project during phase one of the programme and take a look at what the future of the project holds. Lastly I felt that this was a prime opportunity to look at human rights in light of the current climate and how the projects have used what they have learned during this project to not only maintain the safety of themselves and residents but also how they have used their skills, learning and knowledge in a creative way and continue to make rights real in spite of the ongoing crisis.

Phase one – making rights real

The first phase of the Rights Made Real in Care Homes Programme was funded in 2018 for 2 years and is due to finish at the end of July 2020. Moving forward, I am delighted to announce that there will be a phase two extension to the innovative rights-based work that has been happening to improve the lives of those with dementia living in a care home setting. Further information will be released soon about what this will look like in the coming months – so keep your eyes peeled.

The aim of the project overall, has been to demonstrate and embed a rights-based approach to dementia care and each of the seven groups of care homes have taken unique and innovative approaches in how they have achieved this. You can find more information on what each of the projects were involved in here. https://scottishcare.org/about-rightsmadereal/

There has been an abundance of learning as a result of the project so far. Tamsin MacBride from UWS has been pivotal in the role of collecting, connecting and evaluating this learning from the different care home sites using My Home Life, appreciative inquiry and action learning approaches. This learning was compounded in the “Away Days” in October where we brought the projects together for two days of reflection and future forming workshops and key speakers involved in human rights in the health and social care sector. This time of reflection has been invaluable in maintaining the momentum, readjusting the focus of the projects and reinvigorating the motivation to look at human rights in new ways.

One of the key quotes from those Away Days was the realisation that,

“Many paths can lead to the same destination.”

Some of the other general learning from the Away Days was around:

  • developing confidence around using human rights language
  • communication with staff and residents around what is important to them and how to meet needs in a rights based way.
  • addressing fears when it comes to human rights
  • translating human rights into practice and how to take the next step of moving from rights aware practice to rights based practice.

Phase two and human rights resource – a journey of discovery

Phase two of the project will seek to consolidate the learning from phase one and explore how this can be used to influence other care homes across Scotland. As the project comes to the end of phase one, there is a strong sense that the care homes have more they would like to learn. Phase two will go deeper than being rights aware to embed rights based approaches into practice.

So with that in mind, my role when working with the projects in 2020 has been to co-create a human rights resource with the projects to document the journey of discovery of the learning throughout the different organisations. There has been a clear transfer of learning throughout individual organisations, so we felt it was beneficial to share the journey in order to showcase how human rights are met through different tools and approaches. This resource will be available in the early Summer so please look out for more information on this.

 

Human rights – what do they look like in the face of a global pandemic?

From the beginning of 2020 as a result of the global pandemic, the world’s citizens have had their human rights inside and outside their home restricted and limited on many levels in order to protect public health and care homes are no exception. This project has highlighted how important and intrinsic the enjoyment of our human rights are in our everyday interactions and lives and this global pandemic is an example of how our fundamental human rights can be restricted in order to protect public health. It is useful to be able to understand what our human rights are and the principles of human rights so that decisions are being made proportionately, necessarily, and legally to protect people.

There have been many effects of restrictions specifically, with regards to social distancing for those with dementia in a care home. This has meant that a restriction to Article 5: The right to liberty has been applied. This can have a detrimental effect on someone with dementia who may not understand why they are not allowed to travel outside or to meet up with family or other residents and it is imperative that all decisions should be made to ensure the least restrictive option. Scottish Care CEO Donald has written a thorough and thought provoking article on the ethical choices that are having to be made as a result of COVID-19 – https://scottishcare.org/the-hardness-of-covid-ethical-choice/

All of Article 8 which is around the Right to private, family life and correspondence have been affected. This includes psychological integrity (mental and physical well-being), the development of ordinary family relationships and the enjoyment of current home all of which are affected through social distancing and the measures that the government have put into place. These restrictions have been especially difficult to navigate for those at the end of their life and those who have had to make the decision to attend hospital for life saving treatment.

However, as daunting as these measures sound, there are many examples of health and social care organisations taking steps to ensure the least restrictive option in a creative manner. This includes family visits from outside the care home and using Skype and FaceTime to connect with loved ones. Also, there has been an uptake of social activities electronically and connecting via technology. Scottish Care has also set up a technology device network where organisations and individuals can donate devices so that residents can maintain connection with their loved ones – https://scottishcare.org/techdevicenetwork/

It has been so encouraging to hear from the project leads that their time involved in the project has prepared them with the skills, knowledge and tools to be able to navigate this crisis using human rights, including buiding confidence in:

  • Balancing safety with maintaining connections with family and friends – using social media and technology to connect families when they cannot be together physically.
  • End of life care – ensuring the maintaining of connections at the end of a resident’s life.
  • Being able to challenge decisions that are not felt to be proportionate.
  • Harnessing creativity with regards to activities within the care homes.
  • Connecting with the local community – care homes are being supported by local community businesses through the supply of local produce, food, ice cream, milk etc.
  • Intergenerational work has continued with nursery age children sending in encouraging drawings to connect with residents.

 

My time in this role has sadly temporarily come to an end and therefore I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the projects for their ongoing dedication and commitment to improving the lives of those they support and for their incredible attitude even in the face of a global pandemic. Last but not least my colleagues at Scottish Care, who have been the continuous voice of the independent social care sector and have been very supportive throughout my time as policy and human rights worker in supporting the vision to make rights real for those in care homes.

 

Stay safe and stay tuned for more updates soon,

 

Verity Monaghan

Policy and Human Rights Project Worker

 

 

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Scottish Care works with local organisations to address PPE shortage

Access to PPE supplies for the social care sector in Scotland has been a major concern for Scottish Care members since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. As the crisis grew, social care PPE supplies that would typically cover a care home or care at home providers needs began to diminish. Trying to get ahead of the curve, our members reached out to suppliers who in many instances were prioritising NHS orders and were unable to supply the social care sector. This meant it was very difficult for care providers to source the significant increase in PPE required to keep residents and staff safe. Social care providers resorted to sourcing their PPE through emergency supplies from NSS and other suppliers. What’s more, our members have been reporting astronomical and unreasonable cost increases for sometimes lower quality PPE items, impacting the financial sustainability of these organisations since these costs are not being reimbursed. This has made it even more difficult for providers to source PPE through their usual routes for their ongoing and ever-expanding needs.

In the midst of this PPE shortage, a large number of independent, smaller organisations, individuals and local communities have reached out to us to offer supplies to Scottish Care members for free or at low cost. Some of the companies have even adapted their normal functions to create products such as hand sanitisers and protective face visors and masks to help frontline workers during this crisis. The team at Scottish Care have been working hard to build partnerships with these people and organisations to ensure that our members are able to access PPE outwith traditional routes. Thus far, we have been in touch with over 100 different organisations, with the details of nearly 30 companies listed on a member facing webpage. It is our hope that this webpage will develop further with more contacts to support even more of our members to access PPE.

Scottish Care appreciate that these individuals and organisations are keeping the social care sector in mind during these unprecedented times. We are extremely thankful for all the time and effort they have put into sourcing or producing PPE. These offers have also been well received by our members, with some suppliers citing that website traffic, orders and enquiries have increased substantially since featuring on our webpage.

Karen Williamson, Director of New Horizons Inc. said:

“We contacted Scottish Care last week with our offer to supply urgently needed face masks to care homes. They informed us that the issue of meeting high minimum order quantities with large suppliers was a major stumbling block for the smaller care homes and asked us if there was anything we could do.

We immediately established a system whereby the smaller care homes could place their orders with us, and we could group them together into one larger order and simply split shipment.

Within 1 hour of our initial call, our contact and product details were live on the member portal and we were taking orders that same day. We are delighted to say that care homes including Rivendell in Birnam and Newlands in Dunfermline received their face masks within 2 days of placing their order.”

Mandi Cooper, Managing Director of National Property Auctions said:

“We are a construction business who are currently helping to support with the PPE demand and the battle against COVID19.

With family working on the front line and family sadly being taken from us from this horrible illness we wanted to help as many people as we could. I saw Dr Donald Macaskill on the news and decided to get in touch. They have been amazing; we were advertised on the website and within hours we have placed orders and helped many care homes with PPE, and we will continue to do so. PPE is very important, and we have contacted the British Embassy in China to check all of the paperwork and certificated to ensure all products we are taking to the frontline are safe, secure and stand the test. This is a huge learning curve for me, and the team and we will keep working hard and learning to help as much as we can. We want to help and support in any way we can, and we are proud to helping supply PPE to frontline workers.”

Lynda Rogers, Manager of Caley Home Care said:

“Due to the shortage of hand sanitiser and with the support and advice from Lynn at Scottish Care, we made contact with a local distillery who were producing hand sanitiser instead of gin.

The Port of Leith distillery, very kindly supplied us with 10 (Gin) bottles of hand sanitiser for free.

Their kindness merited a purchase of some Gin as a thank you gesture. They remain unopened at this time, but I do look at them often fondly

I’m saving it for normality returning!“

 

Pictured: Val Allen (Independent Sector Lead for North & East Ayrshire – Scottish Care) delivering protective face shields to Heather Lundie (Manager – Crossgate Care Home).

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Latest Covid-19 Blog from our Workforce Lead

It has been said that during times of crisis it can bring out the best and worst in us and we have seen a great deal of that in real time with COVID-19. We have witnessed the support for NHS and social care workers on Thursday evenings, the realisation of the commitment these individuals give to their work often to their own personal detriment. We have also seen the judging of others and the way our society seems to place people on a scale of worth, this has been particularly highlighted in the comparison between NHS health staff and social care workers. Not by the staff themselves, I hasten to add, but by the general public, at times the media and by companies including supermarkets who initially deemed social care staff as a lower priority (apart from Sainsburys where I will be shopping from now on).  There has also been at times the feeling that social care is not as deserving of the same level of support and compassionate treatment their health counterparts have received.  This historical lack of value and respect has a profound impact on the social care sector and workforce and can be evidenced in the high level of staff absence that has been generally seen within the sector and which has been rising over the last 5 years.  But is it any wonder that staff who give so much of themselves to care for others experience high levels of burn out and sickness when they are low paid, lack decent work structure and security of work and are treated as an afterthought by most other professionals including those who commission their services and work.

The thing about the social care workforce is that despite this lack of respect, in times of crisis we see them again and again get their heads down and get on with things. You just have to look at Twitter and other social media sites to see the amazing work that is being carried out by care workers within care homes and in communities across the country. This is not new, COVID-19 may be something that thankfully we have never experienced before, however there have been other occasions notably during extreme adverse weather that we have seen these workers, at a time when others are staying safe at home, getting out and battling the elements to provide much needed care to those who are vulnerable.  When it is over it is back to business for the “just a care worker”, gone are the thank you’ s across social media, gone is the focus on the work they do and gone is the brief increase in value and respect.

During COVID-19 we have seen care home staff move in with their residents to ensure that they can limit the possible contact with the infection as much as possible to protect those they care for, this is obviously at a huge personal sacrifice.  Care workers, managers and care home owners have been and are currently away from their own families and homes for weeks while they have prioritised their work and residents. Surely these are the same levels of commitment and values that we see within the NHS and for which we give praise to the doctors and nurses who are working within hospitals. The same call to provide care, compassion, and assistance to those in our society who most need it. I would never try to take away from the amazing work saving lives that doctors and nurses and other practitioners across NHS do daily, it can also be seen time and time again. Doctors and nurses sleeping on floors, exhausted but willing to get up and start all over again. I am asking why this is reserved only for these individuals and why care and support workers and care home nurses are deemed not to be as worthy or deserving the same level of respect? I am also asking that the work of social care be recognised as lifesaving as without the highly skilled level of care they provide, individuals would be unable to stay safely at home and within their communities. Staff who prevent hospital admissions due to their knowledge and understanding of those they care for and their individual health needs, this is also lifesaving work!

Social care providers and the workforce give true person-centred care and that is more than just knowing someone’s likes and dislikes.  It is about understanding that person, knowing about how their health conditions including pain can impact their lives and the challenges that many people face and overcome every day.  We hear about it and see it in the stories that appear particularly right now when families have been unable to be with their loved ones, about the care workers and nurses who sit with people and hold their hands to the very end.  Staff who provide the type of care that often is intuitive, is highly skilled and can be honed through years of experience.  Palliative and end of life care that is given freely but comes at cost to the worker although it is an aspect of their role they find rewarding.   Giving piece of mind and comfort when it is most needed in the last days of a person’s life, how can this work be misinterpreted or not be recognised as being highly skilled and something that certainly most people find extremely challenging to do?

If there is any doubt about the lens that social care and it’s workforce is viewed through it can be clearly evidenced in the recent approach to supplying vital personal protective equipment and the initial lack of staff testing out with the acute sector. We know, despite the denials, that companies providing PPE were instructed to supply to the NHS as a priority to the point that many of our care providers were unable to source their normal day to day requirement of gloves and aprons. We have spoken with many of our Scottish Care members who were struggling to obtain necessary PPE to keep those using services safe and to keep vitally important staff delivering care safe. We also know from these individuals who were experiencing real panic and distress that the majority of their concern was for their service users and residents understanding how vulnerable they are in this current situation. This in itself has been traumatic; managers and owners have done everything within their power to source the needed equipment from paying much higher costs to travelling great distances to obtain PPE when needed. Bearing in mind of course these are the “greedy private providers that do not care about anything but making money” and yes that was sarcasm.

Can you imagine working for an organisation you trust and respect, knowing they invest a great deal in their staff and services. Working with and for people who are committed to long hours managing service delivery and ensuring peoples safety.  Doing a job that you love because of the reward of helping others and then being told you are greedy and only doing this for a profit.  This is while being the lowest paid section of the care sector, the most ignored and the last to receive financial assistance or support in times of need or crisis.  Independent and third sector providers and their workforce are the best of us, they do this extremely hard and challenging work with little support or financial assistance while in a climate of being told they expect too much and are not deserving of the same respect and value others receive.

During COVID-19 social care providers and their networks are constantly being told we are in this together whilst receiving little assistance. Guidance has been issued around support that providers may require due to the current changing nature of care, increasing workload pressures in some areas and decreasing pressures in others as some services have been cancelled due to family being available or because they are shielding. Increased costs surround PPE are a huge factor as prices have soared and there is a large amount of additional PPE that is now required to effectively protect services users and staff from the virus. To date this support is still to be seen by care providers some of whom are actually being expected to use forms of electronic call monitoring to deliver their services and in order to receive payment.

PPE is paramount in social care because when providing support such as assistance with personal care, going to the toilet and assisting people to eat, social distancing is just not possible. Moving and assisting equipment may be in place where people are hoisted out of bed or may receive the vast majority of care in their bed. Keeping 2 meters away from each other and the resident is not going to work in these situations so PPE must be available to keep them safe. Lack of testing for staff has resulted in time off being taken when COVID-19 is suspected but not known for sure.  It also results in staff having to be placed in vulnerable situations themselves, caring for others while not knowing if they are carrying the virus or are effectively protecting their services users due to lack of necessary equipment such as face masks.  For care at home travelling to services has been an additional issue and care staff have been fined for doing so even though they literally had no other choice due to lack of transport in some areas.  All of this contributes to care staff feeling undervalued and underappreciated and that is before they have been turned away from shops and told they are not real key workers.

Once this initial crisis has passed there must be real authentic conversations taking place to ensure that our social care workers are no longer treated as second class citizens. Our lives have changed dramatically and when things will go back to the way they were remains to be seen. We do know that social care will continue to be a huge part of peoples’ lives, caring for others with disabilities, in ill health and in older age must continue to be a priority as must the workforce that provide this care. Giving social care workers and nurses the respect they deserve and the recognition of the work they do will ensure we have a workforce who can remain healthy, both physically and mentally and are rewarded for the work they do with decent pay and terms and conditions.  Surely this is the very least that we can do to thank them and show how much they are valued and appreciated for all that they do.  If not who were you really applauding on a Thursday evening at 8pm?

Caroline Deane

Workforce Policy & Practice Lead

 

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Open Covid-19 Webinar with The Care Inspectorate – 24 April

This week’s Covid-19 open webinar will be hosted by our CEO, Dr Donald Macaskill along with guest speakers from the Care Inspectorate, including Peter Macleod, CEO and Kevin Mitchell, Executive Director of Scrutiny & Assurance. This webinar will take place on Friday 24 April 2020 at 11:00am.

Please join this session to ask us and The Care Inspectorate any questions you may have.

Please note that this webinar will be hosted on Microsoft Teams instead of Zoom. Scottish Care members can find the link to join via the Members Area of this website. External partners should contact [email protected] to register interest, stating your name and organisation, if approved you will be sent the link to join.

For more information about joining Teams events without a Teams account please see: https://support.office.com/en-gb/article/attend-a-live-event-in-teams-a1c7b989-ebb1-4479-b750-c86c9bc98d84

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Scottish Care comments on latest NRS figures on Covid-19

We are desperately sad to hear this week’s figures on COVID-19 related deaths, including the fact that three quarters of the deaths were of people aged over 75, and 33% of deaths took place in care homes.

Unfortunately, the particular impact of this virus on many individuals who are elderly, frail or have existing health conditions fits closely with the needs of our care home residents and makes this population particularly vulnerable.  It is why care homes continue to need all the support they can get in order to keep residents safe and well, including access to PPE, extra staff and other resources and we continue to work with national and local partners to ensure these supports are in place. 

It is important to note that in instances of COVID-19 in care homes and associated deaths, there should not be an immediate assumption that this reflects a failure of care homes to provide high quality support, to follow infection control guidance or to respond quickly to COVID-19 cases.  Unfortunately, we see that this virus does not discriminate in who it affects and it can get far and wide despite best efforts to limit it, including in settings such as care homes where a number of people with health vulnerabilities live in close proximity and are supported closely by a group of staff.  We welcome the wider health and clinical care support being given to care homes at this time, and we commend all staff who are doing their utmost to keep the environment safe and the  people they support well. We know they will be suffering the impact of resident losses too. 

We know that people, not least those with loved ones in care homes, will understandably be worried at this time and that is why we remain committed to ensuring that national and local supports for care homes, staff and residents are as robust as they can be.  Whilst it does not relieve the pain felt by those who have lost friends and relatives in care homes to this virus, it should also be noted that many residents with COVID-19 recover from it. 

These figures also highlight the need for dedicated mental health, bereavement and trauma support for all who are experiencing deaths as a result of COVID-19, including social care staff and the families of residents.  We are all being hit hard by the effects of this virus.