{"id":8089,"date":"2020-04-09T12:03:37","date_gmt":"2020-04-09T10:03:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ceidiog.com\/pr\/?p=8089"},"modified":"2020-04-09T12:03:37","modified_gmt":"2020-04-09T10:03:37","slug":"care-home-owners-protest-over-pressure-to-admit-hospital-patients-without-proper-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ceidiog.com\/pr\/news\/care-home-owners-protest-over-pressure-to-admit-hospital-patients-without-proper-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"Care home owners protest over pressure to admit hospital patients without proper protection"},"content":{"rendered":"

First Minister urged to act urgently to prevent \u201cavoidable disaster\u201d of deaths \u00a0in care homes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Care home owners in Wales have protested they are being put under pressure to admit patients from hospitals when they haven\u2019t got access to tests and enough personal protective equipment to shield residents and staff from the coronavirus.<\/p>\n

Mary Wimbury, the chief executive of Care Forum Wales, has written to First Minister Mark Drakeford saying they Welsh Government appeared to be willing to sacrifice 20,000 vulnerable care home residents.<\/p>\n

She called on Prof Drakeford to disclose the Welsh Government\u2019s own risk assessment in relation to discharging patients from hospitals to care homes.<\/p>\n

While she understood the importance of creating more capacity in hospitals and saluted the courage and dedication of NHS staff, Care Forum Wales was concerned that sufficient attention was not being given to a\u00a0larger threat than to the general population of Wales.<\/p>\n

According to Ms Wimbury, care homes for the elderly looked after residents who were in the extreme high risk category for Covid-19 as they were predominantly over the age of 70 and had underlying conditions.<\/p>\n

She said: \u201cOur members already report being pressured into admitting patients from hospitals and following\u00a0 publication of the discharge guidance this may well increase. \u201cBut they feel they can only safely do so with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) and appropriate use of testing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is in order to fulfil their duty of care to existing residents, who have already been physically parted from family members and friends for some time to protect them from the virus.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it is also to reassure staff, who have their own health and families to consider, that is sufficiently safe for them to continue working.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere has to be joined-up thinking around hospital discharges, which is not happening at present.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have real concerns that, without improved planning and liaison with the sector, the current approach will quickly lead to an avoidable disaster as we have already seen in care homes in Liverpool and Glasgow, and more starkly in Paris and Madrid.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt present, CFW is unable to reassure its members, as we have no evidence that Welsh Government – through its agencies – will provide the significant resources that will be needed when care homes have, as they surely will, significant number of residents with the infection.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody disputes that increased NHS bed capacity is likely to be required in the next few weeks, and therefore that hospital discharges may be necessary.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat, however, is less clear to our members, their staff and residents\u2019 families is how the risk of these current discharges – to environments with highly vulnerable existing residents – is a proportionate risk.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur members are deeply concerned that, without clear explanation by NHS Wales and Welsh Government of its risk assessment and resourcing arrangements, the current discharge approach – without tests and without sufficient full PPE – gives the appearance of \u2018sacrificing\u2019 the 20,000 older people in care homes in Wales, quite apart from putting staff at risk. This cannot be right, and is not consistent with the UK-wide policy of seeking to protect the most vulnerable.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhilst we recognise the situation regarding PPE is improving, it is from a very low base and at present, our members feel they are barely receiving sufficient PPE to care appropriately for existing residents in the changed infection climate.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome hospital discharge managers are putting huge pressure on our members to accept these new residents. Care homes want to help, but they have to do so in a way that is as safe as possible, accepting that these are unprecedented circumstances.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation is extremely difficult. We are caring for our residents in a \u2018lockdown\u2019 environment with supply shortages, including difficulties obtaining hand sanitiser, thermometers and food as well as PPE.<\/p>\n

\u201cStaff and their families are being infected by the virus and accordingly having to go into self-isolation. This is a perfect storm that we cannot manage without significantly more resources support and clarity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe care home sector needs action and delivered resources, and it needs it fast. This cannot be ignored; our members need to be supported to contain the spread.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf care homes fail their staff, residents and their families the situation will add to, rather than decrease, the pressure on the NHS.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe suggest that the next weeks are a window that must not be missed: the situation could be sorted out before the number of infections in care homes increases significantly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe workforce is already down, and may be expected to decrease further as we have not reached the peak yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have asked the First Minister to look into this issue as a matter of urgency, to clarify the policy, the risk assessment and Welsh Government\u2019s proposals to avert the additional crisis we are concerned about.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>