Care homes to re-open for first time in four months FINALLY reuniting families as Covid cases fall, Matt Hancock says
FAMILIES will be able to spend time with their loved ones in care homes for the first time in four months, Matt Hancock announced.
The Health Secretary today ended the ban in England, admitting it had been "painful" time for those who have been separated since March.
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Now the rate of community transmission of coronavirus has fallen, the Government has issued long-awaited guidance to help care homes resume visits while keeping residents and staff protected.
It says visits will be allowed at specific care homes with social distancing in place, health officials said.
Each resident will be allowed to have a "single constant visitor" to limit the risk of infection spread and keep footfall in and out of the home down.
They can visit regularly as long as they book in advance and are wearing a face mask or covering, according to the new guidance.
Risk assessment
The Department of Health and Social Care said risk assessments will be undergone prior to homes being reopened.
It will be up to local councils and public health officials to decide on a case-by-case basis which homes can reopen and will depend on the coronavirus rate in the area.
The move brings England in line with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, which have already started letting families visit care homes.
Mr Hancock said: "I know how painful it has been for those in care homes not being able to receive visits from their loved ones throughout this period.
"We are now able to carefully and safely allow visits to care homes, which will be based on local knowledge and circumstances for each care home.
"It is really important that we don't undo all of the hard work of care homes over the last few months while ensuring families and friends can be safely reunited, so we have put in place guidance that protects everyone."
I know how painful it has been for those in care homes not being able to receive visits from their loved ones throughout this period
It is understood that in the absence of Government guidance until now, some care homes in England have, since June, allowed socially-distanced visits in outdoor areas if the facility has been free from Covid-19 for a certain period.
Care England produced its own document for members on visiting learning disability providers on June 10 and supported a visitors protocol for residential care providers produced by the Care Provider Alliance on June 19.
The membership organisation, the country's largest representative body for independent providers of adult social care, said it was "disappointed" the Government guidance had come so late.
Issues
Chief executive Professor Martin Green said: "This guidance should have been with care providers last month.
"We are at a loss to understand why the Department of Health and Social Care cannot act quickly in a crisis or why it is deaf to the comments and input from the sector."
He added the guidance does not consider issues around visitors and residents leaving the premises, with many relatives likely to want to take their loved ones out.
The guidance says providers should encourage visitors to wear a face covering and wash their hands thoroughly before and after it is used.
They should wear appropriate further personal protective equipment depending on the need of their visit, including gloves and aprons.
Providers should also consider whether visits could take place in a communal garden or outdoor area, accessible without going through a shared building.
Mass testing
Care homes have had to contend with difficult rules while trying to look after vulnerable people – including confining patients to their room if they show signs of the virus.
It took the Government weeks to roll out wide-scale testing in care homes and for care staff – who could pass it on to residents.
According to the ONS, one in five people in care homes in England became infected with coronavirus – and more than half of all homes had outbreaks.
Care home residents over 65 and those with dementia are now able to receive a coronavirus test every 28 days and staff are able to access them every week, the Department of Health announced last week.
Care homes have been unable to accept visitors during the pandemic, and more than 20,000 of the 44,236 people who have died of coronavirus in the UK were living in them.
Boris Johnson had previously blamed the high rate of deaths in care homes on “too many” care providers failing to follow health guidelines.
The comments sparked anger from care providers who branded Boris’s remarks “neither accurate nor welcome”.
They also pointed to the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff in many homes, which failed to combat the spread of the virus.
The National Care Forum (NCF) hit back by telling the PM to start "turning the dial up on reform and down on blame".
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