UK GOVERNMENT PLACING UK CARE HOMES AT FOREFRONT OF COVID-19 RECOVERY - first-uk-properties

Covid-19 came along at the beginning of 2020 and we all seemed to stop and watch as the pandemic took hold across the world. Then it arrived in the United Kingdom and the NHS took the brunt of the first wave - which then led to the Uk government discharging patients back into local elderly care homes without testing.

Whilst this was a move that was supposed to free up much-needed beds for the most severely affected by the pandemic, the knock-on effect to care homes was nothing short of devastating. It represented a move that perhaps led to an unnecessary impact on care facilities, but the UK government is now placing UK care homes at the very forefront of the Covid-19 recovery.

Mistakes were made with regards to care homes, but the decision was meant with the best intentions, but some say it was a natural consequence of the fact that social care has been given a lower priority than those working in the NHS since the outbreak began. There were fears that hospitals would become over-run at, so the initial thinking behind it is understandable.

That said, the government is now giving care homes a much higher priority, starting with widespread vaccination programs that are now in place for frontline workers.So, the good news is there is already a degree of protection in place and it’s growing with every vaccination shot that’s given.

However, studies conducted by UK charity organisation The Health Foundation have shown that decades of inactivity by consecutive governments meant that when the pandemic started, social care, in general, was in no fit state to deal with what was coming. Going forwards, an important review of the UK’s social care system is to be conducted to address the failures that have been exposed by coronavirus.

The UK government has put a lot of funding into care homes as a way to protect the NHS and ‘flatten the curve’ - a phrase that we’ve all become very familiar with over the last 12 months. Vaccinations will of course now save many lives and with the vaccine delivery now in full swing, it shouldn’t be long until everyone has the protection they need.

It was claimed by many that a workable vaccine would take upwards of 18 months to appear, but thanks to the sterling work done by Big Pharma, was available in half that time. The speed at which a vaccine was produced puts us in a far better chance against the virus than would otherwise have transpired.

Those working in the care home sector have perhaps had it worse than anyone and it’s great news that the government is now focused on social patient care and those providing it. What needs to happen from this point is lessons to have been learnt and action to be taken to improve conditions and pay for staff in the industry.

Thanks to the 2014 UK Care act, the reforms that are needed are already legislated for and merely need to be set into motion. Boris Johnson made a commitment back in 2019 to carry out sweeping reforms in the sector and it’s something that looks likely to be realised over the coming months.

This is something that has been brought into even sharper focus thanks to the decision to allow one designated carer back into care homes. A move that is designed to alleviate loneliness and boost mental wellness is welcomed by many, but it will require training, sufficient PPE and staff that are fully motivated and able to give it their all.

The work being carried out by social carers is important and not without its risk, so this needs to be addressed by improving wages, as well as attracting more people into caregiving roles. To this point, care workers have been overburdened and overworked and when people are fatigued and unmotivated - mistakes happen and lives are put at risk.

The statistics surrounding discharging elderly patients from hospital into care home facilities are plain to see, as during 2020, they sat at over 120% more than during the same period in 2019. Of course, it’s not known how many of these patients caused further Covid-19 outbreaks, but the situation is improving day by day thanks to the provision of sufficient PPE and testing kits.

There are mitigating circumstances of course, as the decision to send patients to care homes was made when we were only just starting to understand Coronavirus and how it was transmitted. However, what can be changed is what happens going forwards and it is hoped that the worst of the situation has already been experienced, with a much better prognosis for 2021.

Things have improved somewhat, especially with the aforementioned vaccination programs now up and running and continued improvements will rely on meaningful action to be taken to improve conditions for those ‘on the front line’. Modern monitoring technologies certainly offer great potential in this effort, but it’s going to take a big effort from everyone in the sector to achieve the promised land of a United Kingdom that’s once again open for business - but we are all in this together.

The government is now testing patients prior to leaving hospital and more care staff are being brought into the sector to ensure that workers are not overburdened and burnt out. By doing just these two things, we are taking a couple of big steps towards a situation where care home residents and workers are safe both mentally and physically.

It’s been a tough year for the care sector, but with a renewed focus and government backing, things will surely improve during 2021. Finally, it seems, there is some light visible at the end of what has been a very long and dark tunnel.

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