UK GOVERNMENT
PLACING UK CARE HOMES AT FOREFRONT OF COVID-19 RECOVERY
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.
HIGHER
PRIORITISATION OF THE NEEDS OF CARE HOMES
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.
PROTECTING THE
VULNERABLE
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.
THE GOVERNMENT
LEARNING FROM ITS LESSONS
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.
REOPENING OF THE UK
NEEDS TO BE LEGISLATED FOR
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.
DISCHARGES TO
NURSING HOMES 120% OVER THE HISTORIC UK AVERAGE
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.
AN IMPROVING
SITUATION FOR UK NURSING HOMES
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.