Care homes to get deliveries of personal protective equipment (PPE) from the national stockpile from this weekend to fight transmission of Covid-19
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Health secretary Jeane Freeman has announced a raft of measures to support after it emerged on Wednesday one in four deaths from Covid-19 were in care homes.
Ms Freeman underlined the need to support those working in and being cared for in homes as they are “as important as anyone else across Scotland.”
The measures that will be put in place almost immediately are:
- Additional clinical support to the care home sector with NHS directors of public health formally asked to take on that local leadership role to ensure they get all the clinical and medical care and support that is needed
- To ensure care homes have enough personal protective equipment (PPE) in addition to their local supply, from this weekend each home will take deliveries of PPE from the national stockpile
- There will also be an increase in testing for symptomatic residents and staff as well as their families to reduce the transmission of the infection in a care home setting
- Making sure guidance over communal gathering in care homes is being followed with the offer of additional support in dealing with those residents who may have dementia
- Enhancing the role of the Care Inspectorate to make sure it has all support it needs to carry out its work
Ms Freeman said: “I have said before here and on other occasions that the people who live in our care homes and the staff who work there are as important as anyone else.
“Across Scotland are care homes and the stuff in them provide persistent compassionate care to the residents for whom their home is their home.
“But we know from our work with Scottish care and from the data that we see that we need to provide more support to our care home sector in order to ensure that we can reduce the transmission of the virus for those residents and help the staff.”
