Many care homes ‘put in impossible position’ after indoor visits given go-ahead
A social care leader says many care homes in Mid Wales are in an “impossible position” after indoor visits by family and friends were given the go-ahead.
Mary Wimbury, the chief executive of Care Forum Wales, praised the Welsh Government for its cautious approach to the issue, but she said expectations were sky high after the easing of the rules that mean residents are allowed one designated indoor visitor.
Ms Wimbury stressed that while indoor visits were being permitted again, beyond exceptional circumstances, care homes would need to undertake a rigorous risk assessment before judging visits could safely take place
She said: “While it is excellent news that we are now able to begin the process of reopening care homes to visitors, it will be a phased approach and it is imperative that we proceed with caution.
“It will not be like pressing a button and everybody returning immediately to the normality that existed before the pandemic struck. We are looking forward to welcoming some sort of normality in the weeks and months ahead.
“Quite rightly, the Welsh Government has said the decision about visiting will be left to individual care homes who will carry out careful risk assessments.
“As the Welsh Government have said, in many cases it will be about preparing for the reintroduction of visiting rather than it happening straight away.
“Infection and community transmission rates still vary in different parts of Wales and the Kent variant and other mutant strains are a real cause for concern.
“What we don’t know is how effective the vaccine is against some of the newer variants of Covid, particularly with what’s going on in Brazil.”
Ms Wimbury said: “As the First Minister pointed out, we are facing an inevitable third wave of coronavirus and we have to take great care to protect our residents and our staff.
Fluidity
“Clearly, we want to get people back together again but we need to get more data on the vaccinations.
“The rate at which people aged over 80 in Wales – many of whom are in care homes – are receiving their second doses of vaccine fluctuates wildly, depending on where you are in Wales,”
She added: “Anyone that thinks we’re out of the woods needs to think again because the resumption of indoor visiting must be done extremely carefully.
“We’re all doing our utmost to bring back some normality but everybody needs to understand the fluidity of the situation.
“If you have a 50-bed care home that’s full and potentially 50 relatives coming in, the home will not know if they’ve been vaccinated or who they have been mixing with.
“Everyone understand that we have come through the most hideous 12 months since the pandemic was declared and there is now light at the end of that very dark tunnel.”
