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Care regulator books coronavirus tests for nearly 12,500 social care staff
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has booked more than 12,000 appointments for staff who are self-isolating with symptoms of coronavirus.
The CQC’s national infrastructure has been used to book appointments at national testing centres for care staff, which the regulator said will “give care staff more peace of mind about their own safety and that of their families and the people they care for”.
It also means that those who test negative can return to work and relieve the pressure care services are facing.
As some adult social care staff cannot visit a drive-through testing centre because they don’t have access to a car, a scheme is also being piloted this week for staff to order home testing kits.
It comes as the National Care Forum has warned that deaths in care homes linked to coronavirus may be more than 7,000.
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Other measures to support adult social care include:
- Designing and launching a regular data collection on COVID-19 related pressures – such as shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) – from services which provide care for people in their own homes.
- In response to concerns raised by providers about the possibility that advance care plans, with or without Do Not Attempt Resuscitation (DNAR) form completion, could be applied broadly to groups of people during the COVID-19 pandemic, the CQC has issued a joint statement to make it clear that this practice is unacceptable and that these decisions must continue to be made on an individual basis according to need.
- Working with the Office for National Statistics to provide a more detailed and timely picture of coronavirus in adult social care by using the data collected from providers on deaths of people with suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Ian Trenholm, chief executive of the CQC, said: “We’ve taken some really practical steps to support adult social care during a time of unimaginable pressure, and we’ll continue to develop the package of support we’re offering across all sectors to help providers prioritise the safety of people using services and of staff delivering care.
“It is especially important – at a time when staff may be looking after more patients than usual, working outside their normal competencies or in new environments – to highlight the value of safety culture.”
Last week the government was urged to make testing in care homes a priority after a number of fatal outbreaks.
Inside Housing has reported that care providers have been struggling to access PPE and tests.
