500 Care Home Staff test positive in one week

A SENIOR MEMBER of Alex Salmond’s Alba Party has warned that the Scottish Government’s exemptions to self isolation for Healthcare workers risk another tragedy on the scale last years Care Homes Scandal.

The call comes as 500 care home workers in Scotland have tested positive in the past week.

Under Government Guidelines positive contacts are exempt from isolation, even if they are living with the person who is positive for Covid-19, if they are a Health and Social Care worker and test negative with a lateral flow test each day.

However, Senior Inverclyde Councillor Chris McEleny, who is also General Secretary of Alba Party, who has written an Emergency Letter to Health and Social Care Chiefs at Inverclyde Council and the Scottish Government to raise his concerns that this policy will put vulnerable elderly people at risk on par with the Care Home Scandal at the start of the pandemic.

During the early phase of the outbreak of Coronavirus in early 2020, many elderly people were returned to Care Home settings without being tested for Covid-19. This is thought to have resulted in the avoidable death of many care home residents.

Currently 29% of all Scottish COVID-19 registered deaths are related to deaths in care homes.

As of 26 December 2021, there have been 12,394 confirmed cases of COVID-19 amongst residents of Care Homes, up 200 in one week and 9,055 amongst staff of care homes for all ages since 9 March 2020 an increase of nearly 500 in a one week period up from 8,589 on 19th December.

These figures do not include elderly people that are provided care at home by health and social care providers.

McEleny warns that these figures show that the Government’s Covid isolation exemption policy risks sending the virus into the houses  and care homes of many vulnerable elderly people.

Under the Government guidelines, even if a Health and Social Care worker is living with someone that has tested positive for Covid-19 they are expected to continue to attend work. Councillor Chris McEleny says he fears this will spread the virus as many of his constituents have informed him that their lateral flow tests have been showing negative once they have started to feel symptoms of the Omicron virus but it is after several days that tests finally show up as positive. The Alba man says that in this period workers could be spreading the virus to the most vulnerable in society as each day they are being asked to go from a household that has Covid in it to a carehome setting or a household to administer care.

McEleny has now written an emergency letter to Inverclyde Council’s Director of Health and Social Care Allen Stevenson requesting an urgent review of the implementation of the exemption guidance in his Local Authority Area as well as a further emergency letter to Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer Gregor Smith to highlight his concerns about the Scottish Government’s exemptions.

Commenting Alba’s Chris McEleny said:

“ At the start of the pandemic many people raised concerns about sending untested people back into Care Homes in Scotland from hospitals. The delay in action resulted in the tragedy that was the Care Home Scandal with thousands of elderly people dying due to this decision.

“ I have real fears that the current exemptions to self isolation are risking another tragedy on the scale of the Care Home Scandal. However, this time it won’t be the decision to send untested people back to care homes that’ll cause it, it will be the exemptions the Government has put in place which may turn those work to administer care to the elderly as the very people that bring omicron into their homes.

“ As we approach the third year that we’ve lived with this horrible virus, there can’t be a single person on the street that thinks it makes any sense whatsoever to force Health and Social Care Workers out of homes which they share with someone that has tested positive into the homes of the most elderly and vulnerable members of our society each day.

“ We know that the virus spreads even when you don’t have symptoms and many of my constituents have told me that there have been several days that’s they’ve been living with a positive contact before their lateral flow tests show as positives, during this period they are being asked to risk spreading the virus to the very people they wish to care for. This exemption policy must be urgently reviewed and I call on the government to do so before it’s too late.”

 

Notes:

A). The Self Isolation Exemption Criteria in Scotland for Health and Social Care Workers (Last updated 28th December) :

Nb. Not the contradiction in stating that you are exempt if you have had two vaccines but then following on with saying you must have had a booster

https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19/test-and-protect/coronavirus-covid-19-self-isolation-exemption-for-health-and-social-care-workers

B). as at 22 December 2021, 86 (8%) adult care homes had a current case of suspected COVID-19  (these figures will be next updated on Thursday 6 January)

• in the week 20 to 26 December 2021 there were 230 new confirmed positive COVID‑19 cases among care home residents and 462 among care home staff
• as of 26 December 2021, there have been 12,394 confirmed cases of COVID-19 amongst residents and 9,055 amongst staff of care homes for all ages since 9 March 2020.