Vulnerable people in care homes dying three times normal rate during pandemic

Vulnerable people receiving care in their homes have been dying during the crisis at three times the normal rate.

And there are fears the risks they face from the virus could rise with the lifting of lockdown measures.

England’s 680,000 domiciliary care workers found it “even harder” to get tested with attention focused on the epidemic in care homes, the UK Homecare Association claims.

And it says their 500,000 clients were “never a priority.

The Mirror has been told that as recently as this week, hospitals and care homes have tried to discharge Covid-19 patients to home care providers without testing.

A home care manager in the Midlands said she is being asked to take a coronavirus patient from a care home without a second test to see if they still have the infection.

She said: “I am told it is in their lungs so they are likely to have it.

“I am not doing it, even if I lose my job over it. I am not doing it to my staff and clients. I have no cases at the moment. It is shocking.”

Katrina Collins, of CARE4U2DAY in Hemel Hempstead, Herts, said her agency was sent two Covid-19 cases without being told they had the virus. One elderly woman was discharged from a London hospital after Katrina was “repeatedly” told the patient was clear of the virus.

Katrina said: “She was delivered back to her home that evening where our carer was waiting.

“I discovered the discharge note the following morning for it to reveal the client had tested positive on the same date. It is extraordinary how little regard there appears to be for domiciliary care workers.”

From April 10 to May 8, 3,161 deaths of people receiving domiciliary care were reported to the Care Quality Commission – nearly three times the three-year average for the same period.

Just 593 of these were recorded as Covid-19 deaths and it is feared many more cases are going unrecorded.

James Bullion, president of the Association of Directors of Social Services, said one in 10 people had cancelled their home care service during the pandemic.

More testing would give them confidence to accept the care they need.

He has seen some “people taking action to protect themselves from infection but not necessarily taking care of their health and wellbeing”.

GPs and social workers have not been visiting patients in their homes – leaving home carers as the sole support for half a million of our most vulnerable adults.

Some chose to live in with clients in the past two months.

UKHCA chief executive Dr Jane Townson said: “Lifting lockdown increases risk of accelerated community transmission of Covid-19.

“Due to the Government’s focus on care homes, it has become even harder to access testing for home care workers. And testing for people receiving home care was never a government priority.”

Some home care providers told the Mirror they are now getting the tests staff urgently need. But the picture remains patchy.

A home care manager in Central London, who asked not to be named, said just six of her 80 staff have been tested.

They have to travel to clients on public transport and she fears the risk of cross-contamination will increase as buses and trains fill up with workers again.

Ben Selby, owner of Right at Home in Cheshire, said testing for his staff has improved in recent weeks. But he added: “The problem is, the current

Early last month, home care worker Catherine Sweeney was one of the first health workers to die of Covid-19 after working for weeks without PPE.

The Department of Health and Social Care said: “Our aim is to make it easy, fast and simple for any essential worker who needs a test to get a test, including our frontline care workforce, and our increased testing capacity has allowed us to do so.

“We are determined to ensure residents and staff are not put at risk. All patients [must] be tested prior to discharge to a care home.

“No home should be forced to take back recovering Covid-19 patients if they do not feel they can provide appropriate care to prevent spread of the virus.”