Life in a care home

Healthwatch Cambspboro undertook a project to understand the experiences of people in local care homes during the Covid-19 pandemic. They undertook a survey to which 43 people responded.

Most people were happy with the care and visiting situation in their home, although one in six were not.

Most people said the homes had Covid-19 safety measures in place and said they felt safe in visiting.

There was praise for staff working hard to provide safe care in difficult circumstances but concerns about staff shortages.

There was a lack of awareness of the essential care giver role within some homes and concerns about some homes restricting visiting over and beyond the Government’s guidelines.

One in five people had not been told about the home’s visiting policy. And only around three in five people found it easy to find the information they needed on visiting and Covid-19 testing.

Care homes supported residents to access healthcare despite Covid-19 but were often reliant on families to facilitate appointments

The options for contacting loved ones during lockdowns in homes was mixed. Many used mobile phones, or video chat via iPads and phones or the care home passed on messages.

There were problems during discharge from hospital for some residents, including issues with transport, poor communication as well as concerns about the need for residents to isolate when coming back to the care home, even if not Covid-19 positive.

The report contains 5 recommendations.