Building safety and resilience in Norfolk’s care homes during COVID-19
Download (PDF 1.46 MB)Summary of report content
Norfolk County Council wanted to find a way to hear the experiences of people living in care homes and commissioned this piece of research from Healthwatch Norfolk. This report is an analysis of the three surveys run by Healthwatch Norfolk. A total of 152 people responded. Of these responses, 94 were residents, 29 were staff, and 35 were relatives or friends.
Most residents noticed changes within their care home, but less than half said that these changes had affected their daily routine. Both staff and friends/family said that residents’ mental health has been significantly affected, particularly due to restricted visits.
Whilst using PPE was recognised by residents as a change, and by staff and friends/family as a positive due to enabling better infection control, many staff struggle wearing it all day and find it more challenging to communicate with residents.
Some staff feel that changes made as a result of COVID-19 have created a greater team bond. Some staff noted difficulty arranging care for residents from healthcare professionals such as psychiatrists, GPs, care coordinators and dentists because of delays caused by COVID-19.
Residents are most likely to have been told about changes via their care home rather than through friends or family, or a leaflet. Whilst staff generally feel well-informed about the changes in their place of work, sharing this information to residents is difficult especially for those with dementia. Friends/family had very varied experiences of being kept informed by their loved one’s care home, ranging from regular updates to feeling very out of the loop.
Most residents said that the staff had helped to make them feel safe. Even though the normal programmes of entertainment have stopped, most staff stated that they are trying to help residents cope with the changes through organising their own internal activities.
Friends/family shared mixed opinions about whether they have confidence in their loved one’s care home in the event of a second wave.
The report contains six recommendations about ensuring care homes are updated with changes to guidance and legislation, providing information, sharing best practice, facilitating good communication between residents and loved ones, supporting residents whose mental health has been affected by the pandemic and better integrated care for residents.