There is growing fear that the Covid-19 outbreaks will delay the launch of the vaccine in nursing homes, which will begin on Monday.
The HSE said the expected completion date for the 580 public, private and voluntary nursing homes is February 28, “taking into account that outbreaks may disrupt vaccination.”
In the information documents sent to nursing homes, seen by the Irish independent, the HSE said that “vaccination should be postponed until clinical recovery from Covid-19 infection and at least four weeks after diagnosis or onset of symptoms, or four weeks from the first PCR-positive sample in those who are asymptomatic ”.
He noted that an outbreak should be notified to the vaccination team before attending, as the clinic may need to be rescheduled.
According to the latest data from the Health Protection Surveillance Center (HPSC), there are 53 “open” outbreaks in nursing homes.
This week it emerged that 33 of the 101 deaths this month have been associated with outbreaks at these facilities.
In a letter sent to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly on December 28, Dr. Holohan said there were 101 deaths from coronavirus in December.
Thirty-three were associated with outbreaks in hospitals and the same number were associated with nursing homes.
In a statement on the possible impact the outbreaks will have on the vaccination program in nursing homes, the HSE said that “in the event of an outbreak in a residential care facility, a
The health risk assessment is conducted to ensure the safety and well-being of all residents and staff.
“In that event, all public health guidelines and advice will be followed and applied to any planned vaccine launch.”
Last month, Dr. Holohan expressed concern about the infection and death rate in hospitals. In a letter sent to the minister on December 10, the Medical Director said there is a “persistently high incidence” of Covid-19 among healthcare workers and healthcare settings, “including acute care hospitals with significant numbers. of associated cases and deaths “.
He said the concerns raised should not be “construed as criticism” of those who work in hospitals, but rather “underscores the importance of an ongoing focus on overall system optimization, such as are the principles agreed upon by Nphet.” . At the time of the letter, there were 53 “open” coronavirus clusters in 21 acute care hospitals.
The groups were linked to around 1,000 new cases and resulted in the deaths of 63 people from Covid-19.
In just one week, seven hospital clusters were linked to 91 new cases. Similar figures were not provided in Holohan’s letter this week.