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More than 300 residents have died of suspected coronavirus at one of the UK’s largest nursing home companies, one of their bosses said today.
Sir David Behan, CEO of HC One, says that 232, or about two-thirds, of the firm’s houses have Covid-19 outbreaks, with 2,447 confirmed or suspected cases.
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It occurs when deaths from coronavirus in nursing homes increased tenfold in a week, and a former minister warned that vulnerable residents have been “abandoned as lambs for slaughter.”
About 311 residents and a staff member are believed to have died of the disease in the homes of HC One, leaving the staff “helpless,” said Sir David.
Yesterday Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser, said that 13% of care homes in Britain had been affected by the deadly virus so far.
But Sir David, the former executive director of the health-care watchdog for the Care Quality Commission, believes the grim figures for HC One are “a more realistic picture” of what’s happening in care homes nationwide.
Deaths in nursing homes are not included in the government’s daily death toll, fearing that the death toll will be much higher.
TWO THIRD HIT HOUSES
Sir David told BBC Radio 4 Today: “We have been monitoring these numbers since the start of the outbreak and until last night at 8 o’clock we had had 2,447 suspected or confirmed Covid-19s in our care homes.
“It is present in 232 of our homes, which represents approximately two thirds of the total number of homes we manage.
“And again, as of the night before, there have been 311 residents who died as a result of, or suspected of, Covid-19. And sadly, over the weekend we have lost a staff member.”
“Covid-19 deaths are representative of approximately … just under a third of all deaths we have had in the past three weeks.
“So this is not just a matter of Covid-19 deaths as I already said, this is a very fragile group of older people and we would normally have a number of deaths during the winter months and we are also dealing with that as well” .
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Yesterday, Britain was warned that deaths “will increase further” this week after 717 more people lost their lives in error.
The country reached another bleak milestone with the number of deaths from Covid-19 reaching 11,329, as confirmed cases also rose to 88,621, compared to 84,279 infections in 24 hours.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is now publishing the number of deaths in nursing homes.
But they are based on death certificates that are slow to issue and cause a delay in the number of confirmed deaths.
Industry bosses believe the actual death toll in nursing homes is feared to be around 1,000.
TENFOLD RISE IN DEATHS
ONS figures released today showed 217 nursing home deaths in England and Wales, a tenfold increase from the previous week’s number of 20.
These include cases in which the coronavirus is suspected or confirmed and covers the period until April 3.
Just under 10 percent of Covid-19 deaths recorded through April 3 occurred in residences, hospices, or private homes.
The total number of deaths from coronavirus in England could be 15% higher once deaths in the community are taken into account.
In London, almost half of all deaths recorded in the week ending April 3 involved Covid-19.
The 16,387 deaths recorded in England and Wales in the week ending April 3 is the highest number since ONS records began in 2005.
ONS figures do not include Northern Ireland and Scotland, so the actual number for the UK will be higher.
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Meanwhile, front-line care home staff face a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) as they treat patients with symptoms of the virus.
Sir David said: “We have staff who are anxious not only about PPE, but also about the possibility of them contracting the virus and taking it to their loved ones.
“And, in fact, with this large number of deaths, the staff feel helpless because they cannot help people who in many ways have cared for several years.”
But Secretary of Labor and Pensions, Therese Coffey, insisted today that the care sector is not lagging behind.
SPARE PARTS
She said: “In fact, PPE is being delivered to more than 26,000 care settings across the country, including care homes, home care providers and also hospices.
“Therefore, it is not a case that is left out; understandably, with the advice of the medical director, we are prioritizing our approach where the clinical need is greatest.
He added: “I think it is important that we continue to try to get that PPE out daily, not just to the NHS but to other key users of that.
Earlier today Nadra Ahmed, president of the National Health Care Association, told ITV Good Morning Britain that nursing homes were struggling to obtain and pay for PPE and that prices “were not sustainable” for the health care sector. .
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She said the government had removed VAT on the essential kit for the NHS and urged it to do the same for the welfare sector.
Ms Ahmed said that a supplier had paid £ 8,500 for just one week of PPE, adding: “We have told the Chancellor to” remove VAT from PPE, these are essential items. “
“They took it away from the NHS but they didn’t transfer it to social care … without our staff we can’t provide care.”
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