Covid: Dementia patient's wife describes 'torture' of lack of visits

A woman has described her pain at not being able to see her husband regularly at his care home during the pandemic, calling it a "torture of the heart".

Jean Haste, 70, says she has only been able to see Trevor, 75, who has dementia, once a week for 30 minutes at his home in Suffolk due to visiting restrictions.

She said the lack of interaction had affected her husband's illness "grossly", saying he hunches in his wheelchair and barely makes eye contact when she does visit.

"I call it torture of the heart. I took a vow and that was to have and to hold. And I can't be with him," said Mrs Haste.

The Department of Health and Social Care said its "first priority" was to prevent infections in care homes, but local public health officials were "responsible for the policy on visits".