Covid: Somerset care home that lost 10 to remember victims

Manager Sandra Joyce said the number of deaths a year ago was an "utter nightmare"

"Peggy was the first resident we lost to Covid. She died on Christmas Day. Then we lost Michael. Then, Nigel. Followed by Ann. Roger. Pat. Trudie. Then, John. Joyce. And finally Jean."

Care home manager Sandra Joyce is struggling to hold back tears as she remembers last year's "horrific" Christmas. A Covid outbreak at Linden House in Wellington, Somerset, claimed the lives of ten elderly residents in less than three weeks.

"It was a complete and utter nightmare. Heartbreaking. We couldn't believe what we were dealing with.

"It went through the home like wildfire," she said.

• BBC Sounds: A care home at Christmas

"All the residents had to stay in their individual rooms, to try to keep them safe. Then, one by one, all the staff had to isolate as well. I was working twenty hours a day. Looking back, I just can't believe it."

In the kitchen, head chef Nic Cappell is wearing a sparkly Santa hat as she prepares a huge plate of mince pies for this year's Christmas party.

Chef Nic Cappell said she wants to make this Christmas special for residents after the nightmare of 12 months ago

"We're trying to make things special for the residents. They deserve some happiness. We'll try to give them a festive smile. But we can't stop thinking about what was happening here twelve months ago. It was horrible," she said.

"We couldn't see them in their rooms. We couldn't say our last goodbyes to the ones who passed away. Every morning I would wake up and think I'd had a nightmare. And then I'd realise it was real. I was actually living in this nightmare."

Jodie Oaten, 25, who has worked at Linden House for ten years, said they were "flat out".

"We didn't have time to stand back and think about what was happening. It was all a blur. You lose all sense of time.

"It's not until you finally stop and think about what's been going on around you, that you realise how awful it was."

Carer Jodie Oaten (left) said it was not until she stopped to think about the situation, that she realised how awful it was

One year on, the residents and staff are vaccinated, but Jodie is still worried about the new Omicron variant.

"I keep thinking 'Oh God. Is it going to happen again?' Are we going to have to go through something like that again this Christmas?' I'm so nervous.

"The only time I go out is to do my food shopping. I don't see friends. I've cancelled meals out. I just don't want to risk bringing the virus in here. I just want to keep everyone safe."

As she watches her staff singing carols and making paper-chains, Sandra says many of them are still deeply affected by what they had to deal with last December.

She added: "I have never struggled with my mental health before, but I'm seeking counselling right now. It's just beneath the surface for all of us. We put this veneer on. We're all happy and smiley for the residents, but that comes at a huge personal cost to us.

"We're still processing what happened."

'Must remember'

It's not only Covid that has caused Sandra heartache and stress this year. A staffing crisis means Linden House is currently only able to operate at half its capacity.

Despite a local recruitment drive, she has been unable to find enough carers and nurses in Somerset, so has remortgaged her own family home to bring workers over from India and Nigeria. She has even bought a house to accommodate them while they are here.

"It's almost too much to think about. If the bank wants the loans recalled, then everything would go. We'd have to find the residents somewhere else to live and I'd have to make the staff redundant. I try to block it out."

This Christmas, amidst the carol-singing and the turkey dinners, Linden House will pause to remember the ten residents who died. A special tree will be planted in the garden and a memorial pathway has been created.

The care home will remember all its Covid victims this Christmas

"It's so important that people realise what went on last year," says Rachael Hart, whose 83-year-old brother Nigel was among the home's Covid victims.

"We must remember those who died. And we must remember what the care staff did to help them. Not just here, but in homes across the country," she said.

"My brother had excellent care here. I can't fault it. And I'll never forget it."

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