Coronavirus: Guidance 'too late' for weekend care home visits

Outdoor visits have been possible at Welsh care homes since 16 June

Many care homes are unlikely to allow indoor visits this weekend in spite of new guidance, an industry group says.

Indoor visits were allowed on Friday, a day earlier than previously announced.

While the guidance was "well-intended" it may have unrealistically "raised expectations" of immediate changes, said Mario Kreft of Care Forum Wales.

The Welsh Government said discussions had been taking place for weeks and guidance had been based on feedback from care homes.

The hiatus on indoor visits, in place for most of the pandemic, was initially set to end on Saturday, but the Welsh Government announced on Thursday it would be brought forward by a day, along with official guidance on how visits should work.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said it was just a guide, with homes to decide when they could welcome visitors again, while urging friends and families to "be patient and understand as homes begin to work through the logistics".

Mr Kreft, chairman of Care Forum Wales, said that, while the government guidance was "thorough and very helpful", it may have given relatives an unrealistic hope visits would start sooner than possible.

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"It is very well intended but it has probably raised expectations that suddenly the doors of care homes were suddenly going to be reopened which clearly isn't the case," he said.

"Each care home will need time to study the guidance in detail so we would not envisage many visits taking place immediately and providers will quite rightly be proceeding with great caution."

He said the overriding consideration was to keep vulnerable residents and staff safe.

"The other issue is that we would not have chosen for this change in guidance to coincide with a bank holiday weekend," he added.

Lynne Woodrow, who manages St Isan Care Home in Cardiff, said it would have been helpful to have the guidance sooner, to allow visitors to take advantage of the lifting of the bar on indoor visits right away.

"I expected the guidance to be out at least by Wednesday to make whatever adjustments we need to make," she said.

"It's been very stressful for residents not being able to see families, so they are very excited.

"But we can't have the guidelines come out on Friday and expect to open on the same day.

"There has to be a balance between the risk of Covid, with indoor visiting and weighing up the concerns and benefits it has to a resident's well-being."

'It means the world to us'

Linda Ireland and her mother Alice Morel before Covid-19 hit

Linda Ireland is "very, very excited" and "can't wait" to see her 92-year-old mother, Alice Morel, inside for the first time since lockdown began.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, Mrs Ireland would visit her mother three times a week, but she said the new normal has been a challenging adjustment.

The pair had been keeping in touch using WhatsApp and Facetime.

"I phoned her twice a day. It was lovely to see her face. She started crying the first time she saw me," Mrs Ireland said.

"As soon as [the home] told me I could visit outside, it was very emotional.

"We caught up on a lot of things. Mum's very alert for her age and she did make us laugh.

"She's the type of person who loves banter, and that is what the carers do with her. She's had more banter in lockdown than ever."

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Mrs Ireland said they were both looking forward to having a cup of coffee and even a glass of wine to celebrate the "fantastic" news.

She said: "The only concern I have is safety. I am worried about the added risk, but if everything is socially distanced and done properly, it'll be fantastic.

"I will wrap myself head-to-toe in plastic and PPE [personal protective equipment] if I have to because it means the world to us."

St Isan Care Home in Cardiff will wait before resuming indoor visits

'Arrangements in advance'

Last week, First Minister Mark Drakeford said reopening care homes was one of the "most serious decisions" taken by Welsh Government.

Visits can only take place under "strict" rules set out by the government and individual care homes.

The official guidance issued says homes should consider limiting visits to 30 minutes as a guide, having a maximum of two people from the same household, and visits by young children and toddlers should generally be discouraged, apart from in exceptional circumstances, due to the difficulty keeping social distancing.

"People won't simply be able to turn up, they will need to make sure that they made arrangements in advance," Mr Drakeford said.

On 23 March, the Welsh Government first wrote to care providers about restricting visits.

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But since 16 June, care homes have been allowed to conduct outdoor visits. Visits have been made by relatives through the window, in gardens, and under gazebos - but keeping socially distance.

Some care home providers are pleased with the easing of lockdown restrictions, but others are wary of opening their doors to visitors.

'Duty of care'

Due to the severity of the virus and the potential for a second wave, the manager of Glenmore Residential Home in Newport said she did not feel comfortable opening the doors just yet.

No residents or members of staff have contracted Covid-19, but some families are happy with seeing their loved ones via window visits "due to safe infection control".

Manager Jodie Bryant said: "I feel deeply heartfelt for the families and residents who want one-to-one person-centred visits, but we have a duty of care to everyone in the establishment."

Mr Gething said on Thursday he hoped many homes could quickly update their procedures to allow indoor visits.

But he added: "However, I do appreciate the anxiety that some providers will have about this significant change, and that some may need a little longer to put in place arrangements.

"I would urge family and friends to please be patient and understanding as homes begin to work through the logistics to facilitating indoor visits once again.

A Welsh Government spokesman said it had "actively engaged" with care homes and the guidance had been updated based on their feedback.