Coronavirus - Care & Support Update

As you know, over the past few weeks, Welsh Government has been implementing new restrictions and guidance to keep everyone safe from Omicron, the latest strain of the virus.

Our teams are under a huge amount of pressure at the moment, with many having to self-isolate. We are definitely seeing the impact of the Omicron strain, but we want to reassure you that everything is under control.

With the situation ever-changing, here is an update on how we are managing at our services…

VISITING YOUR LOVED ONES

Unless directed by Welsh Government, Public Health Wales or the Local Authorities, we have no plans to restrict access to our services.

Depending on where your loved one lives, however, we may ask you to wear full PPE during your time inside the building. This is to minimise the risk of spreading the virus to vulnerable individuals.

We do ask that before your visit, you keep transmission rates in mind and remember the importance of hand hygiene, mask wearing and Lateral Flow Testing.

OUR TEAMS

In line with the Welsh Government guidance, our teams have moved back to wearing full PPE whilst they are on shift. This includes a mask, apron and gloves.

We are encouraging all colleagues to ensure that they have their Covid-19 vaccines and booster. They are also taking daily Lateral Flow Tests to minimise the risk of taking Covid-19 into the service.

Doorstep screening continues at all services, alongside vigorous, regular cleaning and sanitising regimes to help stop the spread of the virus.

The health and wellbeing of your loved ones, our colleagues – and you – will always be our priority. Thank you for your patience as we react and adapt to this challenging situation.

As you know, on Saturday 7th August, Wales moved into Alert Level 0.

We thank you for your patience over the past week, while we have been working on understanding and implementing the new guidance.

We’re now in a position to let you know what Alert Level 0 will look like at our services.

Please note that there may be some slight differences, depending on where your loved one lives. This is because each of our services are different – and each individual who lives there has different needs.

Outdoor visits are still considered to be the safest option, so these will be encouraged at all of our services.

Residential Care Homes:

Welsh Government has scrapped the rule around “designated visitors”.

This means anyone can now visit our care homes – but we ask that you speak with our teams first, so they can let you know how many visitors can be safely accommodated at any one time.

On arrival, visitors will go through our doorstep screening process and asked to take LFT tests.

If a visitor refuses to take a LFT test, they will only be able to visit in a designated visiting area. They will need to wear a mask for the entire visit and keep a 2 metre distance from others at all times.

In the case of a negative LFT test result being provided by a visitor, they will be able to visit their loved one in their own room. They will need to wear a mask or face covering when walking around the service, but this can be removed once seated. They will not need to keep a 2 metre distance from their loved one.

If there is a confirmed case within the service, visits from one essential visitor can continue. Visitors to the individual who has tested positive will need to wear full PPE – face mask, apron and gloves.

Supported Living & Extra Care Services:

In line with the Welsh Government guidance around how many people can visit a private dwelling, the rules for Supported Living & Extra Care settings have also changed. Please speak with our teams to find out how many visitors can be safely accommodated at any one time.

Depending on whether your loved one lives in Supported Living or Extra Care, visitors may be asked to go through a doorstep screening process.

If there is a confirmed case at a Supported Living service where individuals share facilities, the general Welsh Government guidance will apply, which means that no visits should take place for 10 days, or until there is a negative test result.

If there is a positive case at an Extra Care service, we will advise against visits until we have had confirmation from the Test, Trace, Protect service that they are not treating it as an outbreak. In addition, in the event of a positive case, communal activities are likely to come to a stop, in order to keep everyone safe.

If you have any questions about any of the information provided above, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Please be aware that although the Welsh Government has made an announcement regarding Covid-19 restrictions in Wales, there will be NO CHANGES at our services yet.

We are taking some time to read through the new guidance, interpret it and plan the implementation at our services. Please bear with us while we navigate this.

We will be in touch with an update as soon as our teams have had time to adapt to the change.

As always, we thank you for your support, patience and understanding.

Mark Drakeford recently made an announcement regarding the current Coronavirus restrictions in Wales and the plan to move into Alert Level 0 on 7^th August.

For the most part, the new guidance will not have a huge impact on our services, but there are some changes that everyone will need to be made aware of.

The following is a summary of the situation now that new guidance has been issued…

Residential Care Homes:

Indoor visits with two designated visitors (at the same time, if desired), subject to LFD testing. If the visitors are not members of the same household, or extended household, they should socially distance.

Outdoor and/or pod visits allowed and will be encouraged.

Compassionate visits remain unchanged.

Visitors should wear face coverings on entry to the home. Visitors may remove face coverings once seated, if:

• They are socially distanced from individuals
• Visits are in a well-ventilated room and that room is either a designated visiting room only being used by one family at a time or the individual’s own room.

Visitors should wear PPE where there is likely to be more significant close contact with the resident, and particularly when there is an increased infection risk i.e. during an incident or outbreak.

Visitors and individuals may hold hands without wearing gloves. Visitors should wash hands before and after any contact with the resident or their environment and cover broken skin with a waterproof dressing or plaster before contact.

Pobl colleagues will encourage caution with close physical interactions (for example hugs, kisses). This presents less risk if it is between people who are fully vaccinated, without face-to-face contact, and there is brief contact only.

Services supporting people’s wellbeing such as entertainers can enter indoor areas, subject to LFD test before entry.

Supported Living & Extra Care Services:

Outdoor and/or pod visits allowed and will be encouraged.

Individuals are able to join together with up to two other households to form an exclusive extended household. Members of the extended household, or a maximum of six people from up to six households (not including children under 11 from any of these households or carers of anyone present) can meet indoors and stay overnight in private homes and travel and holiday accommodation.

Individuals living in accommodation with shared facilities such as kitchen and bathroom are treated as a single household for self-isolation purposes.

Compassionate visits remain unchanged.

Communal areas can reopen, subject to updated risk assessments.

Yesterday (24th May, 2021) we received new Welsh Government guidance, relating to indoor visits at care homes.

The updated guidance states that there is no longer any need for individuals to choose just two designated visitors.

We will be implementing this relaxation of restrictions on a service-by-service basis, depending on the vulnerabilities of the individuals we support.

If your loved one lives at one of our Care Homes, please contact the service to arrange the safest possible way to visit them.

On Monday 17th May, Wales entered Alert Level 2. We have now had time to work through the new Welsh Government guidance relating to this change. Having applied the updated guidance to our services and checked it against our detailed risk assessments, we would like to share our plans for facilitating visits at our services…

The way visits can be facilitated safely differs depending on the type of service and the vulnerabilities of the individuals who live there. With this in mind, we ask you to read through the information packs supplied in this bulletin and then speak with our colleagues to come up with the best solutions together, depending on your individual circumstances.

Care Homes:
If your loved one lives in a residential care home setting, please click here for our visitor pack.

Supported Living & Extra Care:
If your loved one lives in a Supported Living or Extra Care setting, please click here for our visitor pack.

Please get in touch with us if you have any questions that aren’t answered in these packs.

The health and wellbeing of your loved ones, our colleagues – and you – will always be our priority. Thank you again for your patience as we react and adapt to this ever-changing situation.

As always, we are following guidance from Welsh Government, Public Health Wales and Environmental Health in order to keep everyone as safe as possible. The current situation is as follows, across our services:

Supported Living & Extra Care Services:

• With the re-introduction of extended households, indoor visits may be allowed, depending on Risk Assessments and the needs and wishes of the individuals living in the service. Please contact the service for more information.
• Outdoor or pod visits allowed, as per guidance for the general community.

Care Homes:

• Two designated visitors allowed, subject to rapid testing.
• Only one visitor may visit indoors at a time.
• Outdoor and/or pod visits where possible.

Please be aware that if anyone becomes symptomatic or tests positive, visits to that service will need to be cancelled with immediate effect to keep everyone safe. End of life/ compassionate visits remain unchanged.

Taking Care Home Residents Off-Site:

The current advice we have from Public Health Wales is that residents wishing to visit family off-site or in family homes poses the most risk to the residents of the care home. Therefore we would ask you to consider visiting your loved one at the care home in the first instance, where you will be offered a rapid Covid test and the risks can be better managed to keep everyone safe.

If you do need to take your loved one away from the care home for a visit, then please follow the current guidance on social distancing, hand hygiene and use of face masks when possible, especially when travelling in vehicles.

If you are travelling in a vehicle with your loved one, please ensure that the number of people in the car are kept to a minimum. It is best if everyone wears a face mask and the passenger sits in the back seat with the windows open.

If we have any positive cases of Covid-19 in the care home, the current Public Health Wales guidance is that visits away from the service do not take place.

Hairdressers:
Many of you will be glad to hear that we have received new guidance that will enable us to allow hairdressers to visit indoors at our services once more. We will be looking to facilitate this safely, as soon as possible.

Communal Areas:
We are also anticipating that in line with changes to restrictions for the general public, we may be able to re-open communal areas and lounges at some of our services from 17th May. We are readying ourselves for this, revisiting risk assessments to ensure that we are able to do this as soon as guidance allows.

Today, Welsh Government announced their plans to begin unlocking the restrictions in place across Wales.

We have started the process of examining the new guidance and we will apply this individually to each of our services.

We appreciate that you are keen to visit your loved ones again, but please understand that applying new guidance takes time to plan and implement.

Once we have applied the new guidance to each of our services, taking into account the detailed Risk Assessments, as well as the varying vulnerabilities of those we support, we will start to facilitate visits once more.

Please do not contact our services to arrange visits yet. We will be in touch with you as soon as we can to welcome you back.

Throughout the pandemic, we have closely followed Government and Public Health Wales guidance to ensure everyone who lives and works at our services is as safe as possible. We intend to continue with this cautious, careful approach.

The safety of the individuals we support, you and our colleagues will always be our priority.

We are aware of the fact that this Sunday is a special day for many and that you will want to see your loved one. However, as we have only received the new guidance today, we will not be able to implement changes in time to reopen for Mothering Sunday.

We understand that this will be upsetting and frustrating, but we would prefer you to be able to enjoy a belated day together safely, rather than rushing to allow access and in doing so, putting everyone at risk.

We are looking forward to welcoming you to our services once more – and we are working tirelessly to ensure that we can do this in the safest possible way.

Updated Monday 21st December, 2020

Wales has entered Alert Level 4, which means that unfortunately, we have to restrict access to our services once again – with immediate effect.

We understand how this will be extremely difficult for you, your loved ones and our teams.

Please understand that this change in this position is a direct result of Welsh Government guidance. Based on the latest scientific findings, they have tightened restrictions in order to protect the most vulnerable in society.

KEEPING EVERYONE SAFE

Any previously scheduled visits and appointments are now cancelled.

If your loved one lives in a Residential Care Home, you will not be allowed access.

If your loved one lives in an Extra Care or Supported Living setting, please contact the individual services.

With the new guidance comes new restrictions and arrangements…

We are committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of your loved ones, our colleagues – and you. In restricting access to our services, we are doing everything we can to safeguard against what is a very real threat.

The Government has advised us there is evidence to suggest that the new strain of Coronavirus is more infectious than the original. We are now in unknown territory and so in suspending and restricting visits in-line with Government restrictions, we are aiding infection control processes to keep your loved ones and our colleagues as safe as possible.

The Firebreak Lockdown has come to an end here in Wales, which means that new guidance has been issued by Welsh Government on how we can all keep safe.

We have spent the past week going through the guidance for care & support services, which differs depending on where the individual lives.

We have now reached the point where we can make an informed decision on what can be done to facilitate visiting at each of our services in the safest possible way.

DIFFERENT APPROACHES DEPENDING ON THE LOCATION & SITUATION

Residential Care Homes: Outdoor visits only, by appointment.

All other services: Please contact the service in order to agree a safe approach.

We support a large number of individuals, all of whom have differing needs and vulnerabilities, so a blanket approach to visiting is not appropriate.That’s why, in-line with Welsh Government guidelines, our approach will differ on a service-by service basis.

We are committed to enabling visits from loved ones and we are working on solutions to allow this to take place through the winter months. In the meantime, please get in touch with the service to discuss the situation, the guidance and where appropriate, make arrangements for safe visits to take place.

As you will have heard, the whole of Wales is about to go into a “firebreak” lockdown. This means that a series of restrictions will be in place from 6pm Friday 23rd October until the start of Monday 9th November 2020.

As with previous lockdowns, in order to keep everyone safe, it is important that we suspend all visits from family, friends and loved ones to our services.

NO VISITING ALLOWED AT ANY OF OUR SERVICES
This rule will come into force in-line with the Welsh Government Firebreak Lockdown restrictions.

We understand that everyone is growing tired of these restrictions, but it is so important that we all work together to keep one another safe.

As always, we are following the guidance set out by Welsh Government, Public Health Wales and our own risk assessments. We value your support on this matter.

When the local lockdowns came into force, we took the decision to suspend visits to services in the affected areas.

We have now had time to review and adjust our risk assessments, so from Monday 12th October, where possible, we will start to allow outdoor visits at services in Local Lockdown areas.

Older People’s Services: Outdoor visiting only, regardless of area.

Local Lockdown Areas: Outdoor visiting only (depending on Risk Assessments).

Non Local Lockdown Areas: Outdoor visits preferred. Indoor visits where necessary.

Please check before you travel!

Each of our services has completed individual risk assessments, so please speak with our colleagues before making any visits.

Please note that if an individual becomes symptomatic at any of our services, we will need to suspend visiting at that service immediately, until a negative test is received. If an individual or colleague tests positive at a service, visiting will be suspended for 28 days from the date of the test. We value your understanding on this matter and hope you will support our colleagues with this.

It’s also important to note that travelling in and out of lockdown areas is not allowed, according to Welsh Government restrictions, so please take note of this before making arrangements to visit our services.

We all need to work together to keep everyone safe.

It was announced by Welsh Government today that three more areas (Llanelli, Swansea & Cardiff) will be going into local lockdown over the weekend. Therefore, our current status is as follows:

OLDER PEOPLE’S SERVICES (Including Care Homes & Extra Care):

• No visiting* allowed from and including Saturday 26th September 2020.

LOCAL LOCKDOWN AREAS – NO VISITING ALLOWED:

• Llanelli
• Swansea
• Cardiff
• Newport
• Bridgend
• Blaenau Gwent
• Caerphilly
• Merthyr Tydfil
• Rhondda Cynon Taff

ALL OTHER BOROUGHS:

Outdoor visits only, from and including Monday 28th September 2020.

*With the exception of end of life/ essential visits.

Please be aware that as further boroughs go into lockdown, so too will our services. As always, we make these difficult decisions to keep everyone safe.

Please click here to see an official Welsh Government statement regarding visiting restrictions in care settings.

We’ve been closely monitoring the news with regards to the number of cases of Covid-19 in our communities.

In light of the recent rise in the number of cases of Covid-19 in our communities, local intelligence and local authority and Welsh Government guidance, we have taken the decision to tighten the restrictions in place at our services…

OLDER PEOPLE’S SERVICES (Including Care Homes & Extra Care):

• No visiting* allowed from and including Saturday 26th September 2020.

LOCAL LOCKDOWN AREAS – NO VISITING ALLOWED:

• Newport
• Bridgend
• Blaenau Gwent
• Caerphilly
• Merthyr Tydfil
• Rhondda Cynon Taff

ALL OTHER BOROUGHS:

Outdoor visits only, from and including Monday 28th September 2020.

*With the exception of end of life/ essential visits.

Please be aware that as further boroughs go into lockdown, so too will our services. As always, we make these difficult decisions to keep everyone safe.

Over the past few days, local lockdowns have been introduced across a number of boroughs in South Wales.

Having reflected on the guidance on these local lockdowns and the national measures announced, we’ve taken the decision to SUSPEND ALL VISITS in all local lockdown areas with immediate effect*. This includes indoor and outdoor visits.

In the areas where there is no local lockdown currently, we have decided to move to external visiting only*, from and including Monday 28^th September, in order to keep everyone safe.

So, to summarise:

LOCAL LOCKDOWN AREAS – NO VISITING ALLOWED, WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT:

• Newport
• Bridgend
• Blaenau Gwent
• Caerphilly
• Merthyr Tydfil
• Rhondda Cynon Taff

ALL OTHER BOROUGHS:

Outdoor visits only, from and including Monday 28th September 2020.

*With the exception of end of life/ essential visits.

From 6pm today (Friday 8th September), the Caerphilly County Borough area will go into a local lockdown, to combat the spread of Covid-19.

We will continue to provide care and support services in the Caerphilly County Borough area. The only change will be in line with guidance around visits;

Supported Living services – Outdoor visits only.

Extra Care services – Essential or end of life visits only.

All visits must be controlled via the service manager prior to visitors entering.

We will continue to closely monitor all of our services in the area and act in accordance with the latest Welsh Government and Public Health Wales guidelines to ensure the safety of your loved ones and our employees.

Indoor Visits

Preparations for indoor visits have been continuing at pace, with risk assessments completed, additional equipment ordered where needed, and signage packs for services created.

We are now delighted to be able to confirm that indoor visits are able to resume on Monday 7th September.

We are so glad to be able to welcome families back into our services, and will be keeping our approach as simple as we can to make this process safe and straightforward for those we support and their loved ones.

While there will be some changes to how we operate compared to the last time you were able to visit indoors, the basic principles for all services are:

• There will be a designated visiting area in each service which will be cleaned between each use
• Visitors need to book their visit in advance with the service
• A maximum of 2 visitors per person at each visit will be allowed, but different people can visit the individual on each occasion
• Doorstep screening will take place for each visitor on each occasion, including temperature checks. Visitors will be politely declined entry if there is any indication they may have Covid-19 symptoms
• Hand hygiene remains critical and people will be asked to use antibacterial hand gel on arrival and when moving through the building.
• Face coverings must be worn by visitors in the building
• We will collect the details of all visitors to aid track & Trace
• We will pause visiting again if there is a suspected case amongst colleagues or individuals at a service, or a local outbreak necessitating action in some services

In some services, additional measures such as one-way systems and perspex screens will be in place.

Visiting may vary subject to local guidance and any community restrictions that may be put in place by Welsh Government.

We know that these changes may cause anxiety for some. However, we want to assure you that we have worked closely with our health and safety business partners and followed Welsh Government and Public Health Wales guidance in developing our plans, and are content that if this is followed, the risk of infection should be minimised. We will keep the situation both in our services and the wider communities under review and communicate any changes as needed.

We understand that the past few months have been difficult. But we’re pleased to say that now official restrictions on movements have started to become more relaxed, we are looking towards allowing you to visit again.

Our Commitment Still Stands…

Whilst we are going to start allowing visitors to our services, we are certainly not going to become complacent.

Coronavirus still exists and continues to pose a risk, so we will move forward cautiously, ready to take a step back if required.

Please read on to find out how we are planning to allow visits in a safe and controlled manner…

Care Homes & Extra Care Services:

From 22^nd June, we will be preparing to allow restricted access to our services.

Please wait to hear from us – we will be in contact to make arrangements.

The access is strictly limited to our outdoor space and all visitors must abide by the rules set out by each individual service…

Please download the documents below for further information and advice:

• Care Homes & Extra Care: Information for family members
• Care Homes & Extra Care: Visiting guidance & what to expect
• Advice for family members and friends of people living with dementia
• Advice for family members and friends of people who will not understand social distancing

Supported Living Services: