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Welcome to this week's newsletter, published for adult social care providers, issued on behalf of Devon County Council's Director of Adult Social Care Services and Director of Public Health and NHS Devon’s Chief Nursing Officer.
One of the few areas in which lockdown was eased on Monday was care home visiting and national guidance has been updated accordingly this week. Please make sure you are making use of the latest information.
Remember that we do our best to keep the content and structure of our Provider Engagement Network website up-to-date and your suggestions how to improve the site are always welcome.
Care home visiting guidance updated this week
The key national guidance below has been updated in line with the changes to care home visiting which came into effect on Monday 21 June.
Arrangements for visiting out of the care home sets out how care homes can support residents on visits outside of the care home.
Visiting arrangements in care homes sets out how care homes can support families and visitors to visit residents.
Admission and care of people in care homes advises how to protect care home residents and staff during the coronavirus outbreak. It's been updated to clarify that admissions into a care home from the community are able to take a test up to 72 hours in advance.
Admission and care of residents in a care home during COVID-19: summary of updates. This document lists the many changes to guidance made in the last week in one place.
Overview of adult social care guidance on coronavirus
This key document has now been updated to take account of the new 'variants of concern' and now includes the statement that:
“Residents who have been exposed to a person with possible or confirmed COVID-19 should be isolated (or cohorted if not possible) with other similarly exposed residents until 14 days after last exposure.”
And the statement that:
"At 14 days with no new cases, in discussion with the Health Protection Team (HPT), the care home should undertake end of outbreak testing: test all staff and residents using PCR 14 days after the last positive result (unless a variant of concern (VOC) other than the 'Alpha variant' and/or 'Delta variant' has been identified). The local HPT will contact the care home if, a VOC (other than the 'Alpha variant' and/or 'Delta variant') has been identified and discuss additional measures which may include delaying the 'end of outbreak testing' until 28 days after the last positive case. This means that outbreaks will be closed 14 days after the last positive case for Alpha and/or Delta but 28 days after for other variants of concern."
Supported living guidance
Supported living services during coronavirus (COVID-19). Guidance for providers of supported living settings has also been updated to take into account recent announcements.
Guidance on how to access regular testing
Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing for anyone working in adult social care who is not part of regular testing at work and unpaid carers.
The guidance explains how anyone working in adult social care in England, who is not part of a regular testing regime at work, can access twice-weekly COVID-19 testing.
It combines testing guidance for personal assistants and for unpaid carers as a generic document for those working formally or informally in adult social care not being tested through their employer.
It specifies a 21 day testing cycle of seven LFDs with confirmatory PCR for any positive results.
It applies to:
- those who work in adult social care and are not part of regular testing at work, for example shared lives carers, personal assistants and social workers
- unpaid carers.
Vaccination walk-in sessions, booking not necessary
Any staff who are still to have both vaccinations can take advantage of being able to get their jabs without booking an appointment at the walk-in sessions listed below. Please remember that the interval between doses for all age groups is 8-12 weeks.
Greendale, Exeter EX5 2JU
Friday 25, Saturday 26, Sunday 27 of June, 9.00am - 7.00pm, 1st doses of Pfizer and 2nd doses of Astra-Zeneca
Derriford Centre for Health and Wellbeing, Plymouth PL6 8DH
Friday 25 June, 8.30am - 2.00pm, 2nd doses of Pfizer
Home Park, Plymouth PL2 3DQ
Friday 25, 8.30am - 7.30pm, 2nd doses of Astra-Zeneca
Saturday 26, Sunday 27 of June, 8.30am - 7.30pm, 1st doses of Moderna
Rivera International Centre, Torquay TQ2 5LZ
Saturday 26 June, 9.00am - 12.00noon, 1st doses of Pfizer
Barnstaple Leisure Centre, Barnstaple EX31 2AP
Saturday 26 June, 8.00am - 8.00pm, 1st doses of Pfizer
Plymouth Albion, PL1 4NE
Friday 25 June, 3.00pm - 5:30pm, 1st doses of Pfizer
As we cannot predict demand for these walk-in sessions, please look on social media channels for short-notice announcements if any of these sessions become over-subscribed, to avoid a unnecessary trip.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) available for injection phobias
TALKWORKS, part of IAPT (Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies), is well known for the CBT approaches it delivers for people with depression, anxiety and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but the service also works with a much wider range of presentations.
The COVID-19 vaccine roll-out has put many people who may have a blood-injection-injury phobia in this position. Some of your patients may be trapped between wanting to have the vaccine but an overwhelming fear of needles. TALKWORKS can help them.
If you have a patient who simply cannot face getting the vaccine, someone who has been avoiding the dentist for years, someone who panics at the thought of an injection or faints at the sight of blood, consider discussing a referral to TALKWORKS or Plymouth Options.
New Bulk Upload spreadsheet for day care, home care and supported living
The current spreadsheet being used to register coronavirus tests by day care, home care and supported living providers will be replaced by a new Bulk Upload spreadsheet from NHS Test and Trace on Thursday 1 July. The new spreadsheet will replace the existing one which providers will not be able to use after that date.
NHS Test and Trace will be hosting a webinar on how to use the new spreadsheet on Thursday 1 July at 1.00pm.
NHS Devon Qualitative fit testing ends on Wednesday 30 June
Over the past twelve months the NHS Devon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) fit testing team has provided Qualitative (test for fitting an FFP3 mask) fit testing for over 300 carers and supported over 80 individuals to access fit test training across Devon. This includes hospices, care homes, care agencies, personal health budget patients’ personal assistants, unpaid carers and schools.
From Thursday 1 July the Qualitative fit testing support offered by the CCG will come to an end. Information and support can still be accessed after this date, but the current fit testing team will no longer be available to attend settings to carry out fit testing for carers who need FFP3 masks where a patient requires aerosol generated procedure (AGP).
Providers can still order free PPE using the existing supply routes.
Introducing the Oral Health Improvement Team (OHIT)
Devon County Council has commissioned the OHIT to improve the oral health of cared for adults in Devon. Sarah Thrush and Lucie Colbourne-Laight are the Oral Health Improvement Practitioners, supported by their secretary Toyah Saunders.
The OHIT arranges oral health education training throughout much of Devon, concentrating on delivering key prevention messages and addressing how to overcome poor oral health in adults with special care needs and those in care / residential homes. Our oral health training seeks to provide invaluable information to equip care and support staff to carry out their job, armed with the correct knowledge to do so.
The training delivered is FREE and is also bespoke to the needs of the setting. This can be done virtually or face to face to enable as many individuals to attend as safely as possible, with attendees receiving a certificate of verifiable CPD.
Please contact the team to find out more information or to book a session. Tel: 01392 405705.
Below from left: Sarah, Toyah and Lucie.
 The England Illegal Money Lending Team (IMLT) was set up in 2004 to investigate loan sharks. It's a government funded body which works within communities in partnership with education, police, trading standards and debt advice services to prevent illegal money lenders taking advantage and profiting from other people’s hardship.
The England's Stop Loan Sharks team has developed a range of free education resources, free partner tools and will also deliver free in-house training. Their helpline: 0300 555 2222 is open 24/7.
They offer FREE talks during July, August and September on Loan Sharks & Lockdown and on Overcoming barriers and changing lives. To find out more and to book a place please contact Dave Monk.
ADASS Activity Survey 2021
An ADASS survey, carried out in March and April 2021, that asked directors how need for care and support compared with six months previously.
Key messages from the report include:
- Local authorities are seeing increased numbers of people seeking support for mental ill health, domestic abuse and safeguarding and homelessness.
- Closure and unavailability of some services (such as day services) has led to increased numbers of people seeking support for other social care services.
- There has been increased need and activity as a result of people not being admitted to hospital as well as increased social care activity as a result of people being discharged from hospital
- Adult social care has stepped up during the pandemic and is providing care and support for increased numbers of people
- Carers have taken on significant responsibilities including people taking on caring responsibilities for the first time, as well as carers either choosing not to or not being able to access services for the person they care for due to infection concerns.
- However, fewer carers have contacted their local authorities for support and fewer carers assessments have been undertaken. This is despite Directors reporting an increasing number of people seeking support in the event of carer breakdown or carer unavailability. This would suggest that carers are not seeking help until they actually break down.
- Care markets have continued to experience turbulence. However, time-limited COVID-19 grant funding, such as the Infection Control Fund, is reported to have prevented or delayed some provider failures by way of closures and there have been fewer contract hand-backs to local authorities by providers.
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