COVID-19 (Coronavirus) UPDATE

Coronavirus Update – 5th April 2023

.

From Monday 3 April 2023 the Government made further changes to the guidance for adult social care related to coronavirus. As a result, HICA no longer requires care home visitors to LFD test prior to entering a care home nor wear a face mask. We will still have face masks available if you would prefer to wear one. Unfortunately if the home is considered to be in outbreak visiting may not be possible, and you should contact the manager who will provide you with an update and advice.

We would ask that visitors should not enter the care home if they are feeling unwell, even if they have tested negative for COVID-19, are fully vaccinated and have received their booster. Transmissible viruses such as flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and norovirus can be just as dangerous to care home residents as COVID-19. If visitors have symptoms that suggest COVID-19, they should follow the guidance for people with symptoms of a respiratory infection.

If you have any queries regarding the new regulations please contact the relevant care home directly.

Coronavirus Update – 16th December 2022

.

We hope this latest update finds you well.

Risk-based use of masks- All Services

The use of face masks all of the time across adult social care can cause difficulties for people receiving care and staff looking after them. Guidance has now been amended to support a risk-based approach. This replaces previous guidance that stated face masks should be worn at all times across adult social care. The use of face masks for staff and visitors may now cease for general care provisions. Masks still need to worn if:

• A staff member is caring for a person suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19

• A staff member is a household or overnight contact of someone with COVID-19 (e.g., family at home)

• Staff and visitors need to re-commence mask wearing if there is an outbreak of COVID-19 in the setting.

• The service user prefers the care giver to wear a mask.

• There is an outbreak of respiratory illness or other infection and Health Protection or infection control teams have recommended the use of face masks.

If you have any queries please contact any service.

Coronavirus Update – 4th September 2022

.

We hope this latest update finds you well.

We appreciate that there has been a lot of changes for the general public, but we must emphasise that we are still obliged to follow the guidance for care homes and for homecare. Under current guidance, we no longer need to ask any visitors to our services to test for Covid before entry. We do still ask that all visitors to services do not attend if you feel ill prior to coming in.

Care homes still require visitors to wear PPE, which is available on site. Please be aware that under current guidance, homes may need to close to visitors who are not essential care givers in the event of an outbreak. Please contact the home prior to visiting.

Coronavirus Update – 24th February 2022

.

We hope this latest update finds you well.

From 24th February 2022, most of the remaining COVID-19 guidance in England has been lifted, although we have been advised that for providers of health and social care, there is very little change to guidance.

Although members of the general public no longer need to isolate upon testing positive for covid- the current guidance for care homes, visiting and homecare staff is unchanged. Staff must still isolate for 5 days, and have a negative LFT on day 5 and a negative LFD test on day 6 prior to the start of their shift.

We appreciate that there has been a lot of changes for the general public, but we must emphasise that we are still obliged to follow the guidance for care homes and for homecare. We have been made aware that guidance for care homes and homecare’s is not anticipated to change until the end of March. We will communicate changes with you as soon as these happen.

As a reminder to testing for home care: • Staff should conduct a daily LFT on the days that they are working before their round begins. • Staff should register the LFT test results online as soon as they have completed them using the service UON. If staff do not have access to the internet, they can also report results by calling 119, but MUST provide the UON. The UON is the unique organisation number that you use to order test kits and PPE. You should share this with your team.

As a reminder to testing for care homes: • Staff should be tested daily using a rapid lateral flow test (LFT) before their shift begins on the days they are working. There is no longer a requirement to complete a weekly PCR. PCR are only used for staff as part of outbreak or recovery testing. Staff can complete this at home but MUST use the UON to report the test, and evidence of this should be sought prior to them starting the shift. • Residents should still be tested once a month with a PCR. • Visitors should still complete a LFD test prior to visiting. If this is done at home, they should demonstrate evidence of this prior to entry. This includes contractors • For staff who have tested positive, PCR tests should not be undertaken for 90 days, even if you are completing recovery testing. This does not apply to LFD testing, which should resume immediately upon return to work.

There have been no changes in regards to the use of PPE for either home care or care homes.

Coronavirus Update – 2nd February 2022

.

We would like to extend our thanks to families and friends for their patience. We appreciate that the government announced via a press release that visitors to care homes would be unlimited from Monday, but we have only just received the official guidelines. Please accept our sincerest apologies.

Visiting is crucial for family and friends to maintain contact and life-long relationships with their loved ones, and to contribute to their support and care. With immediate effect.

For all of our care homes, we are pleased that there is no longer any restriction on the number of visitors our residents receive. Visitors should continue to make arrangements with individual care home in advance of the visit, so that we can manage the number of people attending at any one time to ensure safe visiting practices are maintained.

Unfortunately, for services deemed as in outbreak, only essential care givers and end of life visits can continue. We will continue to offer visits outdoors, in visiting pods or from behind windows during an outbreak, and also virtual visits. We appreciate this is not the same, but unfortunately, the definition of an outbreak has not changed, and the guidance for visiting during an outbreak has not changed.

If you have any queries pertaining to a particular home please contact the home direct who will be happy to answer any questions.

Coronavirus Update – 13th December 2021

.

We hope this communication finds you well

Unfortunately, since our last communication, we have received further updates from the Department of Health and Social Care in relation to care home visiting. At HICA we're doing everything we can to keep our residents and our colleagues safe. Following the most recent changes in Government guidance we continue to ensure our own guidance aligns to the same.

Visits.

Due to the rapidly rising number of positive COVID-19 cases across the UK, and the increasing cases of the Omicron Covid Variant, the Government has outlined additional guidance to visits within care home settings. We assure you that our duty of care remains to maintain the health, safety, and welfare of our staff and residents. Government guidance currently states that for the safety of care home residents, visiting will be restricted to 3 nominated visitors and an essential care giver per resident. This is desperately sad, particularly as we approach the festive season, as we understand how much visiting means, but we must continue to follow the government guidance in place. Our motivation is unchanged, and we welcome family and friends of our residents to our care homes in a responsible, safe manner. All nominated visitors will still be required to test and use the relevant personal protective equipment (PPE). To this end, we request that visits are still booked in advance, so we can ensure that we are prepared to assist with testing registration and use of PPE. Government guidance on Infection Prevention Control and PPE for care homes has not changed, therefore we are sure you will understand the importance of making our homes safe for everyone. On arrival, to support the Test and Trace systems, we will still need you to complete a form with your name, address and contact details, as previously.

Visiting out of Care Homes.

Residents may leave care homes, that are free of any Covid outbreak, to visit with family or friends. All visits out of the care home that are not assessed as high risk will be supported. Residents who visit outside of the care home who have received both Covid vaccinations will need to complete a LFD Test every other day for a period of two weeks, following the visit. Residents who visit outside of the care home, who are not double vaccinated, will be required to isolate in their rooms for a period of two weeks, upon their return.

Essential Care Givers.

All Residents can nominate an Essential Care Giver, which is a person who will provide a greater degree of personal care or support to maintain the health and wellbeing of a resident. If you think that your loved one would benefit from this type of visit, you should discuss with the Care Home Manager who will advise on the role and ensure that the appropriate risk assessments are complete. An Essential Care Giver will be required to follow a protocol and risk assessment which will be drawn up by the Care Home staff, Resident (or advocate)and Essential Care Giver

Essential Care Givers must follow the same testing protocol as the staff, which is both via LFD Test and PCR testing. LFD testing has now increased to three times a week and a PCR test must be completed at the same time as one of the LFD tests. If the home has an outbreak, Essential Care Givers can still attend and support the Resident. Testing will be increased to a daily regime. Essential Care Givers will be supported to understand the protocols around donning and doffing of PPE, and infection prevention and control guidance.

We once again take this opportunity in thanking you for your understanding and continued support as we go through these difficult times. As always, it is our intention to safely encourage visiting to be as easy as possible, bringing our homes back into the heart of our local communities We would like to thank residents and their family and friends and our teams for their incredible support and good will as we continue to do everything we can to keep residents safe, happy and leading busy, fulfilled lives.

Coronavirus Update – 21st July 2021

.

We hope this latest communication finds you well. We are now pleased that following a review, from today, Tuesday 20th July 2021, there has been an amendment to visiting both inside and outside of care homes, for our residents.

The UK Government has now lifted many Covid-related restrictions from Monday 19th July, and associated guidance in relation to the lifting of many restrictions, has now been received. July 19 marked a relaxation by the UK Government of Covid restrictions within England, supported by the successful UK Covid vaccination roll out. The emphasis from Government moves to a position of responsibility being put on individuals and organisations to safely ‘get on with life’, managing effectively the continued threat of Covid.

Visiting in Care Homes.

We are very pleased that there will be no restriction on the number of named visitors and the number of visits per resident per week, where the home is out of Covid outbreak, and the visitor returns a negative test. HICA is proud to have maintained safe, high levels of visiting during these challenging times, which we trust our families have valued. Our motivation is unchanged, and we welcome family and friends of our residents to our care homes in a responsible, safe manner. All visitors will still be required to test, and use the relevant PPE, which may mean scenarios of higher-than-expected footfall and short waiting times to enter the home as the team facilitate this. To this end, we request that visits are still booked in advance, so we can ensure that we are prepared to assist with testing registration and use of PPE. Government guidance of Infection Prevention Control and PPE for care homes has not changed, therefore we are sure you will understand the importance of making our homes safe for everyone. On arrival, to support the Test and Trace systems, we will still need you to complete a form with your name, address and contact details, as previously.

If you are experiencing coronavirus symptoms or have in the last 10 days, or if any member of your household has been in contact with a positive case or has been advised to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace you should not visit at this time.

Visiting out of Care Homes.

Residents may leave care homes, that are free of any Covid outbreak, to visit or stay overnight with family or a friend. All visits out of the care home that are not assessed as high risk will be supported, and not subject to advice to self-isolate on return to the care home. Unfortunately, the need to isolate does remain if a stay in hospital is complete.

Where visits out are accompanied by a named visitor, the accompanying visitor will need follow the same testing regime as they would when visiting a care home.

Essential Care Givers.

All Residents can nominate an Essential Care Giver, which is a person who will provide a greater degree of personal care or support to maintain the health and wellbeing of a resident. If you think that your loved one would benefit from this type of visit, you should discuss with the Care Home Manager who will advice on the role and ensure that the appropriate risk assessments are complete. An Essential Care Giver will be required to follow a protocol and risk assessment which will be drawn up by the Care Home staff, Resident ( or advocate)and Essential Care Giver.

Essential Care Givers must follow the same testing protocol as the staff, which is LFT testing and PCR testing. Generally, LFT testing is done twice a week and a PCR test is completed at the same time as one of the LFT tests. If the home has an outbreak, Essential Care Givers can still attend and support the Resident. Testing will be increased to a daily regime. Essential Care Givers will be supported to understand the protocols around donning and doffing of PPE, and infection prevention and control guidance.

We once again take this opportunity in thanking you for your understanding and continued support as we go through these difficult times. As always, it is our intention to safely encourage visiting to be as easy as possible, bringing our homes back into the heart of our local communities.

Coronavirus Update – 4th May 2021.

We hope this latest communication finds you well. We are very pleased that the government has announced its further continuation of its journey of lifting restrictions. The government made a welcome announcement in March that care home visits could re-commence, and in April extended this to two nominated visitors. We are now pleased that following a review, from today, Tuesday 4th May 2021, there has been an amendment to visiting outside of care homes for our residents.

Updated supplementary guidance has been released by the Department of Health and Social Care over the bank holiday which now allows for residents to leave their care homes, to spend time outdoors, without the need to isolate on their return. The supplementary guidance states that residents should be enabled to leave their care home to spend time outdoors, without subsequent isolation for 14 days, in the following circumstances:

Resident is accompanied by:

• a member of care home staff or,

• one or both of their nominated visitors or,

• their essential care provider (where applicable)

Visits should take place solely outdoors, except for the use of toilet facilities

• there should be no visits to indoor spaces (public or private)

• the exception to this is that residents will be able to access polling stations

Visits should not involve the use of public transport

Unfortunately, visits outside of the care home that do not meet the above criteria will still require a period of isolation upon return.

We are very pleased that for several weeks, we have had no residents or staff testing positive for COVID-19 in our care homes, through our continued regular testing regimes. This is such a relief for everyone and gives us great confidence in the amazing vaccination programme that continues at pace. For reassurance, we continue to be fully enrolled in the Government’s regular testing programme for residents, staff, and visitors. This currently involves multiple tests per week, to give us a clear picture of the COVID-status in our homes and allows us to take swift action if there are any changes

We will continue maintaining opportunities for visiting to take place which is critical for supporting the health and wellbeing of all residents and their relationships with friends and family. We also remain committed to maintaining the infection control measures we have in place in all our services.

All visits must be pre-booked to enable us to manage them safely and ensure the appropriate cleaning and hygiene regimes are in place. This also enables our teams to identify which type of visit is best suited to you and your loved one and to take you through the protocols we have in place to protect everyone involved. If you are showing any symptoms which could indicate coronavirus, please do not travel to the care home as you will not be able to proceed with your visit. We will also publish up to date guidance on our website which can be found at https://www.hica-uk.com/

Visiting Protocols

All visits must be booked in advance by appointment and we can only facilitate a certain number of visits per day for a limited duration to allow us time to effectively clean the area in-between visits (The local service will provide you with further details for these arrangements). If you intend on attending with a child, please let the service know at the time of making the booking, as there are different guidelines for testing and use of personal protective equipment dependent upon age. We thank you for your understanding in regard of this.

All visitors must also complete a simple Health Declaration Form prior to each visit taking place to ensure their safety and the safety of others. If you are attending with a child, we ask that you complete this on their behalf.

We will ensure that everyone follows the protocols to support visiting safely in regard to the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and we will ensure that personal protective equipment is made available to you to support your visit.

All visitors as will be asked to complete a Lateral Flow Device test before entering the home in line with government guidance. Alternatively, you can test yourself at home prior to your visit, but you must be able to provide evidence of this test, which must be complete on the day of your visit. This is a simple test that requires you to have a swab of your mouth and nasal cavity (for a few seconds) If you have any worries about this test then please contract a member of the local team who will hopefully reassure you and support you in enabling this to be completed.

We will still have in place our procedures for visiting outdoors or at windows. If this remains your preferred visiting method, this will continue alongside the face-to-face visits by nominated visitors and we will help you to look at the best options for you to consider visiting your loved one.

We once again take this opportunity in thanking you for your understanding and continued support as we go through these difficult times- we now have some light at the end of the tunnel and look forward to the days when we have visitors back fully into the services.

Coronavirus Update – 9th April 2021.

We hope this update finds you well, despite the current difficult circumstances. We are very pleased that the government has announced its continuation of its journey of lifting restrictions. The government made a welcome announcement in March that care home visits could re-commence, and we are now pleased that following a review, from Monday 12th April, this will be extended to two nominated visitors for each of our residents, who can either visit together, or separately..

In recent weeks we have had very few residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 through our continued regular testing, and the majority of those that have tested positive are either asymptomatic or have very mild symptoms. This is such a relief for everyone and gives us great confidence in the amazing vaccination programme that continues at pace. For reassurance, despite the rollout of second dose vaccinations, we continue to be fully enrolled in the Government’s regular testing programme for residents, staff and visitors. This currently involves multiple tests per week, to give us a clear picture of the COVID-status in our homes and allows us to take swift action if there are any changes.

We recognise the importance of maintaining opportunities for visiting to take place which is critical for supporting the health and wellbeing of all residents and their relationships with friends and family. It also remains crucial that we maintain the infection control measures we have in place in all of our services.

All visits must be pre-booked to enable us to manage them safely and ensure the appropriate cleaning and hygiene regimes are in place. This also enables our teams to identify which type of visit is best suited to you and your loved one and to take you through the protocols we have in place to protect everyone involved. If you are showing any symptoms which could indicate coronavirus, please do not travel to the care home as you will not be able to proceed with your visit. We will also publish up to date guidance here.

Visiting Protocols.

All visits must be booked in advance by appointment and we can only facilitate a certain number of visits per day for a limited duration to allow us time to effectively clean the area in-between visits (The local service will provide you with further details for these arrangements). If you intend on attending with a child, please let the service know at the time of making the booking, as there are different guidelines for testing and use of personal protective equipment dependent upon age. We thank you for your understanding in regard of this.

All visitors must also complete a simple Health Declaration Form prior to each visit taking place to ensure their safety and the safety of others. If you are attending with a child, we ask that you complete this on their behalf.

We will ensure that everyone follows the protocols to support visiting safely in regard to the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and we will ensure that personal protective equipment is made available to you to support your visit.

All visitors as will be asked to complete a Lateral Flow Device test before entering the home in line with government guidance. This is a simple test that requires you to have a swab of your mouth and nasal cavity (for a few seconds) If you have any worries about this test then please contract a member of the local team who will hopefully reassure you and support you in enabling this to be completed. Once this procedure has been carried out you will have to wait for the test result (usually about 30 mins) and it must come back negative before going into the service. Again, please let the service know at the time of booking a visit, if you intend to visit with a child, as there are different approaches to testing depending on their age.

If you test positive you will be asked to take a PCR test which has a greater level of reliability but needs to be processed in a laboratory. Testing positive will mean unfortunately that any planned visit will not be able to proceed; we of course will support you over the next few days as you await the result of this test and will try to facilitate a remote visit by the use of telephone or internet call.

We will still have in place our procedures for visiting outdoors or at windows. If this remains your preferred visiting method, this will continue alongside the face-to-face visits by nominated visitors and we will help you to look at the best options for you to consider to visit your loved one.

We once again take this opportunity in thanking you for your understanding and continued support as we go through these difficult times- we now have some light at the end of the tunnel and look forward to the days when we have visitors back fully into the services.

Coronavirus Update – 3rd March 2021.

We hope this communication finds you well, despite the current difficult circumstances although we are starting to see some success with the roll out of the vaccines which will help us all try to get back to a normal life. We are very pleased that the government has begun its journey of lifting restrictions, albeit it a very measured way. Last week the government made a welcome announcement that from March 8th 2021, Care Home visits can re-commence, which are face to face, with one regular nominated visitor, and some recommendations to ensure safety is maintained and to help reduce any potential spread of the virus in the service.

Coronavirus Update – 3rd March 2021.

We hope this communication finds you well, despite the current difficult circumstances although we are starting to see some success with the roll out of the vaccines which will help us all try to get back to a normal life. We are very pleased that the government has begun its journey of lifting restrictions, albeit it a very measured way. Last week the government made a welcome announcement that from March 8th 2021, Care Home visits can re-commence, which are face to face, with one regular nominated visitor, and some recommendations to ensure safety is maintained and to help reduce any potential spread of the virus in the service.

The government released an initial press statement regarding indoor visiting and we are awaiting further guidance which will be available on or before 8th March. We have been waiting for the formal guidance to be issued, to ensure we are consistent, but realise that you may have queries which we hope to address. We will also publish up to do date guidance on this website.

We recognise the importance of maintaining opportunities for visiting to take place which is critical for supporting the health and wellbeing of all residents and their relationships with friends and family. It is also vital that we maintain the infection control measures we have in place in all of our services. We know that in the short-term visiting your loved ones will not be the same as it was prior to the Covid-19 Pandemic, however these are small valuable steps to help us get back to how we were.

Visiting Protocols.

All visits will have to be pre-booked and we will only be able to permit them if the service is safe to receive visitors, based on the guidelines at the time in relation to any outbreaks of the virus within a service.

The Senior Team at the service will be discussing with residents whom are able to decide for themselves who they feel their designated visitor should be and for all other residents we will discuss the options with the known recorded next of kin or advocate.

All visits must be booked in advance by appointment and we can only facilitate a certain number of visits per day for a limited duration to allow us time to effectively clean the area in-between visits (The local service will provide you with further details for these arrangements). We thank you for your understanding in regard of this, and we will try our best to accommodate your preferred time.

All visitors must also complete a simple Health Declaration Form prior to each visit taking place to ensure their safety and and the safety of others.

We will ensure that everyone follows the protocols to support visiting safely in regard to the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and we will ensure that personal protective equipment is made available to you to support your visit.

All visitors as will be asked to complete a Lateral Flow Device test before entering the home in line with government guidance. This is a simple test that requires you to have a swab of your mouth and nasal cavity (for a few seconds) If you have any worries about this test then please contract a member of the local team who will hopefully reassure you and support you in enabling this to be completed. Once this procedure has been carried out you will have to wait for the test result (usually about 30 mins) and it must come back negative before going into the service.

If you test positive you will be asked to take a PCR test which has a greater level of reliability but needs to be processed in a laboratory. Testing positive will mean unfortunately that any planned visit will not be able to proceed; we of course will support you over the next few days as you await the result of this test and will try to facilitate a remote visit by the use of telephone or internet call.

Please note such visits may be suspended should local government advice change and upon routine testing we find we have a positive Covid-19 case within the service.

Unfortunately for services which are defined as having an outbreak, indoor visiting under the new guidance, will not be permitted. Whilst we appreciate that for people living in the services and for yourselves where an outbreak occurs this will mean the distress ongoing of further separation, however the safety of all cannot be compromised. The guidance does still enable us to allow visiting for residents who are approaching end of life and this can be arranged by contacting the service to discuss.

Please do bear with us as we plan for indoor contact visiting and await the updated guidance. In the meantime, we still have in place our procedures for visiting outdoors or at windows. If this remains your preferred visiting method, this will continue alongside the face to face visits by a nominated visitor and we will help you to look at the best options for you to consider to visit your loved one.

We once again take this opportunity in thanking you for your understanding and continued support as we go through these difficult times- we now have some light at the end of the tunnel and look forward to the days when we have visitors back fully into the services.

Corona Virus Update – 8th January 2021.

Unfortunately, since our last update, we have entered another period of National Restrictions and advice to stay at home. At HICA we're doing everything we can to keep our residents and our colleagues safe. Following the most recent changes in Government guidance we continue to ensure our own guidance aligns to the same

Visits: Due to the rapidly rising number of positive COVID-19 cases across the UK, the Government has implemented a national lockdown. We assure you that our duty of care remains to maintain the health, safety, and welfare of our staff and residents. Government guidance currently states that for the safety of care home residents, close-contact indoor visits supported by rapid testing cannot take place.This is desperately sad, as we understand how much visiting means but we must continue to follow the government guidance in place. We will continue to use screened visiting suites where we have them but will be unable to support other visits inside the home unless in exceptional circumstances. Please liaise with the registered manager in regard to exceptional circumstances, and alternatives to close-contact internal visits

Vaccinations: At the present time, the first vaccines are being rolled out across the UK and have taken place in some of our Homes. At the moment, we do not have firm dates for all residents across all sites to be vaccinated. We know that the Government has decided priority will be given to care home residents so we hope that their vaccinations will arrive soon. We have been working closely with local public health teams and with the GPs that support our homes to plan for the point where the vaccinations are made available to us. Our home teams have been gathering the information requested by the Department of Health and Social Care and are completing the necessary processes for residents to have the vaccinations, so if they have not yet been vaccinated, they are ready to do so.

The vaccine is just one tool in our tool box to prevent COVID-19, even in services where staff and residents are fully vaccinated, we will:

✓Continue to wear PPE,

✓Continue to follow infection prevention control guidance,

✓Continue with testing,

✓Continue to follow guidance if anyone has symptoms of coronavirus.

We would like to thank residents and their family and friends and our teams for their incredible support and good will as we continue to do everything we can to keep residents safe, happy and leading busy, fulfilled lives. Obviously, the vaccine offers hope that visiting will be more available, but please note that you should be prepared to continue with the visiting arrangements in place at a service, even after your relative has been vaccinated, until we receive further guidance

Corona Virus Update – 21st December 2020.

We have had many questions about visiting over the Christmas period. We are conscious of how important these celebrations are for you and your loved ones, but also need to be aware that the risk of Covid-19 remains as high during this period as any other. With so many people to look after in each home, as well as a range of factors to consider, it will sadly prove impossible to make the perfect arrangements for everyone. We have debated every option available and have tried to come up with the fairest solution, while considering it is imperative that we continue to follow the safety measures, whatever day of the year it is.

We're pleased to announce that we will very soon begin to offer testing for visitors to some of our care homes, which, following advice from local health protection teams, and local risk assessments, are deemed as outbreak free and have an appropriate safe visiting space, and with the agreement of the local authority to proceed. We appreciate that for some of you, the local authorities have deemed visits as currently not safe to proceed, and if you contact your home manager, we will liaise with you to ensure you can still make contact with your loved ones, either by a window visit or via virtual means. If we receive an update of information from a local authority prior to Christmas, we will contact you.

For those services which are able, the testing of visitors is an added tool in the fight against Covid-19 but is not a failsafe option to preventing its spread. We will include the testing as part of our visiting procedures where possible combined with other infection prevention and control (IPC) measures (such as social distancing and the use of personal protective equipment).

Testing will support our care homes to safely maintain a balance between infection control and the vital benefits of visiting to the health and wellbeing of residents. However, testing visitors does not completely remove the risk of spreading the coronavirus, and therefore we ask that consideration be given to preparing for a visit, and where possible, reducing contacts with others before you attend one of our services. Consideration is also needed if you intend to form a ‘ Christmas Bubble’ over the festive period, as the care home should be classed as one of the households within that ‘bubble’. You will be asked to consent to testing and sharing of information to enable that process. If consent is not given, we will be unable to proceed with an indoor visit in our services.

In homes with ‘No Outbreak’ status – namely homes where we have had no positive tests for either colleagues or residents in the previous 28 days, and we have no symptomatic residents in the home – visits may be facilitated with health screening and infection control measures. The home manager will discuss this with you.

• All visits must be pre-booked to enable us to manage them safely and ensure the appropriate cleaning and hygiene regimes are in place • Indoor visits will be for a maximum of an hour, half an hour to be tested and half an hour for the visit, only if your Covid test is negative. • You will be asked to wear a face mask and practice social distancing for the duration of your visit. Unfortunately, this means no kissing, hugging or holding hands. • To protect the people we are caring for, please check with your home manager beforehand if you plan to bring a gift.

For homes that are in ‘Outbreak’ status – i.e. a resident or a member of staff has tested positive within 28 days or is experiencing symptoms which could indicate coronavirus – we will support outdoor visits in the form of either drive-by or closed window visits. We will also continue to support visits inside the home in exceptional circumstances, such as where a resident is on end-of-life care.

Sadly, this means not everyone will be able to visit on Christmas Day. We ask, for this year only, that everyone is as flexible as they can be with when they visit and celebrate Christmas with our residents on a day other than 25th December. We will of course do our best to ensure that every resident gets a visit when requested during this period, please contact the home your relative is in directly to arrange these

This year, we will be unable to have relatives dining with us on Christmas Day. As the Covid-19 pandemic continues, we are constantly having to adapt and make the best of each situation. While this Christmas won’t be the same, we will do everything we can to ensure your relatives have an enjoyable and joyous time, full of love and care. On the 25th December it will be Christmas Day for everyone, including our incredibly hard-working staff, and we will celebrate in the best way we can.

If you have any further questions or queries about visiting loved ones at your care home, please contact the care home manager.

We understand that for some of you, this Christmas is an upsetting time. Please speak to the staff caring for your loved one. They will help offer support and advice as well as reassure you that your loved one is secure and well cared for. Thank you in advance for your patience and cooperation, and your ongoing support during these most challenging of times. May we also take this opportunity to wish you a Happy Christmas and our very best wishes for a better 2021.

Corona Virus Update – 7th December 2020.

As many of you will be aware, the government, updated its visitor guidance at the end of the National Restrictions, and this was released last week. The government has committed to Rapid Testing Kits being available to services to allow for the testing of relatives to enable safer visits within care homes. This is an additional layer of protection to enhance existing safety protocols and practices and to provide additional confidence to care homes, staff, residents, and visitors. Rapid testing kits are now being rolled out by the Department of Health and Social Care and testing will be subject to homes having received the test kits, staff having completed the relevant training and competencies to support the testing and being outbreak free at the home for a period of 28 days.

Balancing the serious risks posed by the virus to care home residents with the ability to see friends and family throughout any holiday period remains challenging. Not all of our services have received kits or have been given access to the training at the time of writing this, and therefore it is with sadness that our current visiting policy remains unchanged. We understand how important it is for you to see your loved ones, and in turn we are fully aware of the positive impact of our residents seeing family and friends. We will review this twice weekly, as the situation evolves.

We’d like to say a big thank you for the understanding of families and friends of residents over the constantly changing situation regarding visits –your patience and goodwill has been much appreciated

We are awaiting further information on the rollout of the vaccination to care homes, and are assured that locally, plans are moving at pace that we will see this being rolled out into care homes over the next few weeks. One of the key things we know about the vaccine is that people who are experiencing Covid-19 symptoms cannot be vaccinated. It is therefore, more important than it has ever been to continue to take every precaution to minimise the risk of infections from the virus and keep outbreaks in care homes as low as we can, so as many people as possible can be vaccinated in the shortest possible time. We want to thank you in advance for the crucial part you play in helping us deliver care and support, we are incredibly grateful for the commitment and dedication you show to our teams–you help us to make our care homes special

Corona Virus Update – 2nd December 2020.

The HICA Group is extremely pleased with the recent government announcement that the Pfizer/ BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is approved for use in the UK. We will support our colleagues in health, in any way possible to ensure that the rollout to care homes is as smooth as possible. We have yet to be notified when the rollout will commence, and will update our residents, relatives and staff teams with information, as soon as it is received.

Corona Virus Update – 26th November 2020.

I hope this communication finds you well and safe. As many of you will be aware, the government, earlier this week, announced its Covid-19 Winter Plan, which included updates as we emerge from the current National Restrictions in place until 2nd December. Thank you for your continued support as we balance the need to comply with guidance and the need for families and visitors to see those they love. We understand how heart breaking it is for people when individuals cannot have physical contact other than for care and support and how very difficult it has been over recent months for you and your loved ones to be apart.

We’d like to say a big thank you for the understanding of families and friends of residents over the constantly changing situation regarding visits – it’s not an easy situation for home teams to manage and your patience and goodwill has been much appreciated.

We firmly believe that maintaining family and social connections is fundamental to the health and wellbeing of our residents. We are absolutely committed to ensuring residents in our homes are able to enjoy visits from their family and friends wherever possible while complying with the local restrictions that will come into effect from 2nd December.

You may have seen that the government’s winter plan has made a commitment to the testing of relatives and friends to enable visiting in care homes. We are awaiting more information as to how we access this testing, and the type of testing that this will be. As soon as we have this information, we will share with you the plans to make this happen in our services, and to once again welcome you back inside our services

You may have also seen the recent announcements that vaccines to prevent Covd-19, are now in the final stages of approval, and that care home residents and staff will be amongst the first to receive the vaccination.

Whilst we have no definite date of the vaccine rollout as yet, we are aware that local planning is underway to facilitate this. To this end, we have commenced the process of seeking consent from those that wish to be vaccinated. Please be assured that we will work in partnership with our health colleagues to ensure they are supported to administer vaccines to our residents who have given consent, or where a best interest discussion has occurred. We currently do not know which vaccine will be administered, and may get information at short notice, but again, as soon as we have more information, we will update you

Corona Virus Update – 5th November 2020.

Following information released by the government (4th November) we fully expect the new guidance when released to allow covid-secure visiting in care homes where possible. In light of this we are asking our homes to provide only window visits as well as virtual visits until we have clarity from the guidance. Please contact the home manager for more information. This will not affect visits for residents who are end of life, and the service will liaise with you to make appropriate and safe arrangements.

We appreciate that current regulations continue to cause some anxiety but the health and wellbeing of our residents and staff is our highest priority and we are working hard to halt the spread of the virus within our services.

As before, we will be re-introducing specific times for you to call the service so that the increased volume of calls does not impact upon our care delivery. All relatives are respectfully asked to call between 2pm and 4pm daily if you wish for an update. We will continue to contact you at any time if there is a change in the health and wellbeing of your loved one.

Due to the previous lockdown, all of our homes are now set up for face time calls so please contact the appropriate service to set these up. Up to and including the 4th Tier 2 regulations will remain in place

We thank you for your continued support during these troubling times and wish to assure you that all care will continue as usual.