Care providers get no deal Brexit guidance on supply chain risks

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has advised care providers to contact their local authority, CCGs and NHS contacts if they face a disruption to the supply of products or services, in the event of a no deal Brexit.

Guidance issued by the government instructs care home and home care providers to contact their suppliers to find alternative products or services to mitigate a risk of supply disruption. They have also been told to contact their local pharmacy, if the issue concerns medicines.

If supply issues cannot be fixed locally, they have been instructed to contact their Local Resilience Forum (LRF). In the event of a serious risk to the safety or wellbeing of those reliant on social care, care providers have been advised to contact their local safeguarding hub.

'The consequence of Brexit are unknown to us all'

Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, which represents independent care homes nationwide, has said that although care providers have been preparing for Brexit since the referendum, “the consequence of Brexit are unknown”.

Mr Green has said areas causing care providers the biggest concern are issues related to whether or not, the government will insure the supply of drugs, equipment, food, fuel and other essential commodities.

He is reported to have said “None of us [care providers] can know what the response of European governments will be to the free movement of goods and services, and to that extent, the consequence of Brexit are unknown to us all.”

Food

The DHSC guidance has stated ‘A Brexit deal has been agreed but needs to be ratified. The UK could still leave with no deal on 31 October 2019 if the UK and EU do not approve and sign the withdrawal agreement.

‘If we leave the EU without a deal, there will not be an overall shortage of food in the UK. However, there may be reduced availability and choice of certain food products, including some of the fresh produce that we import from the EU.

‘Providers are used to dealing with seasonal variations and short-term shortages for food items and we recommend taking a common sense approach to flexible menu planning.’

Medicines

The government has also said it is working directly with suppliers and pharmaceutical companies to 'make sure there is a continued supply of medicines, medical devices and clinical consumables when the UK leaves the EU'.

It has warned against the stockpiling of medicines, medical devices or clinical consumables because 'stockpiling could cause shortages in other areas and put service users at risk.’

Non-clinical consumables

The DHSC has advised care providers to ‘make sure you have included any risks and issues associated with the supply of non-clinical consumables, goods and services’ in contingency plans.

This includes food and catering, laundry services, IT service agreements and infrastructure, service maintenance contracts and waste management.

The government says it ‘is working with suppliers, providers and local authorities across the adult social care sector to support the continuity of supply of non-clinical goods and services’.

Workforce

In relation to the workforce, the DHSC guidance instructs care providers to ‘make sure you tell any staff and people you care for who are EU citizens about the EU Settlement Scheme. Use the EU Settlement Scheme employer toolkit for practical advice on helping your employees to apply.

‘There will be no need for any changes to existing EU staff employment contracts after Brexit, even if the UK leaves the EU without a deal’.

Through the EU Settlement Scheme, EU nationals can register for settled status if they have been in the UK for 5 years, or pre-settled status if they have been here for less than 5 years.

The scheme is free and the deadline for applications is 31 December 2020 if there is a no-deal Brexit, or 30 June 2021 if the UK leaves the EU with a deal.

Care providers can send Brexit-related workforce queries to: WorkforceEUExit@dhsc.gov.uk.

Professional qualifications

In relation to professional qualifications, on 7 March 2019 the government put in place legislation to ensure professional qualifications from institutions in the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland will still be recognised by all professional regulators in the health and social care sectors when the UK leaves the EU.

This includes the Health and Care Professions Council, the General Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the General Pharmaceutical Council.

Data transfer

When it comes to data transfer, if the UK leaves the EU without a deal, the government has said the ‘transfer of personal data from the EU and other adequate countries to the UK may be restricted’.

It advises care providers to check whether their organisation relies on transfers of personal data from the EU or other adequate countries to the UK. Focus on data that is critical to service delivery, and data that would have a serious impact if it was disrupted.

The National Care Association (NCA) has been supporting its members with advice on the possible implications of a no deal scenario since January, in preparation for the March 2019 exit from the EU. The NCA has sent a checklist to care providers to prepare them in the event of a supply chain breakdown.

The Care Provider Alliance has issued an ‘EU Exit Contingency Plan’ template for use by adult social care providers.

The DHSC set up the National Supply Disruption Response (NSDR) to monitor and co-ordinate a response to any health and social care supply chain issues.

The guidance recommends ‘After exit day, if you experience disruption to your supplies or you feel there is potential for disruption to social care services and no immediate resolution is available, you can report it to the NSDR.’

The NSDR can be contacted on (Freephone) 0800 915 9964 or 0191 283 6543 or by emailing supplydisruptionservice@nhsbsa.nhs.uk