Government lifts ban on visitors to care homes in England

The Department of Health has lifted the ban on visitors to care homes in England, with each resident allowed ‘one constant visitor’ as long as they book in advance and wear a mask and extra PPE if required.

The announcement by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) revealed that local directors of public health will, with their authorities, lead the decision-making process for care home visits and thorough risk assessments will take place based on specific care homes and if there are any COVID-19 outbreaks in the surrounding area.

Matt Hancock, Health and Social Care Secretary, said: “I know how painful it has been for those in care homes not being able to receive visits from their loved ones throughout this period.

“We are now able to carefully and safely allow visits to care homes, which will be based on local knowledge and circumstances for each care home.”

However he added: “It is really important that we don’t undo all of the hard work of care homes over the last few months while ensuring families and friends can be safely reunited so we have put in place guidance that protects everyone.”

Under the guidance, care homes are being told to encourage all visitors to wear a face covering and to wash their hands thoroughly before and after putting it on and taking it off.

If possible visits should take place outside

Visitors should wear appropriate further PPE depending on the need of their visit, including gloves and aprons. Providers should also consider whether visits could take place in a communal garden or outdoor area, which can be accessed without anyone going through a shared building.

To limit risk where visits do go ahead, this should be limited to a single constant visitor, per resident, wherever possible. This is to limit the overall number of visitors to the care home and the consequent risk of infection, says the DHSC.

This announcement comes after charities including Dementia UK, The Alzheimer's Society and Alzheimer's Research wrote to Mr Hancock to demand people with dementia in care homes be allowed visitors. The letter called on the government to 'urgently' address the 'hidden catastrophe' happening in care homes.

In March, care homes all over the UK took the decision to stop family and friends visiting residents due to the vulnerable and elderly being most of risk of catching COVID-19.

In some care homes, staff even went into lockdown with residents to protect them from the disease. Many care homes have come up with innovative ways so residents can still see their families such as visits through the window, video calls and hosting a drive-thru.

Families worried relatives with dementia will no longer recognise them

However these kind of visits are not suitable for all kinds of residents and some families have been worried that for residents with dementia, the “thread of recognition” that existed before lockdown will now be irretrievably broken. One daughter said: “Bit by bit, Mum is forgetting who I am”.

The Alzheimer’s Society recently carried out a survey of 128 care homes finding 79 per cent have seen a deterioration in the health of their residents with dementia due to lack of social contact.

Minister for Care Helen Whately said: “We know how important it is for families and friends to be able to visit their loved ones. This guidance sets out how families and residents can safely come together again.

“The latest guidance maximises the input of local professionals, who will have the greatest awareness of community transmission in their area while taking into account the needs of individual residents.”

She added: “It is expected all care homes will still only relax visiting arrangements for specific individual needs and continue to take the health protection of the whole care home as their main objective, but those wishing to visit should speak to the care homes before a planned visit.”

The government wants care homes to support NHS Test and Trace by keeping a temporary record, including address and phone number, of current and previous residents, staff and visitors as well as keeping track of visitor numbers and staff.

Ad hoc visits should not be permitted

It also wants care providers to set up a system to enable bookings or appointments for visitors and says ad hoc visits should not be permitted.

Lisa Lenton, Chair, Care Providers Alliance welcomed the “overdue guidance” saying “the CPA has been calling for government guidance for many weeks and released its own visitors protocol last month in its absence. People need people and this is such an important step for the wellbeing of individuals and their relatives”.

Jane Harris, director of external affairs for the National Autistic Society said that the announcement will come as “a huge relief for many families across England who have been apart from their children and loved ones for far too long”.

The new guidance has also been welcomed by Dr Sanjeev Kanoria, founder and chairman of Advinia Health Care, who said: “Throughout the pandemic our homes have sometimes felt more like hospital wards. After an incredibly challenging few months, we are so excited to carefully welcome families and visitors once again and bring back the sense of community and warmth that gives our residents and tireless staff such a boost.”

Care England has expressed its concern that the guidance does not address issues such as supported living, volunteers, support staff ratios and insufficient information about Local Outbreak Boards.

'We need to look beyond outdoor visits'

Professor Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, says: “This guidance should have been with care providers last month. We are at a loss to understand why the Department of Health and Social Care cannot act quickly in a crisis or why it is deaf to the comments and input from the sector.

“This guidance fails to consider the issues around visitors and residents leaving the care setting. As lockdown lifts we are likely to see many care providers and relatives wanting to take their loved one out for visits. Also, we need to look beyond outdoor visits and recognise that these new conditions may be with us for quite some time. The failure to acknowledge this nuance underscores the lack of governmental understanding of the complexities present within the adult social care sector.”

This guidance received input from a number of stakeholders across social care and local government including Age UK, Alzheimer’s Society UK, Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, Association of Directors of Public Health, Care England, Local Government Association, National Autistic Society and National Care Forum among others.

The decision on whether or not to allow visitors, and in what circumstances, is an operational decision and therefore ultimately for the provider and managers of each individual setting to make, according to the DHSC.

To read our tips on visiting care home residents as lockdown eases click here

To read the DHSC guidance click here