Over 1,000 COVID-19 test results delayed by more than a week says HC-One

Care homes have spoken out about COVID-19 test results not coming back fast enough, with HC-One, the UK's biggest provider, among the care operators confirming delays of more than a week and outbreaks in their homes.

Care home group HC-One, which runs 329 care homes told carehome.co.uk that between 19–25 September, 1,003 tests took more than seven days to return results – a delay which impacted 12 of its care homes.

Of the 11,305 tests the group carried out in this same period, 5,112 are awaiting results and 746 tests were returned void.

The care group said the average turnaround time for test results is four days. HC-One also confirmed it has 126 homes which are closed to visitors and 70 homes closed due to a COVID-19 outbreak.

A spokesperson for HC-One said: “HC-One has long highlighted the importance and value of routine testing for colleagues and residents as this is absolutely key in mitigating the risk of the virus spreading into care homes.

“It is only through regular staff and resident testing, alongside wider infection control measures, that we can help keep care homes safe and identify asymptomatic carriers at the earliest opportunity. Our priority at this time is to keep our residents and our colleagues safe from the virus and we are working with our Public Health testing colleagues to do this.”

Barchester: 'Testing is vitally important'

HC-One, Care UK and Barchester Healthcare are among the UK’s big care home operators who have spoken out about COVID-19 outbreaks in their homes as well as testing.

A spokesman for Barchester Healthcare told carehome.co.uk: “We currently have nine homes [out of 240 homes] with residents who are actively positive with COVID-19, the majority of whom are asymptomatic and are being isolated for 14 days.

“70 of our services are currently in ‘local lockdowns’ or are not accepting visits, with the majority of these due to local lockdowns.

“Testing is vitally important and we are currently on track to test staff members every week and residents every 28 days. As it has been well documented it has been challenging but we appreciate that the Government is working hard to prioritise care homes and we look forward to all test results coming back within 72 hours.”

A spokeswoman for care operator Care UK, which runs 124 care homes, said: “We currently have 19 homes with confirmed cases. In the vast majority of these, there is just one person who has tested positive and most are people who were asymptomatic and continue to be well.

“Most of these cases were picked up in routine testing. In line with PHE guidance, these are closed to all but the most essential visitors. The weekly tests for team members and monthly tests for residents are generally going ahead in most of our homes. We’re finding a few regional challenges, and overall the system is not perfect, but it is considerably better than the situation back in July.”

Care home closures 'likely' says care home owner waiting up to three weeks

Another care home group has said test results have taken up to three weeks to arrive. Nicola Richards, who is the managing director of Palms Row Healthcare which operates three nursing homes, said she had to wait almost three weeks to get results back.

Ms Richards, who chairs the Sheffield Care Association, confirmed in a statement on the group’s website, that advisors had been appointed in September to look at the possibility of selling Newfield Care Home.

In the statement, she said: “Support for care homes remains lacking and we have repeatedly warned that care home closures would be likely without better support at a national and local level. In many ways COVID-19 has been the straw that broke the camel’s back. We will continue to put pressure on those who make the decisions and those who neglected care homes before and during the crisis.”

The government pledged to test care home staff every week and residents every 28 days. With care homes not getting the last week's results back before testing staff again, care homes are finding it “difficult” to keep testing staff weekly.

The managing director of St Cecilia's Care Group in North Yorkshire, Mike Padgham, who is also chair of the Independent Care Group which represents care homes, said his four care homes are waiting up to five days for results.

Martin Green chief executive of Care England has described the issue of care home testing as getting worse, not better. Martin Green said: “It is clear that there are still some big delays with testing results and this compacted with logistical failures is presenting a huge challenge to the sector.

“Some areas of the country are faring better than others and the Government needs to ensure that there is a uniform uplift in terms of time taken to turn tests around. Protecting care homes from this dreadful virus must be an absolute priority.”

Care home group trials 85 minute tests

Care England’s chief executive has called for test results to come back within minutes as opposed to days.

Care group Ashmere Nottinghamshire Ltd, which runs Sutton Lodge, Sutton Manor and Sutton Court care homes, is participating in a trial by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) of a COVID-19 testing machine which delivers results in 85 minutes.

Managing director Claire Sharpe said: “At the moment, it can take several days to get COVID test results back. When we do the throat and nasal swab test we have to do the test, then it has to go by courier, then in the lab, they have to run the test, then get the result back to us. By this time we would have had to isolate a resident.

"Waiting days for lab results to come back causes staffing issues and can lead to outbreaks. With this machine, we know within 85 minutes whether someone has got COVID-19. We've had the machine a week. We've had no issues with the machine so far. The machine reduces the chance of an outbreak in the care home and has the potential to loosen restrictions on indoor visits."

Waiting a week for test results puts pressure on care homes trying to keep staffing levels up and care workers have called for quicker turnaround times for results for a chance to protect themselves against the virus.

The GMB Union, which represents care workers, said having “care home staff untested for weeks” puts people at risk. Kelly Andrews, GMB care lead, said: “If even the big providers are struggling with testing – where does this leave smaller companies who can’t close down homes to protect their vulnerable clients?

“This is yet another Government failure and must be a stark warning for Ministers. Testing the workforce is essential in the fight against COVID-19. Leaving staff untested for weeks at a time is a recipe for disaster.”

A spokesman for the DHSC said: “Turnaround times are improving every day after experiencing a surge in demand at the start of September and we continue to work to ensure care homes received test results more quickly.

"We continue to prioritise care homes for repeat retesting, and any care home resident or member of staff with symptoms is able to immediately access a free test with more than 120,000 sent out every day."

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