Care Matters Weekly: Friday 4 December 2020

This is the Care Matters Weekly update for Friday 4 December 2020, including information on:

• COVID-19 vaccine approved
• Infection Control Funding: A reminder to meet deadlines
• Clarification on the use of ‘Fogging’
• Weekly testing for Homecare staff
• Weekly Q&A with Care Homes
• Care Homes visiting guidance update
• “Handle with Care!” – A reminder to provide manual handling training
• London ADASS returns
• Discounts for Carers website

The latest guidance on Testing, PPE and Training can be found in the relevant sections on the Sutton Care Hub website.

COVID-19 vaccine approved

As you will be aware, the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has

authorised the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for widespread use in the UK. 

Care staff are one of the top priority groups to receive the vaccine in order to protect them and ensure social care services remain available for vulnerable people throughout the winter and into 2021. We do not yet have any more information about when and how eligible care staff will receive the vaccine, but we expect to have more detail in the coming days and will be in touch as soon as we know more.  

The news that a vaccine has been approved is a really positive step forward and will form part of our best defence against the virus, but we still have a long way to go. It is vital that everyone continues to play their part in protecting themselves and their neighbours from this virus – washing hands, wearing a face covering and keeping a distance from people outside your household.

For the latest information and guidance available on the COVID-19 Vaccine please visit the Sutton Care Hub’s COVID-19 Vaccine page.

Infection Control Funding: A reminder to meet deadlines

With over 120 CQC Registered Providers, the team have successfully made payments to Care Homes, Home Care, Supported Living and Extra Care; thank you for your patience and understanding. Further updates on the next payment will be made available on the Sutton Care Hub.

We asked Care Home Providers “What percentage of the grant would you spend on infection control measures?” The results can be found in our latest web update.

Please remember to submit returns as failure to do so might result in delays. As deadlines approach we will send out reminders, but to avoid any disruption to your day, check the calendar for updates.

Clarification on the use of ‘Fogging’

Fogging (also referred to as ‘Fumigation’ or ‘wide-area spraying’ or ‘disinfectant fogging) is not recommended in any national guidance and its effectiveness in cleaning surfaces, decontamination or killing COVID-19 has not been provided. Also, if fogging is not done correctly, it may be harmful as it can expose people in the environment, where it is used and others, to hazardous chemicals and environmental pollutants.

Please continue to follow the national guidance which recommends that routine cleaning must be performed using either:

• a combined detergent/disinfectant solution at a dilution of 1,000 parts per million available chlorine (ppm available chlorine (av.cl.)); or
• a general-purpose neutral detergent in a solution of warm water followed by a disinfectant solution of 1,000ppm av.cl

List of useful evidence can be found below:

• HSE: During the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, fog, mist, vapour or UV treatments may be suitable options to help control the spread of the virus, by cleaning and disinfecting a larger space or room. Any use of these treatments for these purposes should form part of your COVID-19 risk assessment. Users must be competent and properly trained. Disinfecting premises using fog, mist, vapour or ultraviolet (UV) systems during the coronavirus pandemic
• WHO: In indoor spaces, routine application of disinfectants to environmental surfaces via spraying or fogging  (also known as fumigation or misting) is not recommended. Spraying environmental surfaces in both  health care and non-healthcare settings (e.g. patient households) with disinfectants will not be effective  and may pose harm to individuals. If disinfectants are to be applied, manual surface cleaning with  detergent and water using applied friction (e.g. brushing, scrubbing) must be performed first to ensure  physical removal of organic materials, followed by use of a cloth or wipe which is soaked in the  disinfectant – Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Situation Report – 115

Weekly testing for Homecare staff

This information is for Homecare staff only.

All registered homecare agencies will be contacted by the Department of Health and Social care with details of how to apply for test kits for their carers. Homecare agencies will be responsible for ordering and distributing tests to all homecare workers for them to conduct at home on a weekly basis.

All testing must only be conducted between Thursday and Sunday.

Homecare workers should always check the last collection time at the nearest Priority Post Box at and test kits must always be posted before the last collection time, on the same day that the swab is conducted.

All tests must be registered using the organisation testing portal, with your homecare agencies unique organisation number.

Further guidance on Weekly Testing for Homecare staff can be found on the government’s website.

To ensure the weekly tests are completed and results uploaded to the portal, the infection control payment can be used to fund administration costs associated with this task up to two hours a week.

Weekly Q&A with Care Homes

We are holding a weekly Q&A session for all Care Home Providers, every Wednesday 4 – 5pm, via google meet. The session will give you an opportunity to ask questions and discuss situations arising due to COVID-19. The session is optional, and you can drop in and out of the session as you are available.

If you have any questions you would like to share in advance of the session please send to [email protected] and mark FOR Q&A LOG. Questions may be asked during the session which have not been submitted in advance, however please note we may need to come back to you with an answer at a later date.

Care Homes visiting guidance update

The government has provided updated guidance on visiting care homes and making arrangements for visits outside care homes.

The latest guidance is also updated in the relevant section of the Sutton Care Hub.

“Handle with Care!” – A reminder to provide manual handling training

To maintain the safety, comfort and dignity of our clients and to prevent injury in all carers please be reminded that all care providers have a legal obligation to provide manual handling training, supervision and support for all of their care staff. Out of date techniques such as manual lifting, under arm drag holds and using normal bed sheets instead of slide sheets will result in injury for clients and carers alike and will give cause for further investigation and safeguarding alerts. Whilst it is the legal responsibility for the care providers to appropriately train their staff there are some limited spaces on the courses run by the London Borough of Sutton to which the home care providers can apply by emailing [email protected]. 

All providers of care must keep up to date with their practice to continue to best support our service users and keep everyone safe.

London ADASS returns

This is a reminder that the London ADASS returns now need to be completed three times a week.

Please ensure you are completing The ADASS Market Insight tool every Monday, Wednesday and Friday as this information is essential for London wide and local emergency planning.  

To log onto the system, please follow the steps below:

1. Log into the LondonADASS Provider Portal – https://www.pammslondon.org/adassportal and sign in by clicking on the ‘Log in’ button that is displayed in the top right hand corner (your username will be your email address and you can also reset your password here too)
2. Once logged in, click on the ‘Provider Returns’ tab in the top left-hand corner
3. You’ll then be displayed the latest ‘Coronavirus Monitoring – Homecare v7’ Provider Return
4. Click on the ‘View Submission’ button on the right-hand side which to open up your daily submission, that will be pre-populated if completed previously
5. Work through each page and click ‘next’ at the bottom of each page, or alternatively, click on the tab named ‘Transferred CQC Questions’ and click the ‘submit’ button to complete your daily Provider Return. Once submitted, you’ll be taken to a ‘Thank you’ page to confirm your complete Provider Return.

If you have any problems submitting your returns then please email  [email protected]

Discounts for Carers website

The Discounts for Carers website offers a range of discounts to care workers, including: restaurant deals, savings on mobile phones, utilities and gym membership, money off fashion and more.