COVID 19 What's New Bulletin 19 - 10 December 2020
This is the nineteenth weekly provider bulletin, containing information on guidance, procedures and new initiatives. Very urgent or high priority communications may still be issued on an ad hoc basis, but we will try to keep these to a minimum.
- COVID-19 vaccination programme (Information for all Older Adult Care Homes)
- Care Home Visiting Position Statement updated 9 December 2020 (Information for Birmingham Care Homes)
- Regular Testing in Extra Care and Supported Living (Information for all Supported Living and Extra Care Providers)
- Lateral Flow Testing (Information for Care Homes in Birmingham)
- Adult Social Care – Infection Control Fund 2 – Care Homes December 2020 reporting requirements (Information for Birmingham Care Homes)
- Adult Social Care – Infection Control Fund 2 – Community Allocation (Information for non-care home providers with a CQC registered location in Birmingham)
1.COVID-19 vaccination programme (Information for all Older Adult Care Homes)
You will have seen the excellent news that a vaccine has been authorised and older adult care home residents, and care home staff are the top priority to get it. It is anticipated that Birmingham and Solihull will soon be able to begin vaccinating and we will confirm these details once we are able to.
Over the coming week, we will be providing further updates on these plans and trying to provide you with as much information as we can to help you answer any questions.
A COVID vaccine questions and answers document has been circulated to providers which we would ask you to share internally with your staff through your internal channels at your earliest opportunity.
Additionally you can view Public Health England vaccine information leaflets below
COVID-19 vaccination: guide for healthcare workers
COVID-19 vaccination: guide for social care workers
In the meantime you may find it useful to
- put together staff lists, including basic details (name, gender, date of birth, NHS number, GP details) for each staff member
- be ready to provide each staff member with a letter confirming their employment in the care sector
- keep staff records of vaccinations and report via the Capacity Tracker (as you do with flu vaccination)
- consider the covid-secure logistics of releasing staff to receive their vaccine, while maintaining staffing levels within their home. Practical and implementable plans should be in place from early next week
- take steps now to ensure that staff understand need for obtaining consent, so that they in turn can help residents and families to complete the necessary forms when a vaccine is ready to be delivered within a care home. Once issued, these forms will provide additional information about the vaccine they are receiving
- familiarise yourselves with the standardised consent forms as you will need to gain consent to vaccinate as and when we get it to care homes
- Start talking to staff, residents and families now about the vaccination
- Review the Government documents relating to the new coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination programme which are available below. This includes the guidance, training resources, consent forms and letters, leaflets and posters and programme documents.
COVID-19 vaccination programme information, consent forms and other resources
This is of course a hugely complex and challenging programme and is one the greatest challenges we have ever faced. However, we do appreciate the crucial part you will play in the vaccination programme, while at the same time continuing all the work you do caring for people and supporting those who care for them.
New questions added to the NECSU Capacity Tracker
During the vaccination roll-out it is vitally important to find out how many staff (and when available, residents) are being vaccinated and identify where additional support is needed to ensure we can maximise access to the vaccination.
To track COVID vaccinations in care homes, questions will be added to the Capacity Tracker this coming Friday (11 December). The questions will be similar to the flu immunisation questions, asking about vaccination levels in your care home. Guidance will be available in Capacity Tracker to support filling in the questions as accurately as possible, and the usual support via the website and support centre will be available for providers.
2.Care Home Visiting Position Statement updated 9 December 2020 (Information for Birmingham Care Homes)
Please read the updated Birmingham Care Home Visiting Position Statement, including the current advice of the Director of Public Health and Director of Adult Social Care.
Care Home visiting position statement
3.Regular Testing in Extra Care and Supported Living (Information for all Supported Living and Extra Care Providers)
The Government had rolled out regular testing for staff and residents commencing 9 December 2020 to Extra Care and Supported Living settings that meet the following criteria:
- a closed community with substantial facilities shared between multiple people, and
- where most residents receive the kind of personal care that is CQC regulated (rather than help with cooking, cleaning and shopping)
If you are unable to access testing but believe you should based on the above criteria, then from the 11 December a self-referral portal will be available below
Providers will need to enter the referral UON of 99874802 and provide details of their settings
This will involve weekly testing for staff and monthly testing for residents. Orders should be placed every 28 days from the test ordering site below:
Support and guidance for providers below - If providers have any further questions, we ask that they call 119.
New Extra Care and Supported Living testing webinars
Guidance - COVID 19 testing service for extra care and supported living settings
Instructional video - how to administer a COVID 19 swab lest to a resident
Instructional video - how to use a COVID 19 self-swabbing kit
4.Lateral Flow Testing (Information for Care Homes in Birmingham)
The majority of Birmingham care homes should now have received Lateral Flow Test kits to support care home visiting which you are asked not to use until 14 December 2020. All the latest guidance to support Lateral Flow Testing has now been published and is available below
Guidance for Lateral Flow testing
There are also further webinar dates which you will need to attend before you start the LFT, which are available on the dates below and can be booked below:
Friday 11 December: 12pm – 1pm
Monday 14 December: 12pm – 1pm
Tuesday 15 December: 12pm – 1pm
Wednesday 16 December: 12pm-1pm
Thursday 17 December: 3pm – 4pm
Friday 18 December: 12pm – 1pm
Booking Lateral Flow testing webinars
5.Adult Social Care – Infection Control Fund 2 – Care Homes December 2020 reporting requirements (Information for Birmingham Care Homes)
Following the distribution of the Infection Control Fund 2 Grant allocations in November, all care home location recipients are required to complete and submit the form below detailing actual and forecast spend of the Grant between 1 October and 30 November.
Care Home Infection Control Fund spending report for October and November 2020
A separate form must be completed for each Registered Care Home Location. The deadline for submission of the form is 22 December 2020.
6.Adult Social Care – Infection Control Fund 2 – Community Allocation (Information for non-care home providers with a CQC registered location in Birmingham)
The Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund was first introduced in May 2020 and was initially worth £600 million. The purpose of this fund is to support adult social care providers, including those with whom the local authority does not have a contract, to reduce the rate of COVID-19 transmission within and between care settings, in particular by helping to reduce the need for staff movements between sites. Due to its success in limiting the transmission of COVID-19 within and between care settings, the Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund has been extended until March 2021, with an extra £546 million of funding. This is a new grant, with revised conditions from the original Infection Control Fund. The Infection Control Fund 2 is being distributed by Local Authorities to care homes and community care providers in the form of a Ring-fenced Grant made in two separate allocations.
The Council has now made the 1st allocations to CQC Registered Community Care Locations within the Birmingham City Council boundary, which have demonstrated compliance with the Grant condition requiring completion of the CQC Homecare Survey on 2 consecutive weeks between 1 and 28 October 2020. Those Registered Locations which have not met this condition have not been allocated Grant funding.
We expect the funding to reach bank accounts in the week commencing 14 December 2020.
The attached Grant Conditions letter forms the Grant Agreement and sets out further details of the administration of the Grant, its purpose, conditions and reporting arrangements. Please read this carefully and ensure that you comply with the conditions, reporting requirements and instructions contained within.
You should complete the attached Appendix 1 – ICF Round 2 provider Assurance Statement and return this not later than 20 December 2020 by email to marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk Failure to return the Assurance Statement will immediately disqualify the Registered Location from receiving the Grant. Any funds distributed in the 1st allocation must be returned to the Council and the care home will not receive the 2nd allocation.
Using the link below you should also complete and submit the online form by 22 December 2020 detailing actual and forecast spending of the Grant. This will allow the Council to make its statutory return to Government on 31 December 2020. Failure to submit the form will unfortunately mean the Registered Location cannot receive any further Grant. Further forms will be distributed for completion on a monthly basis.
Community Care Locations Infection Control Fund spending report
Further details of the Infection Control Fund can be found on the Council’s website: