COVID-19 What's New Bulletin 29 - 18 February 2021
This is the twenty ninth 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.
- Changes to LFD 90 day guidance and outbreak testing (Information for all care homes)
- Care Home Support Model (Information for Birmingham care homes)
- REMINDER: Importance of updating the Capacity Tracker regularly (Information for all care providers)
- Care Provider Alliance - Framework for Enhanced Health in Care Homes (Information for all care homes)
- Expansion of clinically extremely vulnerable definition (Information for all care providers)
- Workforce Capacity Fund for adult social care (information for all care providers with a CQC location in Birmingham)
- Covid Vaccine – Materials to Support Staff Discussions (Information for all care providers)
- Covid Vaccine – Financial Support – (Information for all care providers)
- Skills for Care Workforce Wellbeing Resource Finder (Information for all care providers)
- Pulse Oximetry@home service (Information for all Birmingham and Solihull care providers)
1.Changes to LFD 90 day guidance and outbreak testing (Information for all care homes)
The Department of Health and Social Care yesterday emailed all adult care homes in England regarding several key changes to testing policy and process.
The key changes outlined below:
- With immediate effect, if someone tests positive with a PCR test, they should not be tested using PCR or LFD for 90 days. If they develop new symptoms during this time, they should be retested immediately using PCR.
- Rapid response LFD testing for staff is being extended (from 22 February). This should no longer automatically stop after 7 days. Instead care homes should continue with rapid response testing until 5 days have elapsed since the last positive test. Staff should only be tested on the days they due to attend work.
- LFD testing for residents is being introduced (from 22 February). This should be undertaken at the same time as the PCR testing in an outbreak - on day 1 and on an additional day between days 4 and 7. The usual principles of consent and best interest decisions apply to inform your decision whether this is appropriate for each resident.
Flow chart as a visual guide to outbreak testing
2.Care Home Support Model (Information for Birmingham care homes)
A diagram has been circulated to care homes that sets out the support available through an outbreak to care homes - if you haven't received a copy, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk . The Enhanced Support to Care Homes Team or your geographical commissioner will contact you once we are aware of an outbreak but if you need support in the meantime please update the Capacity Tracker and contact your geographical commissioners (see below) or the Enhanced Support to Care Homes Team (0121 466 6009 or via email at bchnt.carehomereferrals@nhs.net)
Contact details for geographical commissioners
3.REMINDER: Importance of updating the Capacity Tracker regularly (Information for all care providers)
The information collected within the Capacity Tracker is used nationally by Ministers to review the impact of Covid on the social care market and influence decisions on guidance and what support is offered to the sector. Payment of grants from central government to the care market (e.g. the Infection Control Fund) is dependent on regular completion of the Capacity Tracker. The system is also being used to collect data around the vaccination of the social care workforce and is vital to understanding the take up of vaccinations within the sector.
The information is also used to direct health and social care resources locally to ensure providers are getting the support they need around infection prevention and control, whole home testing (for care homes), access to free PPE and managing outbreaks, amongst other things.
It is really important that information is accurate and up to date and providers are aware of who is updating the system within their organisation.
There are many resources available to assist care homes to use the Capacity Tracker
- Dedicated help line telephone number; 0191 691 3729
- Weekly live Q and A sessions organised on Teams on Tuesdays 1pm to 2pm
User guides and YouTube videos within the Help section of the system
4.Care Provider Alliance - Framework for Enhanced Health in Care Homes (Information for all care homes)
The NHS is committed to rolling out the Framework for Enhanced Health in Care homes which outlines plans to increase support from health and care services. The Care Provider Alliance has produced a useful resource for care home managers which explains the programme and what they can expect from their local GPs and community services.
Enhanced health in care homes: A guide for care homes - Care Provider Alliance
5.Expansion of clinically extremely vulnerable definition (Information for all care providers)
Please note the expansion of clinically extremely vulnerable (CEV) definition to include people identified through the COVID-19 Population Risk Assessment (see below) as potentially being at high risk of serious illness if you catch the virus. The first cohort to be notified if they have been newly classified as CEV are the under 70’s and they will be contacted directly shortly to inform them they have been added to the Shielded Patient List.
COVID-19 Population Risk Assessment
The advice for clinically extremely vulnerable individuals remains that they are strongly advised to work from, if they cannot work from home, then they should not attend work.
The full guidance can be viewed below:
Please update the Capacity Tracker workforce questions (for care homes) and Covid-19 related absences (for none care homes) if these changes have an impact on your workforce. Please contact your geographical commissioners (for contact details see Section 2) or the Enhanced Support to Care Homes Team (0121 466 6009 or via email at bchnt.carehomereferrals@nhs.net) if you are concerned about safe staff levels.
6.Workforce Capacity Fund for adult social care (information for all care providers with a CQC location in Birmingham)
The Department of Health and Social Care has released details of the Workforce Capacity Fund (£2.8mm for Birmingham), to support care providers in maintaining safe levels of staffing and to ensure sufficient workforce capacity across services. We have now received our first payment of 70% of the Birmingham allocation and are just going through our final governance processes. However, our intention is to pass 80% of this first allocation to care homes and 20% to community care providers in Birmingham. This fund can be used on staff capacity measures backdated to 16 January and funds must be spent on these measures by 31 March. We are working on distributing these funds as a priority and will provide a further update just as soon as this process has concluded. For full details of this Fund, please see below:
7.Covid Vaccine – Materials to Support Staff Discussions (Information for all care providers)
A number of useful materials have been published to assist with providing accurate information to your staff regarding the Covid vaccine as follows:
Government Communication Toolkit – circulated to care providers (if you haven't received a copy, please email marketintelligence@birmingham.gov.uk
Government advice and materials on the vaccine programme for social care staff
Care Provider COVID-19 questions and answers
Celebrity video including Romesh Ranganathan, Meera Syal and cricketer Moeen Ali
Dr Imran Sattar offers information in a short video
A message about the COVID-19 Vaccination for the BAME community - Dr Sumara Afzal - Urdu
A message about the COVID-19 Vaccination for the BAME community - Dr Sumara Afzal - Punjabi
A message about the COVID-19 Vaccination for the BAME community - Dr Sumara Afzal - English
Public Q&A Sessions on COVID-19 Vaccination:
24 February at 6pm-7.30pm. West Birmingham
25 February at 6pm-7.30pm. Central Birmingham
Information about vaccination during pregnancy and impact on fertility
Please note vaccination appointments for frontline workers are available via the National booking site
National vaccination booking link
8.Covid Vaccine – Financial Support – (Information for Birmingham care providers and contracted providers outside of Birmingham delivering care to Birmingham residents)
We are aware that for some social care staff, there is a barrier to taking up the Covid vaccine as they are unable to do so in work time and are therefore not being paid for their time. To ensure our invaluable workforce have the maximum opportunity to take up this essential vaccine to protect; themselves; their families; their services users; and our community, we are pleased to confirm we will provide financial support to cover these costs as follows:
- Wherever possible we would of course encourage you to release staff for this essential activity during their working day, however we do recognise the operational challenges this can pose.
- Secondly you should then draw upon your Infection Control Funds to support staff in this way.
- However, should you have exhausted these options, but find that paying staff for their time to attend vaccination remains the only barrier to uptake, the Council will consider this as a reasonable additional Covid-related cost under our existing Covid funding scheme.
- The details about how to claim can be found using the link below. You will need to clearly set out in your claim (through your covering email accompanying your claim form), the number of staff you have paid, how many hours you have paid them for collectively and the total amount of your claim for this reason.
- You will not be able to retrospectively claim for these costs, however you will be able to claim for any such costs from 16 February 2021.
COVID-19 additional costs funding scheme
9.Skills for Care Workforce Wellbeing Resource Finder (Information for all care providers)
Skills for Care have launched a new easy tool to help the social care workforce find trusted resources to support their own or others well-being. We know there’s a vast amount of resources, support and help available that can be overwhelming to navigate.
The Workforce Wellbeing Resource Finder holds a selection of different resources suited to social care from national trusted partners. Whether you’re looking for self-help, support for others, needing someone to talk in confidence or mental health support, there’s an easy filtering system that gives the user several choices to help find something relevant.
10.Pulse Oximetry@home service (Information for all Birmingham and Solihull care providers)
Please find below a link to a range of resources and a webinar recording in the last week in relation to pulse oximetry@home.
The webinar highlights how carers can support people with COVID by monitoring pulse oximetry; an important link in the COVID Oximetry@home pathway and links shared for e-learning to support carers. Please feel free to share the link with anyone working with the care home sector, whether as a carer, community clinician or delivering COVID Oximetry@home
There is significant evidence that patients with COVID-19 presenting with lower oxygen levels have higher mortality rates. Known as ‘silent hypoxia’, patients may not exhibit symptoms until their oxygen levels are dangerously low. Therefore, active monitoring will provide extra support to ensure timely medical assessment is provided if deterioration is noted.
This primary care led service is delivered by SDSMyHealthcare, and accepts referrals from multiple community and pre-admission services when the patient is deemed not to need admission at the time of referral. The service will:
- Provide a pulse oximeter to the patient or their carer
- Teach how and when to use it
- Provide guidance as to when and where to seek further medical attention
- Follow-up with the patient by telephone at regular intervals throughout the 14 days of monitoring
- Provide medical oversight and governance