The risk of Covid-19 infection is much higher for care home residents who live in environments where physical proximity and everyday contact with their peers and service personnel is a given. Oliver Lewis reminds us that Michelle Bachelet has called for government responsibility and appropriate actions for all detained and vulnerable persons.
Indeed, in his article, published by CommunityCare, the author presents major arguments on why social workers should be aiming to remove residents from care homes during the pandemic. Furthermore, he explains what happens with the best interest consideration of care residents, and what all this means for social workers.
Lewis suggests certain steps which social workers might adopt in their practice that follow human rights principles. He poses 25 questions which social workers might use for developing an exit strategy for care home residents. Thus, this summary is divided into three parts that track the answers to these questions alongside an infographic visualizing the leave plan Check List.
Why should social workers aim to remove residents from care homes during the pandemic?
- The likelihood of care home residents having respiratory disease, heart disease, weak immune systems, diabetes and obesity is greater than that of the general population. Therefore, they are at a higher risk of contracting life-threatening virus-related symptoms.
- Half of all coronavirus related deaths involve care home residents.
- 20% of all registered care homes in England (15,492) have had Covid-19 outbreaks (as of 15 04).
- Many of the people placed in care homes are deprived of their liberty; they do not have permission to leave and lack the capacity to decide where to reside without authorization under the national legal framework.
- The state, where social workers are its major local actors, has the obligation to protect everyone`s right to life under art. 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
What happens to the best interest (BI) consideration of care residents?
[BI consideration is a primary criterion for deprivation of liberty to prevent potential harm.]
- 'Coronavirus changes the best interests calculation'. Potential infection replaces the primary nature of BI, despite national legal frameworks and international guidance explicitly stating that social care and support should follow BI principles.
- BI criterion is not met in the cases of prolonged detention as this results in further harm.
See: European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), and the Joint Statement: Persons with Disabilities and COVID-19 by the Chair of the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
What does this mean for social workers and what concrete steps might be taken?
- Social workers, as bearers of state responsibilities, might use the local financing available and/or request additional funding from central authorities to act in a timely manner.
Suggested actions include:
- Obtain a list of all persons in care and deprived of their liberty.
- Contact every resident to ask if they are okay, and if they have any relatives they could live with.
- Contact the relatives, as well as friends, to ask if they can provide accommodation (See the infograph below for conversational guidance).
- Contact other available services to ask for their support in moving residents.
- Ensure a therapist can perform an assessment through video conferencing.
- Use video conferencing to train family or friends.
- Contact care home managers and suggest moving residents out.
- Advise families to contact their relatives; promote the importance of a life-saving measure using different means, including social media, radio, TV, etc.
- Inform people`s representatives, if any, for all actions taken to ask for their urgent assistance.