ABANDONED TO THE VIRUS
400,000 live in care homes ... now many fear they have been condemned to death
TENS of thousands of terrified dementia patients risk being ‘abandoned to coronavirus’ due to the crisis in care homes.
The Alzheimer’s Society said at least half of care homes were reporting cases of the virus, and dozens of residents had died since the outbreak began.
But the Government has failed to roll out tests to homes, with elderly residents fearing they have been ‘forgotten’ and are being condemned to death.
More than 400,000 people in the UK live in care homes, two-thirds of whom have dementia.
There are an estimated 90,000 people with dementia in Scotland, with around 60 per cent of them living in the community, while 40 per cent live in care homes or hospital.
The Alzheimer’s Society has written to the Government insisting that a dedicated national strategy to support care homes through the pandemic was ‘urgently needed’.
It said social care had ‘yet again fallen to the bottom of the pile’ and demanded immediate priority testing for care home staff and patients, in addition to NHS workers.
The charity said the failure to supply tests and adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) was putting the lives of residents and carers at risk.
Meanwhile, a ban on visitors is causing the health of dementia patients to deteriorate, as they often rely on contact with friends and family to maintain basic cognition and communication skills. The society raised fears that people living with dementia will be denied lifesaving hospital treatment if they get the virus and are pressured into signing Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders.
The Daily Mail is campaigning for better dementia care and for an end to the crisis in social care. Care home managers say the situation is dire and the already overstretched system may collapse.
Mike Padgham, who runs Saint Cecilia’s Care Services in Yorkshire, said six patients had died of coronavirus and staff had been left in tears. He added: ‘We just lost two patients in very close succession, it makes you think everything is falling apart.
‘Social care was already in a mess before this came along, but coronavirus has been the straw that broke the camel’s back. Elderly people in care homes are being forgotten.
‘It is disgraceful we are not getting any tests.’
Kathryn Smith, of the Alzheimer’s Society, said: ‘Every day our support line hears from people, friends and families terrified about the impact of coronavirus – people with dementia are being abandoned in care homes. They’re being told they won’t be admitted to hospitals, they’re being asked to sign DNR orders and being discharged from hospitals to care homes without being tested.
‘We can see the devastating impact of outbreaks in care homes... the deterioration of people with dementia separated from their families’
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