Их Британийн засгийн газар цар тахлын эхэн үед асрамжийн газруудад хангалттай хамгаалалт үзүүлээгүй нь вирусийн тархалтыг хурцатгасан болохыг албан ёсны мөрдөн байцаалтын тайланд дурджээ.
Ковид-19 цар тахлын асуудлыг хянаж буй Хизер Халлеттын тэргүүлсэн комиссын тайланд дурдсанаар, асрамжийн газруудыг “хоёрдугаар зэргийн асуудал” гэж үзсэн нь алдаа байсан гэжээ. Эмнэлгээс гарсан өвчтөнүүдийг асрамжийн газарт шилжүүлэхдээ тусгаарлах зөвлөмж өгөөгүй нь вирусийн тархалтыг хурдасгаж, 2020 оны гуравдугаар сараас 2022 оны долдугаар сарын хооронд 43,000 гаруй хүний аминд хүрсэн байна.
Эрүүл мэндийн сайд асан Мэтт Хэнкок эмнэлгийн ачааллыг бууруулах зорилгоор шинжилгээ хийлгүйгээр өвчтөнүүдийг асрамжийн газар руу шилжүүлсэн нь “хамгийн бага хохиролтой шийдвэр” байсан гэж мэдүүлжээ. Гэвч уг бодлогыг Дээд шүүхээс хууль бус гэж үзсэн бөгөөд Халлетт нь засгийн газрын “асрамжийн газруудыг хамгаалах бүс” байгуулсан гэх мэдэгдлийг үндэслэлгүй хэмээн няцаав.
Тайланд асрамжийн газрын ажилтнуудыг хувийн хамгаалах хэрэгслээр (PPE) дутаасан нь “хүлээн зөвшөөрөх боломжгүй” үйлдэл болсныг онцолжээ. Ажилтнууд зохих хамгаалалтгүйгээс болж өөрсдөө гар аргаар бүтээсэн хэрэгсэл ашиглахад хүрсэн бөгөөд энэхүү хүнд нөхцөл байдал нь тэдний сэтгэцийн эрүүл мэндэд ноцтой нөлөөлж, амиа хорлох тохиолдол хүртэл гарчээ.
Нийт 200 сая гаруй фунт стерлингийн өртөгтэй энэхүү мөрдөн байцаалт нь ирээдүйн тахлын эсрэг бэлэн байдлыг хангах 55 зөвлөмжийг гаргасан байна. Үүнд асрамжийн газрын ажилтнуудын өөрийгөө тусгаарлах санхүүгийн дэмжлэг, эргэлтийн хязгаарлалт болон хяналт шалгалтын тогтолцоог сайжруулах асуудлыг тусгажээ.
skip past newsletter promotion
after newsletter promotion
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
The care sector was “an afterthought” during the Covid-19 pandemic, and government failures caused the virus to spread “like wildfire” among vulnerable and elderly people, a public inquiry has found.
Heather Hallett, who is leading the Covid-19 inquiry, said it was a “significant omission” that the government did not advise that patients discharged from hospitals into care homes should be isolated, causing the virus to spread rapidly among residents and staff.
She also said preventing visits to care homes led to “immense emotional harm” for residents and left them with “profound isolation and a sense of abandonment”.
“The adult social care sector as a whole appeared to be something of an afterthought, where the mantra of ‘protecting the NHS’ sometimes came at the expense of the users and providers of care,” she said.
“Care homes received insufficient protection at the time they most needed it. These failures created environments in care settings in which the virus could spread like wildfire.
“Most distressingly, some people were not permitted to be with their dying loved ones. Many remain racked by a guilt that they do not deserve to carry.”
More than 43,000 people died from Covid-19 in UK care homes between March 2020 and July 2022.
Lady Hallett’s report, published on Tuesday, focuses specifically on adult social care and residential homes and is the sixth of 10 to be published by the inquiry.
It is the most expensive public inquiry in the country’s history, costing more than £200m, and has so far made 55 recommendations on how the country can better prepare for future pandemics.
The former health secretary Matt Hancock was called to give evidence in which he took responsibility for the government decision to discharge untested hospital patients into care homes at the start of the pandemic.
In March and April 2020, about 25,000 hospital patients were discharged into care homes across England to free up NHS bed space before mandatory testing was introduced on 15 April 2020. The policy was later ruled unlawful by the high court.
Hancock told the inquiry it was the “least worst decision to a terrible problem”.
Hallett said the policy was necessary to free up hospital beds, but she criticised the government for not advising care homes to isolate discharged patients.
She also rejected Hancock’s long-held claim that he threw a “protective ring” around care homes from the start of the pandemic, saying it was “unfounded”.
after newsletter promotion
She makes eight key recommendations in the report, which include better pandemic planning, financial support to help social care staff to self-isolate, guidance on visiting restrictions and better inspection during lockdowns.
Her report is also highly critical of the lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for care home staff, describing it as “wholly unacceptable”.
She describes how people resorted to using “festival waterproof ponchos, painters’ overalls and gloves purchased from DIY shops”, as well as making their own PPE from fabric, bin bags and bed linen.
She also notes the emotional toll on staff, saying: “The scale of death and suffering witnessed by social care staff […] was unlike anything they had seen before.”
Hallett says this led to post-traumatic stress and suicidal thoughts, with a number of care workers killing themselves.
“The action taken by the UK government and devolved administrations to try and protect workers and users of adult social care came too late. My recommendations must be acted upon now before the next pandemic strikes,” she said.
