Support for Rutland care providers

At our board meeting in June, our guest speaker, Head of Commissioning from Rutland County Council, Karen Kibblewhite, gave an update on how care homes and homecare providers have been supported throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

Rutland County Council, in conjunction with health colleagues, has provided specific support to our local providers throughout the pandemic: 

• Offering a single point of contact to keep them up-to-date with national guidance and advise them of local support.   Initially contact with homes was daily, with weekly conference calls, and as things have settled down these have reduced to fortnightly calls and more ad hoc contact each week.  
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) - as many will be aware - has been an ongoing issue for care providers.   The Council provided some free of charge; sourced additional donated PPE from local businesses to bolster providers’ supplies (a big thank you to those businesses who donated); and holds a small central stock for emergencies.
• Across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, Infection Prevention and Control advice has been offered to support the measures providers were already taking.  All care homes are testing their staff and residents regularly; and all homecare staff are being tested regularly. 
• In the early stages, the Council recruited and trained some additional staff so that in the event of an outbreak there would be sufficient staff available to deliver services safely.  Fortunately, these have never been needed.  
• The Council also provided financial support: in May a lump sum payment was made to meet additional costs providers were facing, and in June the Government made further funding available which was passed directly to care homes by the Council.