Important Winter Preparations for Adult Social Care UKHSA
We are now in the autumn when winter seasonal infections are beginning to circulate, including gastro-intestinal infections such as norovirus and acute respiratory infections e.g. influenza (flu), COVID-19, rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV),
Winter Preparations
May we take this opportunity to remind you of the online Winter Preparedness and Infection Prevention & Control Pack for all adult social care settings - UKHSA Care Home and Residential Care Guidance - South West Councils (swcouncils.gov.uk). It is of most relevance to residential settings but many of the principles also apply to non-residential settings.
Here you will find links to national resources as well as copies of our own SW local resources. There are specific sections for:
Winter preparations and how to keep infections out (infection Prevention and Control)
Acute Respiratory Infections
Viral Gastroenteritis
Group A Streptococcal infection
Scabies
How to carry out risk assessments for new admissions during an outbreak
When and how to contact the UKHSA SW Health Protection Team
These provide information on prevention of infections as well as how to identify infections, what (and how) to report to UKHSA Health Protection Team (HPT) and how to manage infections and outbreaks.
There are also new links to podcasts and recorded presentations.
We would however, like to focus below specifically on some issues that you should be aware of for acute respiratory infections.
Vaccinations
Vaccinations are key for protection of your vulnerable service users and to reduce staff absence. Make sure your service users and staff are fully vaccinated – see attached.
Reporting Acute Respiratory Infections (ARIs)
You should report acute respiratory infections (ARIs) in your adult social care setting using the web-based Report an Outbreak (formerly known as Care OBRA) questionnaire - Report an outbreak of acute respiratory infection in an adult social care setting (ukhsa.gov.uk). You do NOT need to ring the HPT to report. At the moment, this system is only for ARIs in ASC settings.
Please see attached poster on how to access the Report an Outbreak tool. It may be a good idea to have this in your staff room with your CQC Location ID number on the poster.
See PPE requirements when caring for a person with suspected or confirmed acute respiratory infection
Testing
Residential adult social care settings, (particularly care homes) should always hold a small stock of COVID-19 LFD test kits to test any service user who is eligible for COVID-19 treatments and who becomes symptomatic with an acute respiratory infection.
The test kits are available (free-of-charge and in advance) from most community pharmacies. Find a pharmacy that offers free COVID-19 rapid lateral flow tests for people who are eligible for COVID-19 treatments.
Do not wait until you need the kits before you order them. If you have difficulty getting rapid lateral flow tests or COVID-19 treatments, contact your local Integrated Care Board.
You may also wish to purchase around five COVID-19 LFD kits or combined COVID-19/Flu LFD kits for use if you suspect a respiratory outbreak – available from many local pharmacies or supermarkets. Although it is not national policy to use these in an outbreak, you may find that you can speed up access to flu antivirals for your residents by having a small stock of these for use before you fill in the Report an Outbreak questionnaire.
You should tell the GP about any positive test results. COVID-19 treatments are available from the GP, NHS 111 or the specialist hospital doctor. Flu antivirals are available from the GP and from the Health Protection team.
If you suspect an outbreak of any acute respiratory infection, please test any eligible service users with symptoms before you report the outbreak via Report an Outbreak (Care OBRA) Tool and have the results ready to add to the questionnaire. However, if you cannot test your residents then do not delay reporting.
Please act now to get ready – Flu is already appearing, and COVID-19 rates are increasing.