Category Archives: The Shrubbery News

Coronavirus kindness: Pupils email care home residents

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-england-hereford-worcester-51963376/coronavirus-kindness-pupils-email-care-home-residents

Clarendon Care Group and the UK Coronavirus Outbreak

The health, safety and wellbeing of our Residents and Colleagues are always our top priorities. We have therefore taken comprehensive action to prepare for, and respond to, the growing coronavirus outbreak in the UK.

This page details the latest advice from Clarendon Care Group about the steps we are taking at our homes. This information is intended for Clarendon Care Group Residents, Colleagues, and any visitors to our homes only.

For comprehensive information about the coronavirus itself, please visit either the Gov.UK or NHS websites, or if you are concerned you or someone you are in contact with has coronavirus call 111.

Visiting a Clarendon Care Group care home

For Clarendon Care Group the health and safety of our Residents and Colleagues is our top priority. As such, we have made the decision to limit non-essential visitors to our care homes until further notice.

We have not taken this decision lightly, but we know our visitors, including relatives and loved ones, would want us to do everything possible to keep the Residents in our care safe and well.

Non-essential visits include routine visits from Relatives and loved ones, visits from individuals such as hairdressers and entertainers, and from professionals and contractors carrying out non-essential services.

If you can delay your visit or achieve its purpose via another method (i.e. through a phone call or video call) please do so.

Requests for essential visits where exceptional circumstances arise will be considered. These can be arranged by contacting the Home Manager.

Phone numbers for all homes are listed on the individual home pages here.

If an essential visit is granted, we ask that a number of steps are taken to limit any potential risk – these are outlined in the next section.

PLEASE DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ARRANGE A VISIT TO A CLARENDON CARE GROUP HOME FOR ANY REASON IF YOU CURRENTLY FEEL UNWELL PARTICULARLY IF YOU HAVE A COUGH, FEVER OR HIGH TEMPERATURE, OR HAVE SHORTNESS OF BREATH, OR IF YOU HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH SOMEONE WHO MAY HAVE CORONAVIRUS.

How to safely visit a Clarendon Care Group care home

If you are making an essential visit to a Clarendon Care Group care home, it is important that you do so safely and in a way that minimises the risk of infection to our Residents and Colleagues. Therefore, before visiting and whilst on site, please consider the following:

  •  Hand washing. It is important that you wash your hands thoroughly before you visit the care home, and regularly whilst you are at the home. Please make sure you wash your hands for a minimum of 20 seconds, using either hot water and soap or 60% alcohol sanitiser gel. The NHS has a video guide to effective handwashing here. Additional hand washing stations have been set up at our homes to help visitors wash their hands regularly.
  •  Coughs and sneezes. We understand there are many reasons why someone may cough or sneeze. However, whilst visiting a Clarendon Care Group care home please make sure you have a tissue on you at all times so that you can catch a cough or sneeze. Please then immediately dispose of the tissue in the bin. Remember – Catch it. Bin it. Kill it.

Protecting our Residents and Colleagues

Please be assured that Clarendon Care Group is treating this matter with the utmost seriousness and comprehensive contingency plans are in place in the event of a coronavirus outbreak at a home.

In response to the growing UK coronavirus outbreak we have created a dedicated steering group. Led by our Clinical Director Chris Potter this group comprises senior leaders from across the business who meet regularly to review and further develop our plans, reflecting the evolving situation.

The steering group has already taken action, including working to secure the medical supplies we may need in the event of an outbreak in a home, and developing and implementing the policies and protocols needed to make sure Clarendon Care Group homes can continue to provide high-quality, kind care during this time.

All Home Managers and Colleagues have been informed of the steps we are taking and how they can help prevent the spread of infection. This includes taking staff and visitors temperatures and use of alcohol gel at the point of entry in addition to promoting hand washing in all areas of all homes, installing additional prominent signage about handwashing and reminders for infection control training through our digital learning platform.

The Clarendon Care Group Coronavirus Steering Group continues to meet regularly and is monitoring and reacting to the latest guidance issued by the UK Government and Devolved Administrations, the NHS, and public health bodies.

This page will be updated to reflect the latest information and advice regarding any additional steps we are taking to safeguard the health of our Residents and Colleagues.

For anyone connected to a Clarendon Care Group home who has further questions about our response to the coronavirus, please call the Home Manager at your local home. Phone numbers for all homes are listed on the individual home pages here.