Care home owner tells James O'Brien of "shocking" neglect from authorities

14 April 2020, 12:54 | Updated: 14 April 2020, 14:18

By Fiona Jones

This care home provider told James O’Brien that when he pleaded with authorities to help source PPE, the response was simply ’we don’t have face masks, we can't help you.’

Danny is a care home provider and he told James that one of the biggest challenges he's faced over the last few weeks has been PPE.

"What stood out most is the lack of preparedness from our local authorities for the situation that we're in," he said, "granted it's unprecedented but the lack of support has genuinely been shocking."

Danny has been forwarded NHS and PHE emails by way of support "with nothing in the way of actual communication from the council as to what's happening with PPE supplies, how best to get them, what we do in the event we don't have them."

He told James "one of our biggest lifesavers" has been charity and local community support, such as a dentist surgery with a surplus of masks that contacted home care providers.

"The lack of support has genuinely been shocking," the caller told James. Picture: PA

"Without that lifeline for the last two weeks I couldn't tell you what we would have done," Danny said, "we support in excess of 40 vulnerable residents in the area many of whom would be very high-risk in contracting Covid.

"Those who have commissioned the packages, those who are essentially responsible for their care overall, have done little to nothing to mitigate the situation. If there's anything I'd ask people to be aware," he said.

"I'm left with this sense that there's no change of command... there's nowhere to go," said James, "I'd always presumed if you're in charge of old people with dementia...then there's someone upstairs."

Danny agreed, and said he'd sent an urgent email to the head of the service at the local authorities clearly stating the issues they have surrounding PPE stating that "carers are not only worried for their own safety but are quite concerned about being asymptomatic."

"The response I got was 'I have no face masks, I can't help you'," Danny said, "that was it."

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