Will the Minister outline the assistance provided by the Welsh Government to care providers to enable visits to take place safely at care homes?
The Welsh Government recognises the importance of meaningful visits for people living in care homes. We encourage providers to facilitate visits in a risk-managed way.
Since February 2021 the Welsh Government has provided resources to care homes to assist with the time and cost burden associated with on site Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing for both staff and visitors. Between February and the end of August 2021 nearly £6.3 million has been claimed to support LFD testing in care homes.
These costs included an initial one-off payment of £600 per care home towards the cost of creating a safe testing area. It also included one-off costs for staff training and training for visitors in how to undertake a Lateral Flow test as well as resources to support the ongoing on site testing.
In an attempt to ease the burden on care homes advice is being considered to permit staff and visitors to undertake LFD tests at home. The financial resources that have supported LFD testing in care homes will also be reviewed in line with this policy and adjusted accordingly.
The Welsh Government has also produced comprehensive visiting guidance for care home providers since June 2020, which has been reviewed and updated in line with changing public health advice. Public Health Wales has developed additional guidance to support care homes with the risk assessment process.