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ASC Provider Briefing - 21 October 2022
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Dear Care Provider Colleagues,
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Welcome to this week's briefing.
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This week in the briefing: information about Business Continuity, reporting an outbreak, and winter vaccinations, two publications from the CQC, on Learning from Safety Incidents and the State of Care, a survey from Skills for Care, information about the Data Security Protection Toolkit, and some Fortified Recipe resources, as well as new events and event reminds.
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Please find the latest news and updates from Adult Social Care below:
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Business Continuity
Winter is rapidly approaching so it's time to check that the business continuity plans are in place and are robust. We know that winter is a difficult time and with continuing uncertainty around workforce, increasing costs and potential for shortages in fuel caused by the ongoing war in Ukraine, having plans in place to deal with critical shortages is a fundamental requirement. We would ask all providers to review their Business Continuity plans in light of the difficulties we continue to face to ensure that we are best placed to respond to the potential challenges ahead.
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Reminder from Public Health
Reporting Covid-19 outbreaks
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- Please report any new outbreak to the South West Health Protection Team (HPT) at UKHSA on 0300 3038162 or email swhpt@ukhsa.gov.uk
- There is no need to report single cases
- For Covid-19 incidents, an email will then be sent to care settings with a link to the Care Outbreak Risk Assessment Tool (OBRA) and an advice sheet with immediate actions to take
- The care setting will complete the OBRA with details of the incident
- The HPT will then review the OBRA and contact the setting with any further action required
- Care homes will then be followed up by the Somerset Infection , Prevention and Control (IPC) team as required
Reporting non Covid-19 outbreaks
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- Please report any new non-Covid outbreaks to the South West Health Protection Team (HPT) at UKHSA on 0300 3038162, or email swhpt@ukhsa.gov.uk – response is usually within 48 hours, depending on urgency.
- UKHSA will be in touch with support and/or risk assessments as necessary and will inform the Local Authority and IPC.
- IPC will follow up with the setting as required.
Winter Vaccinations
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Reminder for People Working or Living with Individuals on the Learning Disability (LD) Register
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All staff working with individuals who are listed on the LD register, as well as frontline health and social care workers and paid and unpaid carers have a right to access the Covid-19 Autumn booster vaccination as a priority group.
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Everyone on the doctors learning disability register will be invited to have their coronavirus vaccination if they haven’t already had it. NHS England » Improving health
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Appointments can be made by calling 119 or booking online through the National Booking Service. The vaccine is free to those eligible and it’s easy to book by selecting “Yes, I am a frontline social care worker”. Those eligible just need to self-declare when booking their appointment and will not be required to bring along evidence to the appointment.
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All eligible people are strongly encouraged to accept the vaccination that is offered as soon as they are able – it is important to be up to date with the booster and build up protection against severe illness before the winter.
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People are also encouraged to get their flu jab and in some cases these may be offered at the same time as the covid vaccination.
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Please communicate this to carers who may wish to take advantage of this offer.
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Booking a Flu Vaccination:
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Those who are eligible for the NHS free flu jab can be vaccinated via their Community Pharmacy or GP Surgery.
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If you are eligible, you may have received a letter from your GP about getting your flu jab, you should follow the instructions outlined on that letter.
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If you have not heard from your GP surgery regarding your flu jab and you are eligible for a free flu jab, then please book at your local pharmacy. You can find your local pharmacy and their contact details using the NHS website (Find a pharmacy that offers the NHS flu vaccine - NHS - NHS (www.nhs.uk)) and give them a call to find out how to get your vaccine.
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COVID-19 Vaccinations for Social Care Staff in Somerset
With Covid rates and hospital admissions on the rise, it’s really important that all social care staff are able to get their covid vaccinations and protect themselves, their patients and their loved ones as soon as possible. All social care staff are able to have their free vaccination now and can make appointments online https://bit.ly/SomersetCovidBookings or by calling 119.
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There are also a number of clinics across Somerset that are pleased to offer a ‘walk-in’ option for Autumn Boosters. Here are the opening days and times and locations. Clinics can be busy at times, so your patience is very much appreciated if you do need to wait for a little while.
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- Tower Vaccination Clinic, Tower Street Taunton, TA1 4AF. 7 days a week (8am–8pm)
- Alfred Gillet Trust Building at Clarks Village, Street, BA16 0BQ. 7 days a week. (Mon to Sat 9am-5pm: Sun 9am-4pm)
- Minehead Community Hospital, Luttrell Way, Minehead, TA24 6DF. Tues and Sat (8.30am-5pm)
- Wellington Community Hospital, Bulford, Wellington, TA21 8QQ. Mon-Thurs (9am-5pm)
- Bridgwater Community Hospital, Bower Lane, Bridgwater, TA6 4GU. Sat and Sun (9am-5pm)
- Cheese and Grain, Market Yard, Justice Lane, Frome, BA11 1BE. Thursdays (9am-4pm)
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Learning from Safety Incidents
CQC has recently published two learning from safety incidents. Each one briefly describes a critical issue - what happened, what CQC and the provider have done about it, and the steps you can take to avoid it happening in your service.
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State of Care
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The CQC have published their annual report on the State of Health and Social Care in England for 2021/2022. The report looks at the trends, shares examples of good and outstanding care, and highlights where care needs to improve. You can read it here: State of Care - Care Quality Commission (cqc.org.uk)
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Support for Cost of Living
A package of support has been approved to help support Somerset people deal with the impacts of the cost-of-living crisis this Winter.
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- Financial assistance with food and energy bills through the household support fund.
- A 'Warm Welcome' network of venues where people can find warmth and company
Targeted support for clinically vulnerable people in cold homes.
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Review draft content for the revised Manager Induction Standards
Skills for Care is currently re-developing our “Manager Induction Standards”. The set of 11 standards are intended to outline the expectations of a manager within 6 months of starting in the role.
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As part of this re-development work, we’d like to hear from managers and leaders in the sector to ensure that the new standards truly reflect the expectations of managers newly within their roles.
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Please use the link below to access the survey. It will take around 3-5 minutes to review each standard, with the survey allowing you to review as many, or as few of the new standards as you wish.
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Somerset Carer’s Roadshow
Somerset Carers team will be out and about across Somerset's supermarkets chatting to Carers about the support and advice available to them, and raising awareness of the Carers service.
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If possible please hit share on the below links to help spread the word!
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Below is the poster to go with the event, please feel free to share!
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Reminder: Communication Workers Strike
The Communications Workers Union has called four days of industrial action which will see BT and Openreach workers on strike on the following days:
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The strike also includes BT 999 operators, with the Local Resilience Forum on stand-by to deal with any possible consequences.
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During the strike period, if there were any problems with phone lines or internet services at individual locations or bigger geographical areas, there may be delays in resolving any problems and it could take longer than usual.
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We encourage providers to familiarise themselves with their alternative plans in the event of network outages which could be implemented at short notice
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We know that individuals with a careline are classed as Vulnerable so that would mean that they are prioritised.
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We do not believe this will impact 999 operations, but would ask providers to be aware and consider alternative plans where this is required.
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Latest Covid-19 Outbreak update
(Friday 21 October 2022)
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Although for many the pandemic has passed, we are seeing increased cases across Somerset. Coupled with the flu we will need all of you to continue your focus on infection prevention and control and to continue to work with us to reduce the opportunities for disease transmission. We are still experiencing high levels of system pressure.
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Data Security Protection Toolkit
Better Security, Better Care has partnered with RCPA in helping local care providers to evaluate and improve their data and cyber security. This is a national and local support programme designed to support you.
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As a care provider, you know how important it is to keep people’s information safe, and to protect your business from the risk of a data breach or cyber attack. The Data Security Protection Toolkit covers both paper and digital records to reassure everyone you work with that you are taking data security seriously.
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What is the Data Security Protection Toolkit (DSPT)?
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The DSPT is an online self-assessment tool, that you complete and publish annually. The toolkit guides you through your legal and contractual requirements regarding the Data Protection act 2018 and GDPR.
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All CQC registered care providers should complete the DSPT at least once a year. Publishing the DSPT will allow you access to other services and opportunities. For example, you must have completed the DSPT if you deliver services under an NHS contract; use shared health and care records; or use NHSmail.
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RCPA is your local support hub for completing the DSPT working alongside Better Security, Better Care who offer national support. RCPA have dedicated support solely for the attention of assisting care providers in working through the DSPT. RCPA offers to all care providers one on one support to answer anything related to the DSPT or data security.
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Creating a Fortified Diet Recipe Book Update
We have updated our creating a fortified diet recipe book and also created a version for care home caterers which has been endorsed by the National Association of Care Catering.
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Two versions are available
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- A resource to support food fortification for those caring for people who have been identified as at risk of malnutrition, or who are malnourished. It is likely to be particularly useful for those working in, or supporting care homes for older adults, but could also be used to support people living in their own homes.
- We have produced a simplified version of this recipe book that can be shared with care home caterers and is also endorsed by the National Association of Care Catering.
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Events
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Quality Improvement for our patients, people, and planet
This event is a series of virtual presentations by health and social care colleagues, for health and social care colleagues
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Or by scanning the QR code in the above ad.
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Somerset Winter Readiness Briefing
Support your local communities to stay well and cope with rising living costs this winter. This online event on Thursday 10 November between 11am and 12.30pm will give you an overview of who is more vulnerable in winter and how to signpost to the range of support available in Somerset.
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👉 Keeping warm – places and help available to keep warm this winter
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👉 Keeping well – immunisations and emotional wellbeing and support
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👉 Financial wellness – how to manage finances when costs are rising
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👉 Essentials – support with food and other essentials
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👉 Planning for cold and extreme weather
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This online briefing is for health and care professionals, paid and unpaid carers and volunteers working with people and communities who may be more vulnerable this winter.
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Upcoming Event Reminders
- Skills for Care: Safe and fair recruitment workshop: gathering information to make informed decisions. Thursday, 27th October, 9.30am to 4.30pm in Bristol. Fully booked - register for the waiting list.
- Skills for Care: Becoming a disability confident employer. Tuesday 1st November, 10am to 12pm. Register on Zoom.
- Care Provider Learning and Engagement Meeting, Tuesday 1st November, 2pm to 4pm. View details on website.
- Age UK Somerset Flexercise Workshop Wells, Wednesday 9th November, 10.30am to 12.30pm. More details on website.
- Optimal Handed Care, 4 sessions on 8th and 9th of November. Book on Eventbrite.
- Mouth Care Matters: Looking After People's Oral Health; A Training Session for Health & Social Care Professionals, Tuesday 6th December 9.30am to 11.30am. More details on Maxcourse
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Please continue to share or promote these briefings and our webpage to others in your organisations.
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Our incident room mailbox and contact details (see below) remains operational during core working hours so please get in touch if you have any urgent concerns or queries we can look to assist you with.
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Somerset’s Provider Engagement Team
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Adult Social Care (ASC) COVID19 Response Team
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