Latest editorial
Coronavirus swab tests at the Eothen Homes care home in Whitley Bay, Tyneside, in May
AS THE Covid-19 pandemic gripped Britain, care homes came under “constant pressure” to admit hospital patients who had the virus, a landmark study published today says.
The revelation comes after a report in April by NHS Providers, representing more than 200 NHS trusts in England, boasted that the NHS had freed up 33,000 beds in “record time” by “tearing up red tape.”
Of the 163 care homes and managers surveyed by the Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI), 70 reported that they had received patients discharged from hospitals in March and April who were not tested for Covid-19.
With more people dying each year and many spending their final days in institutions, researchers argue that wider access to palliative care could offer a more humane and cost-effective alternative, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT
