What is the Covid virus?
COVID is an infectious disease caused by a relatively new form of coronavirus. Whilst most people infected will experience mild to moderate respiratory illness and recover without needing specialist treatment, there are people at higher risk to develop a serious illness, such as older people, and those with underlying medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer.
The most common symptoms are developing a new continuous cough and/or a high fever (above 37.8°C). Other symptoms that may appear are aches, pains, nasal congestion, sore throat or diarrhoea.
How to prevent the spread of Covid?
To reduce the spread of COVID, the Government made the following recommendations for the general public:
- Maintain social distancing where possible, including remaining 2 metres apart from people you do not live with.
- Limit the close contact you have with those you do not usually live with, and increase close contact gradually. This includes minimising the number, proximity and duration of social contacts.
- You should meet outdoors where possible and let fresh air into homes or other enclosed spaces.
- Work from home where practical and possible.
- Government expects recommend that people wear face coverings in crowded areas such as public transport.
- Maintain effective hand hygiene at all times.
Handwashing and hand hygiene
Frequent hand washing and good hand hygiene is an essential method to control infection in your setting. All people and staff should decontaminate their hands with alcohol-based rub when moving in and out of areas where care for suspected and confirmed cases of COVID is being delivered.
Hand hygiene must be performed before every direct contact with people who use services, or contact that could result in your hands being contaminated such as touching care equipment, PPE or waste.
There are three important stages to cover when talking about suitable hand hygiene: when you need to do it, preparing to wash your hands and the best way to wash your hands.
Where running water and soap are not available, an alcohol-based hand sanitiser should be used instead. Hand sanitiser for staff should be as close to where care is provided, or personal dispensers used. Hand sanitiser should be used for 20-30 seconds to decontaminate the hands.
Where no running water or other hand hygiene is available, such as in a person’s home, staff may use hand wipes followed by hand sanitiser and should wash their hands at the first opportunity.
Respiratory and cough hygiene – ‘Catch it, bin it, kill it’
To minimise transmission of COVID and other respiratory illnesses through respiratory droplets, tissues and waste bins should be available to everyone. All staff, residents, users and visitors should:
- use disposable tissues to cover the nose and mouth when sneezing, coughing or wiping and blowing the nose
- dispose of used tissues immediately in the nearest bin
- clean hands after coughing, sneezing, using tissues, after any contact with respiratory droplets or objects contaminated with respiratory droplets
- not touch their eyes, mouth and nose
- help those people who may need help with containing their respiratory droplets such as the elderly
- provide those who are immobile with a bag close by for immediate disposal of tissues
- ensure common areas, or during transportation, that people with symptoms wear a fluid resistant surgical face mask to minimise dispersal of their respiratory droplets or contamination of surfaces
- clean frequently touched surfaces.
PPE – the use of Personal Protective Equipment:
When providing personal care which requires you to be in direct contact with the client(s) (e.g. touching) OR you are within two metres of anyone in the household who is coughing.
- Disposable gloves
- Disposable plastic apron
- Fluid-repellent surgical mask
- Eye protection may be needed with some clients but not all
Laundry and waste management:
Do:
- Wash items as appropriate in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Wash dirty laundry that has been in contact with an ill person with other people’s items.
- Dispose items that are heavily soiled with body fluids, such as vomit or diarrhoea, or items that cannot be washed, with the owner’s consent.
- Store personal waste (such as used tissues, continence pads and other items soiled with bodily fluids) and disposable cleaning cloths securely within disposable rubbish bags. Place these bags into another bag, tying securely and keep separate from other waste within the room. This should be put aside for at least 72 hours before being disposed of as normal.
Do not:
- Place dirty laundry on the floor or other surfaces to prevent contamination.
- Shake dirty laundry before washing to minimise the possibility of dispersing virus through the air.
Staff uniforms and clothing should be protected from contamination by PPE. For staff taking uniform home for laundering, use a plastic bag.
People supported by home care services
Showing symptoms:
If someone receiving home care is not ill, but they are part of a household that is isolating, you need to review whether they are able to maintain a safe distance from the ill member of the household. For example, if they have a separate room and bathroom and are keeping two metres away from the household member with symptoms, you can then provide care without extra measures. However, if this separation is not possible then you should use the same procedures as for a person with symptoms of COVID and other respiratory illnesses and limit contact with the household member that has symptoms.
Not showing symptoms:
If neither the person being supported or the care worker have symptoms, then standard PPE is required and normal good hygiene practices should be used, such as hand hygiene. You can also increase cleaning and keep the property ventilated by opening windows when safe and appropriate.
Visit times and duration:
It is possible that there may be some disruption to your usual service: we will attempt to meet agreed call times, but would ask for your patience if this should change at short notice.
Whilst we endeavour to provide you with your usual Care and Support staff, this may also change at short notice.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
If you have any questions, which have not been answered in this guidance, please contact your Care Manager or Field Care Supervisor for further advice.
Tel: 03303 800222 and select the option for your area.
