Local Assembly Member, Mohammad Asghar, today expressed his concern at the findings of his survey of Care Home operators in South East Wales.

Respondents said they do not have enough Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Provision by Local Authorities has been inadequate and any PPE they do have has been sourced at very inflated prices.

Concern was also expressed at the amount of time it took for people to be referred for Coronavirus testing. In some cases Public Health Wales took 3 to 4 days to respond with another 5 days for results to be provided.

Care Home staff also said they have to travel to Cardiff if they wanted a test which is impractical for those living in outlying areas and showing symptoms of the virus.

Also, Care Homes report that people in hospital are not being tested for the virus before being transferred to Care Homes, in spite of showing symptoms in some cases.

Mohammad Asghar said:

“I am very concerned at the findings of my survey of Care Home providers regarding the Coronavirus crisis.”

“I am advised for example that Newport city council is not following the lead of other local authorities and increasing financial support for Care Homes, and have not even agreed to uplift fees for 2020/2021.”

“Care Homes are a vital part of the fight against Coronavirus and deserve much more support from local and Welsh Government than they are getting at the moment.”