We’re not all in this together, that much is clear.
Resources to the NHS, absolutely necessary. Resources in care homes, absolutely necessary. But the stark divide continues and it is to our shame. We are allowing, enabling, this virus to impact most heavily on those who are most vulnerable. We are failing to protect.
I worked in the Department of Health for 15 years. Each successive government would talk about, plan for, publish Green and White papers on, the integration of health and social care. And on this task, every government has failed. Social care remains the poor relation to health. This is a system wide issue, fundamentally an issue of the type of society we want to live in.
The Office of National Statistics published its figures today. This and figures from the Care Quality Commission suggest about 5,500 additional deaths by the end of last week, not counted in the daily stats, largely from care homes. This means about a 25% – 30% increase on the numbers as they currently stand. We haven’t plateaued. For care homes, we may not have yet reached the peak. In Australia, four deaths in a care home in New South Wales makes front page news. Here, we hear very little.
Today we marked a minute silence for those working in health and care who have died.
Finally, Ministers have announced that care home deaths will be published daily.
And how this plays out more widely also makes it clear we’re not all in this together. Articles today on the digital divide, about a man who didn’t eat for a week because he didn’t have access to a phone and couldn’t go out, the kids where homeschooling is virtually impossible with lack of access to computers and internet connections, about distressing increases in domestic violence around the world.
Will this pandemic change how we care for and help meet the needs of the most vulnerable? It’s too early to tell. I’d like to say yes. But I also know I can be a cynic. I’ll believe it when I see it.
The other side of this is there is some brilliant work going on right across the country – health and care workers, essential workers, all those people working meaning there’s still food in the shops and rubbish gets collected. This pandemic has brought together local, national, and international communities doing so much to find solutions. This is not a ‘war’, these are not ‘soldiers’. The are people simply with a shared goal – to do what they can where they can.
I sit on the sidelines. I do what I can. I stay at home and follow the rules. At least it gets rid of all the ‘coulds’ and ‘shoulds’ of all those things I could be doing in London.
Today was a reasonable day despite sleeping badly. The highlights – co-facilitating a webinar for data analysts in the NHS; and on heading out for my walk catching up with a neighbour’s daughter taking her cat out for a walk. The cat had a harness on. This is the same cat who a few days ago was wearing a bright pink cat sized hoody. And yes, there are some cats that can be taken out for walks though I’ve never had one you could.
It’s cold, it’s grey, it’s raining, a big change from the last few weeks. Dulwich Park was the quietest I’ve ever seen it. Social distancing wasn’t an issue.
I was in a grump before going out, no particular reason, but despite it raining and getting very soggy feet, I’m glad I did. I didn’t manage to make it out shopping. I really wasn’t in the mood for running the gauntlet. That will be part of tomorrow’s fun.
So that’s it for Day 36. Stay safe, stay well, and stay home!