Employer put me at risk?

[matchingsocks]

I am so annoyed with my employer which is an NHS Primary Care Trust. Since the beginning of lockdown the GPs have been in hiding and have steadfastly refused to complete any home visits. Instead they have sent out their Nurses and therapists. Sometimes, to patients who quite obviously have covid symptoms when we get there (despite them denying this on the phone).
Often there are relatives present who have travelled from other towns to support their relative, fair enough.
My issue is, since the very beginning we have been banned from asking patients or relatives to wear a mask whilst we are present (as they are in their own home).
I have complained about this, right up to director level but been told it is absolutely not permissible to encourage a patient to wear PPE.
Can you imagine rocking up at a GPs surgery and being allowed in without a mask on? Yet as DNs we are not allowed to ask the same.
Well I am now quite poorly with Covid. Caught, I am sure, from a patient who was extremely poorly with it.
AIBU to think they have failed in their duty of care to me?
We have lost a team member to this disease who will not see her DC grow up because of some ridiculous policy by our directors.
I wear a mask/PPE to protect my patients, is it so wrong to expect the same in return?
Right now I feel like sueing them.

My ward ask patients to wear their masks when in their single room. They are asked to sleep in them too. Our patients have been wonderful and agreed. The only ones not expected to are dementia patients. Not one patient has refused. Even respiratory patients.

We wear our ppe. I work in acute medicine. Haven't had a single refuser. I have expected a few

As a patient I would have no problem being asked to wear as mask if I was fit enough to do so. If I was a relative I absolutely wouldn't have a problem in fact I would do so anyway as I would also want to protect us both and health care workers are more risky than me.

I think you and your colleagues should keep raising this issue.

I hope you make a quick recovery and are not to unwell with this.

I was recently an inpatient and nobody was asked to wear masks when they were in their room or bedspace.

The reason they gave me Bryan, was that it would be too expensive to provide a paper mask for the patients. However I think most patients would have a face covering in their home by now anyway.

FunkyPolar
Most inpatient units take temp and do a covid screen on admission.
Community staff have no such luxury, we go in blind.
Like lambs to the slaughter.

matchingsocks - I was replying to BryanAdamsLeftAnkle who said ward patients are asked to wear masks.

That's awful. I've worn masks in my home for the health visitor and non medical people visiting for work. My midwife asked me to wear one earlier in the summer when they were just becoming commonplace because when she rang to ask if I had covid symptoms I said no but I had a cold. I had no problem with this at all. I think most people would happily wear one but maybe just don't think of it in their own house.

Ask for a copy of the risk assessment and how they have rated and mitigated any risk. What does the guidance say? Who compiled and checked the RA. Is it regularly reassessed and how much input did those in the ground have?

Then you can get advice about your options

As a HCP I expect you already know that the masks the public wear are most likely less than useless? If you’re going into homes where you’re unsure of the levels of safety, I’d expect that you’d ensure you’re wearing appropriate amounts of PPE which should be provided by your employer. If that’s not the case, you’re also responsible enough to tell your employer that the safety measures are not good enough.
Employers have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their employees but employees are also responsible for ensuring they are working safely, and should act accordingly if they feel that’s not the case.

As a community HCP I take every patients temp when I see them, whether at their front door or when they come into clinic. I also wear full PPE before entering a premises. It is actually very easy to do and no one has ever refused.

Have you asked a patient to wear a face covering? Why does your senior management get to dictate this? As an autonomous practitioner It is surely your responsibility to make a risk assessment at the door - covid symptom = face covering, if the GP can refuse to see them then why can’t you? I also call before hand and ask to speak to the patient and ask if they are well and if they are displaying symptoms.

We always ring ahead to ask 8f their are symptoms and we always wear PPE, my issue is that despite me sending regular emails to my team manager and directors I have been told (verbally in team meetings and quite threateningly in quite forceful emails) that I am not to ask a patient to don a mask in their own home.
Cabbageking Thank you for your advice. I have worked in the NHS all my life but I am so angry right now.

A complete risk assessment should have been done, and it must be provided to all staff.

Demand a copy.

do you have a union you can reach out to?

@BryanAdamsLeftAnkle

My ward ask patients to wear their masks when in their single room. They are asked to sleep in them too. Our patients have been wonderful and agreed. The only ones not expected to are dementia patients. Not one patient has refused. Even respiratory patients.

We wear our ppe. I work in acute medicine. Haven't had a single refuser. I have expected a few

I would really struggle to sleep in a mask.

But when awake, absolutely fair

Can you raise this with your union, OP?
I, also, in your position would not rush back to work...
I don't see why a home-based patient, if asked, can't put a mask on for a visit if they have one available.
If you can, invest in some N95/FFp3 masks (and reuse).

Interesting - this question has come up in my Trust too and the outcome is that our community staff are allowed to ask patients to wear a mask.

@matchingsocks

FunkyPolar Most inpatient units take temp and do a covid screen on admission. Community staff have no such luxury, we go in blind. Like lambs to the slaughter.

Why the hell are you not taking screenings when you enter the home? Not being rude. I own a care agency in the States. My employees do a screening and temp check on everyone in the home. I provide my clients and employees boxes of masks just like I have always done with gloves . The cost is pennies a day. No your employee has failed you in the most horrific way. You would be unreasonable NOT TO SUE the slimey, money hungry twats

To be fair if a patient has covid and you're in close contact with them I don't think their (not medical) mask will make much difference. Yours might because you know how to wear it properly but their cheap cloth ones won't be much good for close contact

@Looneytune253

To be fair if a patient has covid and you're in close contact with them I don't think their (not medical) mask will make much difference. Yours might because you know how to wear it properly but their cheap cloth ones won't be much good for close contact

Its better than nothing but a better question would be why aren't the clients beissued disposable masks?

Can you go to the press with this? Especially if one of your colleagues has died from Covid and potentially caught it from a home visit? What utter scandal!

@matchingsocks

FunkyPolar Most inpatient units take temp and do a covid screen on admission. Community staff have no such luxury, we go in blind. Like lambs to the slaughter.

How many homes do you visit in a day? My employees see 3 to 5 every day. The exposure rate would be horrendous

surely you’ve had a safe systems at work procedure drawn up?

Tbh if your in full PPE and adhering to social distancing (not patients but relatives etc) I don’t see the issue with patients not wearing masks.

You mentioned you called the patients first before attending, could you say to them something like 'so as not to concern you, I have to wear PPE on attending to all calls and I have no issue if you wish to wear masks or gloves too'.
I'm just thinking that when needing assistance at home, perhaps people wouldn't necessarily think of wearing masks as have other things/worries on their mind. However if you were to mention mask use but not specifically say they are needed, people might think about donning them but you would be adhering to you (highly unreasonable) rules placed by your employer?

I agree with gin - I’d be saying ‘Just want to reassure you that’ll I will be wearing a mask etc and that’ll help protect you, so it’d be great if you could pop one on to protect me’ ; that’s the government’s message so not sure why your employer would see it as an issue. Tomorrow morning I’d be contacting my area rep for advice and for them to take it on. Hope that you feel better ASAP.

A few HCPs have said that the public's masks are next to useless because we don't know how to wear them / they're not the right type.

It might be quite nice if someone could let us know the right type, and what we're doing wrong with wearing them...

It wouldn't surprise me if there is no risk assessment or method statement for this. The NHS seems to get by on not doing neccesary paper work until something goes wrong and they find someone to throw under the bus.

Ask for the RA and method statement. If they can't provide one, stop working until they do.

I know many people are going to say "you can't do that" but this is standard practice in my industry. Whole sites have been shut down because there were no RAs available during an inspection. The NHS is not exempt from the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.