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Original poster

Fuming. Covid in my Nan's care home

80 replies

Whattodowhattodooo · 21/04/2020 11:24

My mum has just had a letter from my 84 year old nans care home to say they have had 2 residents test positive. They have been on lockdown for the past 5 weeks so no visitors could have taken it in and there is no suggestion in the letter that any care workers have tested positive. "Solely residents affected". This begs the question "Where did it come from?" The only situation we can think of is that the residents have come from hospital. If this is is the case WHY weren't they tested prior to being released?? We know that you can be asymptomatic up to 14 days so surely they would have tested positive before symptoms showed?? I may be being completely unreasonable in my understanding of testing/transmission but my nan is now in the firing line. I am so angry and upset 😭

OP posts:
Honeyroar · 22/04/2020 22:05

@Whattodowhattodooo try and come off Facebook, it’s all drama and half of it isn’t true, it will only worry you sick. Try and keep in your head that the home and staff will be doing everything they can for the residents.

lockdownstress · 22/04/2020 22:10

@Whattodowhattodooo to be brutally honest, it's going through all the care homes.

Original poster
Whattodowhattodooo · 22/04/2020 22:12

@Honeyroar

I didn't actually see it myself on FB. She has a mutual friend with my Auntie and she screenshot it and sent it to me. I was half tempted to PM her and ask her where she got the information from but DH said it would be pointless. It's not as if she is front line. She's a stay at home hairdresser! 🙄

OP posts:
tenlittlecygnets · 22/04/2020 22:20

But hospitals have been discharging covid-19 patients back to care homes. It’s shit. I’m so sorry, and I hope your nan is ok.

Gingerkittykat · 22/04/2020 22:28

How are they getting away with discharging patients to care homes with Covid-19? Surely they have better facilities to care for these patients in hospital without putting vulnerable people at more risk.

creaturcomforts · 22/04/2020 23:13

There are 2 residents in the care home I work In too. They are really good on infection control, all staff are having their temperature taken and all ppe must be worn. We're cleaning all surfaces every hour.. no idea how it came in as there have been no new admissions or discharges from hospital. Homes have to be very careful and take precautions, but staff could be asymptomatic and not know. Hope all will be ok with your mother, I expect they will be trying their best but in a care home it's really impossible to social distance when working with one another and not enough staff as people are self isolating which leads to staff occasions having to work on other units.

DonnaDarko · 22/04/2020 23:21

It would either be from a staff member or someone coming from a hospital. my understanding is care homes were still admitting people for care recently.

It will spread quickly as the staff probably don't have PPE and they're in close quarters.

It's very unfortunate and I really hope your nan is ok

1forsorrow · 23/04/2020 10:41

How are they getting away with discharging patients to care homes with Covid-19? Surely they have better facilities to care for these patients in hospital without putting vulnerable people at more risk. It was on the news yesterday that hospitals are phoning homes and insisting they take residents back. One home that refused had an ambulance arrive at their door and paramedic told them that they were taking their resident (with corona virus) back and that was it.

ajandjjmum · 23/04/2020 11:38

MIL is in a care home in Lincs. Covid was suspected on Monday, she was tested that afternoon and the result came back on Tuesday. DH had to chase the test, the care home weren't automatically going to arrange it.

She is now left in bed, very sleepy, eating and drinking little, and with no guidance having been given to the carers on how to care for her.

The home are being very cagey about numbers, but we know there are definitely 3 positive, and several others were waiting for results before MIL was tested.

Horrid situation all round.

Original poster
Whattodowhattodooo · 23/04/2020 16:21

Just had a phone call from the home. They've had to put Nan to bed. Unsteady on feet, not eating and high temperature 😒

OP posts:
Haffdonga · 23/04/2020 17:04
Flowers
MitziK · 23/04/2020 17:25

I hope she's OK - but residents with dementia can be difficult to persuade to drink fluids and she could as easily have a bladder infection.

Your internet vulture needs to be cut off. She probably doesn't know shit but enjoys being the voice of doom - there were tons of them on social media last year when my brother died, relishing in the attention given by other vultures for their lurid tales of his brain and blood being splattered along a mile long stretch of road and pavement, including in a street a quarter of a mile away. The only visible injury he had was a little bruising around his eyes.

Original poster
Whattodowhattodooo · 24/04/2020 15:35

So, my mum had a phonecall with the doctor today 10 deaths in the home with 2 being on my Nan's floor. Nan is in a bad way. Not eating. Mum was asked whether she wanted to move her to hospital but doctor said if she does she would be taken straight to ITU and put on a ventilator. She didn't say that she was struggling with her breathing though. Surely she wouldn't need to go on a ventilator unless she was struggling to breathe?? Don't know what to believe. They are however giving her antibiotics as they think she may have a UTI. Only early on in the week they said only 2 confirmed cases and no deaths. 😒 Doctor said she was comfortable and agreed to leave her there and would call back in 2 days. Fearing the worst, 😭

OP posts:
MitziK · 24/04/2020 15:40

I'm sorry it wasn't good news.

spanieleyes · 24/04/2020 15:56

I'm so sorry, it's the feeling of helplessness that is the worse thing. My mum is in a care home, at the moment no cases I'm aware of but I can only pray it remains that way. My dad is stuck in hospital, he has had Coronavirus but miraculously survived. However his dementia has deteriorated in the month he has been in hospital and he now needs residential care but no one will take him. I haven't seen either in over a month and it's so hard!

lockdownstress · 24/04/2020 16:00

I'm so sorry. Keeping her comfortable in the home is likely to be the best decision. She won't get a ventilator and if this is her time it's better for her to be comfortable in familiar surroundings. take care of yourself.

Original poster
Whattodowhattodooo · 24/04/2020 16:03

She absolutely hates it there. Due to her form of dementia she has personality issues. She accuses them all of stealing from her and making her go mad. Just want to be holding her hand 😔

OP posts:
Thefaceofboe · 24/04/2020 16:07

We held the funeral for my DP’s grandma the day lockdown was announced, with 5 people attending. We’re so glad she passed of natural courses and wasn’t stuck in the home with no visitors and we’d of been worried sick. Thinking of you x

BenjiB · 24/04/2020 16:14

I’m thinking there must be a lot of people out there who have the virus but have no symptoms because I don’t know of anyone locally at all that has the virus (that they know of) . However I know of lots of local care homes that have residents with the virus. My friend works in a small home with 4 of the 10 residents testing positive. But none of the staff team (about 12 of them) are showing symptoms.

Bflatmajorsharp · 24/04/2020 16:23

I'm sorry, this is such an awful situation.

One reason for residents only being infected at the moment is because they are obviously older and more frail than the staff; they will need much less exposure to the virus to become symptomatic than younger, healthier people.

That's why older people are so vulnerable to UTIs as well; the threshold for them to succumb to infection is much lower than it would have been when they were younger.

Another reason is that there may be staff who are symptomatic but not at work, so haven't been tested.

I know that that doesn't help or change the situation, but it may well have been something unavoidable that brought the virus into the home.

So sad though. Care homes locked down really early and have done all they can to keep this horrible virus out.

ovenchips · 24/04/2020 16:27

@spanieleyes Sorry to hear that. What a rough situation.

malovitt · 24/04/2020 16:27

My elderly, dementia suffering close relative was taken to hospital by ambulance from his care home two weeks ago due to him being lethargic and not eating and drinking as usual. No coughing, temperature or shortness of breath but he just wasn’t right. Usually fit and well apart from his dementia.

He was tested there and his chest X-ray showed an infection/pneumonia. His Covid test came back positive after 5 days.

The hospital said they were going to send him back to the care home whilst still in the 14 day isolation period.The home, with my full support, refused to take him back as they didn’t have the correct PPE and with their shortness of staff would not be able to manage. Hospital also confirmed that they wouldn’t test him again either to see if he was clear.

I was absolutely astonished that they would attempt to do this, thereby possibly infecting the rest of the residents. The hospital confirmed that they didn’t need the beds.

I though that this was why the Government built these Nightingale type places?

Sadly, he didn’t make it and died a few days ago, still in hospital.

We are unsure how many of the other care home residents now have it - it’s absolutely tragic.

crimsonlake · 24/04/2020 16:31

You are assuming the care home has been accepting covid - 19 patients who have been discharged from hospital, as far as I am aware they can refuse them now.
More likely scenario is a staff member unknowingly bringing it in, unfortunately despite everyones best efforts with so many staff in and out all day in the end it is unavoidable.
I really do understand families feel helpless during this time

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