Question reference: S6W-00352
- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Date lodged: 2 June 2021
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Current status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 10 June 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it will next review the criteria for visiting care home residents, as it eases COVID-19 restrictions.
Answer
The Open with Care guidance, published on 24 February 2021, recommends a minimum of two indoor visits per resident per week (where they so wish), as long as certain conditions are met. This was a starting point to enable care homes to increase the frequency, duration and quality of visits through local assessment and support from local oversight arrangements. The guidance should be adopted to reflect the Protection Level of each care home’s local authority area.
Additional advice on supporting residents to make outings and overnight stays away from the care home was published on 17 May www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-
adult-care-homes-visiting-guidance/ . The general principle is that when a resident wishes to go on outings away from the care home, that these should take place in line with general population COVID-19 permissions relevant to the local area, unless there is clear evidence justifying a more restrictive approach.
The Open With Care National Oversight Group is monitoring implementation of the guidance, identifying any additional support that might be required, and will report on progress in June .