Residents at Norewood Lodge Care Home in Portishead are overjoyed to see their nearest and dearest for indoor visits as lockdown restrictions begin to ease in the UK.
Visitors are now able to see residents in their rooms across Bupa Care Homes in Somerset and Bristol. The news marks more than a year since some care homes first closed their doors, several weeks ahead of the first lockdown on March 23 2020.
Some indoor visits restarted at the end of last year as rapid-result Covid tests were rolled out to premises across the country, however, this has not been allowed in the current lockdown.
As of March 8, every resident in a care home in England is allowed one regular indoor visitor, who will be required to have a lateral flow test beforehand and wear PPE.
A single visitor can hold hands indoors with their relative or contact in a care home, but hugging and kissing residents is still off-limits.
Operations director at Bupa UK Care Services, Rebecca Pearson, said: “We understand how important time with loved ones is for our residents’ happiness and wellbeing, so we’re delighted to restart these visits.
“We know how much it means for families to hold hands and the tremendous lift this gives everyone. Families are a big part of our community, so we really pleased to be carefully reintroducing these visits again.”
Bupa Care Homes indoor visits will be managed in-line with national government guidance and guests will be provided with the necessary PPE before coming into contact with loved ones.
Visits will also be arranged in advance to manage the volume of people in homes in line with social distancing guidelines.
In addition, the Portishead home has installed a new visiting pod fitted with screens, which offers window visits and regular phone and video calls to help families stay connected.
Rebecca added: “Our teams have worked so hard and I’m so proud of our people who have been such heroes during the past year. They’ve shown professionalism, compassion and kindness and gone above and beyond to make residents smile.
“We know the past year has been difficult for families too, missing contact with loved ones as well as wanting us to keep them safe. Their support, trust and understanding has been hugely appreciated by us all.”
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