A CARE home worker has claimed that agency staff are being moved on a near-daily basis, risking the spread of coronavirus in facilities.
Agencies which provide agency workers for care homes run by Glasgow City Council have been accused of “laziness” by one care worker, who wished to remain anonymous, who said moving staff around different facilities risks spreading the virus from the hardest-hit homes.
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The care home worker, who has worked in the sector for more than 30 years, told The Glasgow Times: “You think they would be wanting to help by providing the same staff, in the same units each day. They’re not willing to do that, they’re chopping and changing the staff.
“You have workers that are going to care homes that are far more infected and then the next day they’re coming in to us.
“It’s laziness. They need so many people and so many hours covered. They just pick the first person on the list, rather than saying ‘who has been working where?’”
He added: “We’ve had some workers who have been offered shifts all over the place and they’ve said: ‘no, just give us shifts for here, the care home we’re in’. They’ve turned them down so they can stay in the same building.”
“You overhear some people saying: ‘I’m working here, then I’m working in a completely different organisation tomorrow and a completely different organisation the day after that’.
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“Unless the care staff are saying no, just try to keep me to the one unit, then they’ll be offered hours everywhere.
He said that bosses had accommodated some requests to remain in the same units.
“It’s putting everybody at unnecessary risk, absolutely.
“If someone’s just came from a unit with multiple deaths then that immediately concerns you.”
The Care Inspectorate’s guidelines for care home staffing acknowledge the need for flexible and “dynamic” staffing arrangements, including workers from other sectors and volunteers.
It states: “While continuity of care is important for people, reallocating roles and deploying workers to front-line and auxiliary positions is expected to be a dynamic process that will impact on the care and support people receive.
“Significant disruption to staffing is expected during the pandemic and services are best placed to make decisions regarding optimum recruitment and deployment in a rapidly changing situation.”
A spokeswoman for Glasgow’s Health & Social Care Partnership said: “Limiting the spread of the virus and protecting our staff and care home residents is our top priority. We operate according to Public Health Guidance at all times.
“Agency staff are assigned where we need cover to best care for residents. This can change on a daily basis depending on workforce availability.”
A spokesman for the Care Inspectorate said: “The Care Inspectorate is in close contact with all health and social care partnerships across Scotland, including Glasgow.
“Guidance for care homes is available and we expect all care providers to follow it.
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“Our inspectors are in regular contact with all care services to provide advice and support on a range of challenges currently being faced by the care sector.
“Care services across Scotland are working tirelessly under very challenging circumstances to care for people.
“The Care Inspectorate is working closely with care providers, health and social care partnerships, care industry leaders and the Scottish Government to ensure services get the support they need during the pandemic.
“We understand this is a really worrying time for people who experience care, their loved ones and families and for those who work in care.
“Anyone with a concern about a care service can contact us.”
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