Calls for inquiry after 'at least 10' residents at Yorkshire care home die with coronavirus

Snaith Hall, in Snaith, has confirmed “at least 10” people living at the care facility suffered coronavirus-related deaths – with a spike in normal death levels.

Fieldhouse Care, the company which runs the home, said providing an accurate figure for coronavirus deaths was difficult given they had taken patients from hospitals, many terminally ill, which pushed fatality rates even higher above normal levels.

A spokesman said: “There has been a spike in deaths here above the levels we’d normally see at this time of year. We’ve had some pressures on us throughout the pandemic, including in taking in patients discharged from hospitals. But the home is now coronavirus free.”

Join our new coronavirus Facebook group for the latest confirmed news and advice

Now, East Riding opposition councillors have launched an inquiry into coronavirus in care homes following a spike in deaths at facilities across the region.

Liberal Democrat opposition leader Councillor David Nolan and the party’s health spokesperson, Councillor Dave Boynton, both said “serious questions” remained over the deaths and tests in the homes.

Coun Nolan claimed Snaith Hall, near Goole, lost a third of its residents to coronavirus.

A total of 44 people were recorded as living there in 2017, according to the last Care Quality Commission inspection, although it is not known exactly how many residents have been living there throughout the pandemic.

Coun Boynton called for blanket testing of staff across care homes going forward at East Riding Council’s first full meeting since lockdown began. Council figures showed there were 110 confirmed coronavirus-related deaths in East Riding care homes up to June 5.

Council leader Richard Burton said the authority had supported all East Riding care homes and providers throughout the pandemic and paid tribute to those who had died.

Coun Nolan said offering condolences was not enough and added the East Riding needed to be prepared for a second wave potentially more deadly than the first.

He said: “The government told us that they had put an iron ring around care homes, but it looks more like it was a paper chain. Elderly patients were being put back into care homes.

“One care home in Snaith reportedly lost a third of its residents to coronavirus. At least two homes in Withernsea lost residents. The picture has been improving and the council’s response has been generally positive.

“We’ve done better than the government, but as a council we could have done far better than we did.

“We should also be expecting a second wave. If you look at the Spanish Flu pandemic you find deaths during the first wave were much lower than the second.”

Coun Boynton said serious questions had to be asked about how coronavirus was dealt with in care homes up to May.

He said: “When the first case of coronavirus was reported in January, the NHS predicted that up to 57 per cent of deaths could be in residential homes. Questions have to be asked at a national level about whether there was a protective ring around care homes.

“We also need to start blanket testing to protect staff. Staff were only tested if they showed coronavirus symptoms, but we know that some people caught the virus, didn’t show symptoms and then passed it on to others.

“Overall the council has done a great job, but please do not think this is over. The East Riding was not hit as hard as other areas and that might mean we’re more vulnerable to a second wave. Please let’s get those blanket tests in place.”

Coun Burton said: “It’s remarkable to think about how much the council and its partners have achieved in the face of coronavirus.

“The council’s strategy is still based on suppressing coronavirus and protecting vulnerable residents. We have to be prepared for a possible second peak, it’s going to be a difficult balancing act.

“Throughout the pandemic the council has supported all 140 care homes and 40 care providers who are looking after some of our most vulnerable residents to live the best lives they can. We’ve also been in touch with families across the East Riding who care for their loved ones.”

------------------------

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

If you want to help right now, download our tablet app from the App / Play Stores. Every contribution you make helps to provide this county with the best regional journalism in the country.

Sincerely. Thank you.

James Mitchinson

Editor