Beeston care home doing 'everything it can' after 17 coronavirus deaths

Seven residents of Sunnyview House Bupa care home in Manor Field, who tested positive for Covid-19 have died, while 10 others have also passed away after having shown symptoms.

The home, which offers residential, nursing and palliative care, has 84 beds, and those who have passed away represent almost a fifth of residents.

There are currently five confirmed cases of Covid-19 at the home, with residents being cared for in their rooms by dedicated teams who have “all the necessary personal protective equipment” (PPE), Bupa said.

The home has been divided into covid-19 and a ‘clean’ floor, with dedicated staff for each area and a colour coding system in place to prevent the spread of the disease, the company added.

While care bosses maintain the home is open, it is not currently accepting new residents, and is working with Public Health England to get regular testing inside the home.

Bupa’s regional director for Sunnyview House, Jane Madden said: "The wellbeing of our residents and staff is our priority. We’re doing everything we can to keep them safe and closely following the strict advice from Public Health England.

“Very sadly, we’ve lost seven residents who tested positive for COVID-19. Ten other have passed away having shown symptoms, though were not confirmed to have the virus. Our thoughts are with their families, who have been so supportive of the home and our staff during this time. We continue to stay in close contact with them all to ensure they have the support they need.

“This has been an incredibly difficult time for everyone, but the team have shown exceptional strength and continue to go above and beyond to deliver the best possible care. Thanks to this, a number of symptomatic residents are now back to full health.”

The most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), from the week ending 17 April, show there had been 3,096 Covid-19-related deaths in care homes in England and Wales.

Late last month Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced the deaths in care homes and in the community would be added to the figures published daily by the Government.

He also revealed measures to make testing in care homes easier.