A practical resource with a strategy for care homes for infection prevention and control, based on a clear separation of risk zones. The aim is to provide a practical aid to care home managers, so that they are able to implement effective infection control in their particular context, while recognizing the wide variations in the types and set-ups of care homes.
This document has been a collaborative effort of ex-Ebola, cholera and SARS infection control workers, geriatricians, doctors and water/sanitation specialists. It builds on current UK guidance for care homes, but (based on research that came out of the SARS outbreak, along with practical experience of running infection prevention and control in Ebola settings), it has a much stronger focus on the importance of:
- Clear delineation of risk zones for the entire building (rather than just rooms with patients). This type of zoning strategy is what has been proven to be very effective in previous SARS and Ebola outbreaks, and should also be effective with Coronavirus (see for example the image below)
- Constant hand hygiene between zones (even when wearing gloves).
It also includes some more practical details and tips (for example, how to make chlorine dilutions). As we know, the issue of PPE stocks is a very current topic, but while the government guidance is saying to use 1,000 ppm, it is not telling people how to actually make that dilution.
The document (which is regularly updated) is available here:
https://www.bushproof.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Care-home-strategy-for-IPC-of-Covid-19.docx
A folder with signage resources for care homes is also available here:
https://www.bushproof.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Signage-for-care-homes.zip
This recorded webinar available helps explain the issue of asymptomatic transmission and how this applies to the contents of the document:
