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In this Bulletin:
- COVID-19 Infection Prevention and Control Update
- Non-sterile Gowns
- Video Consultations
- Coronavirus and Domestic Abuse
A) Infection Prevention and Control for COVID-19 Update
An infection prevention and control (IPC) update was published on 21 August 2020 by Public Health England which states premises should be COVID-secure in both clinical and non-clinical areas. This means that in non COVID-secure areas:
- PPE (i.e. face masks) should be worn by staff
- Face coverings should be worn by patients and visitors
However, Public Health England’s COVID-19: Guidance for the remobilisation of services within health and care settings Infection prevention and control recommendations issued the day before, on 20 August 2020, states:
- Sessional use of single use personal protective equipment (PPE) items has been minimised and only applies to extended use of facemasks for healthcare workers
- The use of face masks (for staff) or face coverings is recommended in addition to social distancing and hand hygiene for staff, patients, and visitors in both clinical and non-clinical areas to further reduce the risk of transmission
- Physical distancing of 2 metres is considered standard practice in all health and care settings
The guidance appears to be contradictory, but face masks are recommended in addition to other prevention measures, and advice is available from the Health and Safety Executive to make your workplace COVID-secure which covers social distancing measures, cleaning and hygiene. QCS has also produced a COVID-secure toolkit that customers can find in the Resource Centre.
In addition, where contact with patients is minimal (e.g. vaccination clinics), single use PPE items (e.g. gloves and aprons) are not necessary for every contact. Where there is exposure, or anticipated exposure to blood or body fluids or non-intact skin (e.g. areas of the skin that have been opened by cuts, abrasions, dermatitis, chapped skin, etc.) gloves and aprons should be worn and changed immediately after each patient or after completing a procedure or task. Hand hygiene should always be applied between each patient, and staff who administer vaccinations and injections should wear a sessional facemask. We recognise that you may wish to conduct your own risk assessments around this activity.
B) Non-sterile Gowns
In the CAS Alert CEM-CMO-2020-031 issued on 11 August 2020 the MHRA announced that Flosteril FLO-MED-8130 non-sterile gowns do not meet minimum standards for fluid resistance therefore Practices should check stocks and quarantine any unused gowns.
C) Video Consultations
For Practices offering video consultations a quick guide for patients has been published by the NHS which explains the benefits of a video consultation and how to use it.
A similar quick guide has also been published for staff to provide practical guidance on how to start, carry out, and finish a video consultation.
Both useful resources have been added to the QCS Video Consultations Policy and Procedure.
D) Coronavirus and Domestic Abuse
Women’s Aid has published a report titled A Perfect Storm on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on adult and child survivors of domestic abuse and the services supporting them. With a significant increase of domestic abuse during the pandemic the report includes information about the impact of COVID-19 on:
- Survivors’ experiences of domestic abuse
- Child survivors
- The specialist domestic abuse support sector
The NSPCC also provides useful information about protecting children from domestic abuse during coronavirus, and has updated its learning from case review briefings by examining specific areas to help improve responses to protect children from the impact of domestic abuse.