Shocking! One care home resident dies from coronavirus every five minutes in UK


One care home resident dies from coronavirus every five minutes in UK
Grim figures from the Care Quality Commission today revealed 4,343 deaths from April 10 to 24 in England alone – more than 300 a day.

Experts now believe more people are dying from the virus outside hospitals, casting doubt on Government claims the pandemic has peaked.

And it is feared more than 200,000 people could be living in care homes with confirmed or suspected cases.

The Independent Care Group’s Mike Padgham said: “Social care providers are now on the true front line in the fight against Covid-19.

"The Government must provide better support in terms of PPE, testing and finance so we can protect more people. These are our loved ones who have been taken from us early. They deserve better.”

Mr Padgham said “due to the lag” in the figures, the true toll is likely to be higher and may still be increasing.

And care home chiefs dismissed the PM’s claim that the virus has been “wrestled to the floor” as premature.

One of the biggest operators, HC-One, said it has suspected cases in two-thirds of its homes, while Care UK has them in three-quarters. One home near Wrexham lost nine out of 15 residents to suspected coronavirus in 10 days.

Boss Ricki Bibi said she believed a new resident they were unable to test but was considered “low risk” may have carried the virus into Manor Park Residential Home, in Holt.

In a home run by her RB Care Group in South Wales, 13 residents out of 34 died in a “short period … some with confirmed coronavirus, some with symptoms”. She said: “It has been heartbreaking.

“The staff are very close to the residents.”

Jenny Smith, of Westcliff Lodge Care Home in Essex, where nearly a third of residents have died in the pandemic, said: “We’re still trying to process the loss. We have many people off as well with suspected Covid, so we’ve been under tremendous pressure.”

But it is believed the true figure is even higher. Office for National Statistics figures show 2,000 Covid care home deaths in the week ending April 17 in England and Wales – double the previous week.

But the same week, there were a total 7,316 care home deaths compared with a long-term average of 2,154, meaning 5,000 more deaths in one week than expected.

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