Issue - meetings

Consideration was given to the report of the Head of Adult Services which was presented to provide an overview for Members on the ‘Living Independently in Blaenau Gwent in the 21st Century’ Strategy.

The Head of Adult Services spoke to the report and gave a detailed overview of each of the 8 priority areas as part of the overarching approach to service development.

Priority 1 - Long term care

A Member enquired regarding what areas of good practice could be taken forward post Covid and also referred to the drop in numbers of residents in Care Homes.  The Head of Adult Services said that across all 8 priorities there were a number of areas of good practice, specifically in relation to Care Homes they were working closely with ABUHB to develop enhanced infection control processes and taken the learning from that to actually develop a new service moving forward, so that Care Home providers have a robust and easy access to infection control leads, etc.  In relation to the reduced numbers of residents in Care Homes, it was too early to say if this was due to confidence and whether this trend would change, people may have decided to stay in their own home because Care Homes had been particularly affected by the pandemic or they may be thinking differently regarding their future care needs.

A Member enquired of the number of COVID related deaths in care homes.  The Officer responded that this information could be provided, but with a note of caution, owing to some people who may not have contracted the infection in the care home, but within the hospital setting.

With some Care Homes currently undersubscribed, a Member enquired what impact would the opening of a new Care Home have on the existing provision going forward.  The Head of Adult Services explained that Care Homes were regulated by CIW and anyone could open one, the new Care Home in Tredegar had opened early in the pandemic and had already developed that provision pre-pandemic, she explained that some of the residents could be from Caerphilly, Rhymney Valley and Powys and not just from Blaenau Gwent.

A Member commented that the report showed that the Social Services Directorate had reacted swiftly and professionally during the pandemic, engaged with a number of partners and continued to deliver a high level of quality services that affect vulnerable members of society.  He thanked all members of staff in the Directorate for their good work and felt the report provided reassurances to both Councillors and the general public who may have relatives in our care settings.  All Members of the Scrutiny Committee supported these comments and felt that Social Services staff across the board had performed extremely well during a very challenging year.

With the reduced number of people going into Care Homes a Member enquired how people were managing in their own homes.  The Head of Adult Services said that one of the main drivers of Living Independently in the 21st Century  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5