From 11th November, anyone who is not fully vaccinated, unless they have a medical exemption, is no longer able to work in a care home, as part of the Government’s drive to protect elderly people from Covid-19.
We are pleased to report that in our three homes – Roseleigh, Longlands and Queen’s Lodge – we lost only five members of staff to this compulsory vaccination policy. There were three members of staff who left us at Roseleigh, two at Longlands and none at Queen’s Lodge where the double vaccination rate is 100%.
Whilst it was sad to see staff leave; we are pleased that the vast majority of our staff choose to stay with us by having their vaccinations.
The government estimates there are still 32,000 care home workers in the UK who are not fully vaccinated (this also applies to anyone entering a care home for work, such as tradespeople) – so we have fared well, particularly because some care home operators are now having to turn residents away due to staff shortages.
And some are even warning that they may need to close as a result of losing so many staff and not being able to recruit new people.
Whilst we would never rest on our laurels, Constantia Healthcare prides itself on the fact that staff at our three homes tend to have been with us for a long time and that undoubtedly has played a part in people’s decisions to become double vaccinated.
At Longlands, the combined experience of the 17 staff who have worked at the home for least a decade is an amazing 287 years.
It’s the same at Roseleigh where the combined experience of the 18 staff who have worked here for ten years or more stands at 270 years.
And at Queen’s Lodge, the combined age of the 12 staff who have worked at the home for at least ten years is 158 years.
And there are lots of other staff at all three homes who have been with us for at least five years, so this continuity of care is important.
We understand, and so do our staff, that vaccination is the best way to mitigate the risk of Covid 19. It protects individuals and the people around them from a very transmissible virus which killed a large number of elderly people inside and outside of care homes across the UK during the pandemic.
We want to play our part in preventing that from happening again and if that means mandatory vaccinations for staff who work at Roseleigh, Longlands and Queen’s Lodge, then it’s a very small price to pay for keeping our residents safe.
