Care Inspectorate Wales has published data showing the number of deaths in adult care homes where Covid-19 has been noted by care providers as a possible cause.
The data only includes notifications from care homes to Care Inspectorate Wales and also counts deaths of care home residents in hospital. It’s not an official cause-of-death statistic so the true figure may be higher or lower (mainly due to limited testing before May 2020).
‘We offer our deepest sympathies to all who have lost a family member or friend as a result of the COVID-19 virus. We ask for compassion and respect to be shown to people living in care homes, to their families, and to the staff who worked tirelessly and selflessly to protect people, care for them and tackle the many challenges they faced.”
– Gillian Baranski, Chief Inspector, Care Inspectorate Wales
The statistics cover the period Quarter 4 2019 to Quarter 1 2021 (so from October 2019 until March 2021).
By my count there were 118 recorded deaths of residents from 37 care homes in Bridgend across the period.
More than half of all the recorded suspected deaths occurred amongst residents at just four care homes – Brocastle Manor, Bridgend (20); Llys Gwyn, Maudlam (17); Morgana Court, Porthcawl (15) and Foxtroy House, Tondu (9).
Other significant numbers of suspected Covid-19 deaths were recorded amongst residents of Picton Court, Porthcawl (8); Albert Edward Court, Porthcawl (8); Bryn Celyn, Maesteg (7) and Penybont Court, Bridgend (7).
Brocastle Manor – which is run by the care arm of Hafod housing association – has the joint-fifth highest number of suspected Covid-19 deaths of all care homes in Wales, mainly down to a sudden increase in reported deaths during the autumn 2020 wave. Llys Gwyn care home makes the top 10 for similar reasons.
The number of deaths should not be interpreted as suggesting issues with care standards or safety protocols at any care home.
“It is important to note the number of death notifications involving COVID-19 is not in of itself an indicator of the quality of care provided. There are many factors which affect the number of deaths in a care home. These include but are not limited to: rates of community transmission, the size and layout of the care home, the age, ethnicity and health and care needs of the people living in the home.”
– Care Inspectorate Wales
Across Wales, the inspectorate recorded 1,897 suspected care home resident death notifications involving Covid-19, the majority of which occurred during the first wave (Q1 2020) and October-December 2020.
