If you have a family member or loved one living in a care home in the UK, the past year may well have been fraught with the struggle of how to maintain contact. Whilst each individual care homes will have their own rules and guidelines about who can visit and when, here are the general guidelines on visiting care homes in the UK currently.*

 

Can I Visit My Relative or Friend in a Care Home?

If you are planning on visiting a friend or loved one who lives in a care home, it is important to first check with the care home you are visiting to see if this is possible. Most care homes should now be allowing friends and family members to visit as long as they comply with the current government guidelines however isolated instances may occur where this is not possible due to individual care home circumstances such as a case of the virus within the home. Our care homes are currently following government guidelines as they are relaxed so will remain up to date with any new developments in order to provide the very best care for our residents.

It is important that you do not arrange to visit the care home if you have felt unwell recently, have a new continuous cough, high temperature, change in taste or smell or have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 10 days or been in contact with anyone with COVID-19 symptoms in the last 14 days.

 

What Are the Current Government Guidelines for Visiting Care Homes in England?

According to the current government guidelines (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visiting-care-homes-during-coronavirus/update-on-policies-for-visiting-arrangements-in-care-homes), care home residents can now nominate up to five named visitors who will be able to visit the care home regularly. To ensure the safety of residents, these five persons should remain the same and cannot be changed to allow for a different combination of visitors.

In order to protect residents, these visitors will each need to undergo rapid lateral flow testing with a negative result and wear the appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment) for the visit. Social distancing should be practiced and physical contact kept to a minimum during the visit however, our care team will advise on all current guidelines that should be followed during the visit.

 

Arranging a Visit to Our Care Homes

Our care homes are always ready to welcome visitors to our residents and have plenty of processes in place to help make that possible. Each of our care homes will have individual rules on who can visit and when as well as different guidelines for their visitors to follow so we suggest contacting them directly to find out more about how you can visit your friend or loved one safely. You can find the individual contact details for each of our care homes on their individual pages here or contact our Select Healthcare team to find out more about visiting our care homes during COVID-19.

 

*Please note that government guidance is continuously being updated. For the most up to date information on care home visiting rules, please check the government website and call the care home you are planning to visit in advance.

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