Lambeth adult social care changes in response to Covid-19

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Throughout the pandemic, Lambeth Together partners, Lambeth Council, Guy’s and St Thomas’s, King’s College Hospital, South East London CCG and others have been working together to change social care services to best support Lambeth people.

Teams from the hospital services at Guy’s and St Thomas’ (GSTT) and King’s College trusts have been brought together with adult social care hospital staff as well as enhancing weekend working capacity in the borough..

Additional social care support in the community

We have also worked with our social care providers to increase capacity but also to improve the assistance they receive to deliver the most appropriate care for people at this time. We have established;

  • An additional 4,400 hours of home care support in Lambeth
  • We have shared best practice guidance including a webinar for care homes from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, which has been well received
  • We have also trialled testing for care home staff from 3 April with one of our care home providers and are now looking to introduce greater access to the south east London testing centre arrangements for care providers
  • We continue to work with providers to access Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), ordering and distributing items to agencies most in need.

Funding for additional capacity commissioned in response to the discharge guidance is to be met through the extra health investment by the NHS and commissioners are in daily telephone contact with care homes in Lambeth, providing support and solving such issues as access to PPE, when their own suppliers have struggled to provide much needed equipment.

We have worked with system partners to ensure additional clinical support is available to care providers;

  • All Lambeth GPs who look after patients in a care home have signed up to pooled clinician support arrangement, to sustain and manage care for vulnerable patients in care homes.
  • Routine and crisis pathways will include specialist geriatrician support for Covid-19 in care homes in Lambeth and Southwark, available for advice on a 24/7 basis.
  • Community health and primary care services are offering additional palliative care or end of life care support to help meet the needs of individuals, including for those in residential units. There is a collaborative approach to support end of life care that includes the GSTT palliative care team, local GPs and St Christopher’s Hospice, that supports end of life care training in Lambeth.  This joint working includes arrangements for the provision of palliative care drugs supplied via local pharmacies to support end of life care where appropriate.
  • Mental health specialists are working with care homes to offer extra help for people with dementia who may need particular care planning to prevent any further risks of the spread of infection.
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