Fewer care homes in Neath Port Talbot are now in emergency conditions - while many residents have had their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine.
Council leader Rob Jones said the vaccine uptake among residents has been “extremely good” and the pressure on care homes is “reducing”.
Just one out of 24 care homes in the area was classified as being in emergency status on February 16, compared with four around Christmas time.
And more than 90% of care home residents had been vaccinated in the Swansea Bay area, also by February 16, according to Swansea Bay University Health Board.
The "vast majority” of care home residents in Swansea and Neath Port Talbot have had their first dose of the vaccine.
A spokeswoman said: “We are doing further data cleansing as part of our campaign to ensure that no one who is due to have a vaccination is left behind."
Cllr Jones said the council had to assist a care home that needed “serious intervention” a fortnight ago but has since been “stabilised”.
“We do get these blips and the majority of the time they’re caused by a lack of care staff available.”
Cllr Jones said he was having “sleepless nights” over the immense pressure on care homes during Christmas time due to multiple coronavirus outbreaks and staff shortages.
“Adult social services are still providing me with a lack of sleep but… things are starting to ease.”
A spokesman for Neath Port Talbot Council said the impact of coronavirus on care homes in the region is categorised by a ‘red’, ‘amber’ and ‘green’ system.
This considers factors such as, the number of staff/residents who have tested positive for Covid-19, the number of staff identified as contacts, the number of ongoing positive tests, the need for extra support from the health board or council, and the number of residents who are unwell or passed away.
A care home would be placed in the red category for reasons such as:
- There are ongoing positive tests
- There are a number of residents that are unwell or have passed away
- There are a significant number of staff that have tested positive or been identified as a contact
- It requires additional support from the Health Board and the Council
A home would be placed in amber if :
- There are staff or residents with Covid-19 but they are unlikely to require additional support from the Health Board and the Council
- It has been less than 28 days since the last staff member or resident tested positive for the virus
- There is no/small number of ongoing positive tests
- Residents are mainly asymptomatic or recovering
Green is where there is no Covid-19 in the home.
The council has contracts with 24 registered care homes in total. One home was identified in the red category with six in amber and the rest in green according to data from Tuesday February 16.
On January 4, 2020, four homes were identified as red, 10 homes were in amber and all other homes were green.
On December 7, 2020, four homes were identified as red, 13 homes in amber, and the rest were green.
Cllr Jones said it is too soon to say when routine indoor visits to care homes will be allowed again.
“We need to maintain this Tier 4 mentality. The last thing we want is to ease these restrictions and then go back to square one where care homes become infested with Covid, which is why it’s so important that, for the sake of perhaps several weeks or several months, we keep these care homes secure in a bubble to get everyone having their second vaccine and inoculated.”
He said the decision to allow indoor visits again will be “driven by science” and the R rate as well as ensuring “the most vulnerable are protected to the best of their ability.”
He also said the improving situation in care homes is “showing that the Welsh Government’s policy is right in relation to the restrictions”.
“I know it’s causing hardship in relation to small businesses, mental health and wellbeing, loss of education for children but it’s the price we have to pay in order to stop people dying.
“That’s the bottom line here. The majority of people in Neath Port Talbot comply with those rules and regulations and I’m glad to say that.
“Unfortunately there is no alternative, the only way that we can fight this virus is by following the rules; washing your hands, keeping your distance, wearing face masks, not socialising.
“That is the only way we are going to defeat this virus, coupled with the rollout of the vaccine.”
A Swansea Bay Health Board spokewoman said: “There are a small number of patients who are not yet eligible to receive a vaccination as either the care home has been in an active incident status with Covid-19 infections, or the individual patients have had a recent positive test result.
“When this is the case, there is a delay before a vaccination can be given. Our last care home came out of incident status on Friday afternoon, and arrangements are being made to vaccinate eligible patients within this home.”
They also said the health board does not hold data about people who have refused to have the vaccine.
“We routinely review internal data to monitor progress with the programme, but this data is indicative and for operational purposes only and not publishable in the public domain until it has passed quality checks.”
