Outbreak of Covid-19 coronavirus at Skye's Home Farm care home in Portree involves a 'significant number of residents and staff', NHS Highland and Highland Council confirm in a joint statement
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A 'SIGNIFICANT' number of residents have been infected by an outbreak of Covid-19 at a Skye care home, NHS Highland and Highland Council have confirmed.
The outbreak at the Home Farm care home in Portree, which was first reported on Thursday, has sparked the launch of "enhanced monitoring" of those affected, and the "reinforcement" of control measures in the area.
Although no figures have been revealed by the authorities, the number of people confirmed as having Covid-19 in the NHS Highland area has jumped sharply in the last three days.
It rose from 242 confirmed cases on Thursday to 288 on Saturday – an increase of almost a fifth in just 48 hours. And it rose a further nine when Sunday's update was given. It is not known how many of those cases might be at the care home or in the wider Highland community.
Giving an update this afternoon, NHS Highland said its Public Health Team was working with health and social care colleagues, as well as local community nursing teams and Portree General Practitioners, to prevent any further spread of Covid-19 within the care home and to the wider community.
Confirming that the outbreak has affected a "significant number of care home residents and staff", the health authority added that every member of staff who has tested positive had been contacted and asked to self-isolate for seven days and their households contacts have been asked to self-isolate for 14 days in line with national guidance.
They added that HC One, which runs Home Farm, had brought in extra staff to help offset those lost through self-quarantine, and that an NHS Highland support team had also been made available to assist the owners of the home to provide adequate levels of care when their own staff are at home.
Dr Ken Oates, Director of Public Health at NHS Highland, said: “There is no evidence at this stage that Covid infection has spread further into the community. The Assessment Centre in Portree and local GPs are not reporting an increase of cases. The measures that have been put in place will support us in ensuring, as best as we can, that the outbreak is as contained as possible.
“It is really important at this time that the local community continue to adhere to the government’s social distancing guidance and do not put vulnerable residents in the area, or themselves, at risk. The key messages are to stay at home and only leave the house for essential purposes. If you, or someone you live with, develops symptoms then adhere to the national advice and stay at home for seven days.
"You can contact 111 if you are concerned about your condition or your symptoms worsen. You will be assessed and if required you will be referred to be seen locally and tested at the Portree Covid Assessment Centre. In addition to that facility, a mobile testing unit is arriving in Broadford on Monday to further enhance local testing capacity. This can be redeployed to other parts of the island as demand necessitates.
“We will continue to support Home Farm until this outbreak is over and all those affected are no longer infectious.”
The chief executive of Highland Council, Donna Manson, added: “We are working closely with NHS Highland and other partners and local elected Members in responding to this outbreak and seeking to delay the spread within the wider community of Skye.
“This is bound to be a very worrying time for residents, staff and their families and for the local community. The Council will continue to work closely with NHS Highland and other agencies to do everything possible to mitigate the risks to all concerned. Environmental Health will be providing additional support and advice locally and extra measures have been taken to protect those working from the local Humanitarian Assistance hub in Portree. If you need help with getting food or accessing assistance, you can phone our dedicated helpline 0300 303 1362.
“Meanwhile, everyone can do their part by staying at home and following the public health guidance to delay the spread of coronavirus and protect essential services and NHS resources.”
Essential workers can now book a test online. Tests are available for you and people in your household if anyone in the home has symptoms. Don't delay - tests are most effective within three days of symptoms. Book a test at https://bit.ly/BookTesting.
Commenting on the announcement, Kate Forbes, the MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch said: "Today, NHS Highland confirmed a significant increase in the number of Covid-positive cases amongst residents and employees of Home Farm care home on Skye. This will be very worrying for them, their family and the wider community on Skye.
"The NHS, with Highland Council, have moved quickly to contact all staff and households to ensure they self-isolate. Staff and residents have been tested. There is already testing facilities in Portree, and that will be complemented by a mobile testing unit in Broadford."
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