Care home design


Rethinking care home design to control Covid-19


Dave Callin, director of care home experts Cowan Architects, discusses the impact of Covid-19 on design and how future-proofing new homes and retrofitting existing ones could prevent a repeat of the tragedies of recent months


Covid-19 has undoubtedly had a massive impact on the care home industry and given everyone involved a serious wake- up call. Not only has it led to the premature deaths of thousands of elderly, vulnerable people but it has resulted in confusion and mental trauma in others who were left isolated and alone. The industry has witnessed a sharp


and sustained loss of confidence in care homes, with admissions at a record low having fallen dramatically (The Daily Telegraph in May reported they had halved). In a more recent survey by Vida Healthcare, three-quarters of us now believe it is unsafe to put a loved one in a care home in the current climate. In the spring, Knight Frank estimated


that 6,500 care home operations would have to close over the next five years and to date, many have already succumbed.


There were a number of factors to


blame, not least the rush by hospitals to empty their beds of untested, vulnerable patients, straight to the confines of unprepared care home environments that were left wanting.


Putting the human condition front and centre There has been an understandable backlash from the unplanned decanting of these untested patients from hospitals to care homes and the strict isolation measures that they felt forced to introduce for residents at the height of the crisis. The lack of information sometimes


made this control indiscriminate and led to the restriction or denial of last goodbyes, final visits from family, or movement within care homes. There have been some serious physical and


psychological consequences for those affected, many who also failed to receive any emotional support. It is essential we keep the right


balance between healthy coexistence, quarantine and the need to isolate compassionately in care homes in the future. Measures of control should not be at the expense of the wellbeing of these vulnerable members of our society, or their families, but should put this at the heart of everything we do. Equally, measures must be undertaken


that respect the cost implication and economic viability of current care home businesses, particularly in managing staff- resident ratios affordably.


Control measures This is a critical time to assess how design features can help improve and control Covid-19 and other future viruses – either in the planning of new build, improving use of the space more recently constructed properties or in refurbishing and retrofitting the older homes. Covid-19, and any similar virus, is best


controlled by eradicating the routes for contamination. Routine practices and systems seen in clinical environments now need to be used in a commonplace fashion elsewhere. The first involves levels of human interaction and the second covers the physical routes, i.e. surfaces contact and airflow. Essentially, there needs to be isolation


It is essential we keep the right balance between healthy coexistence, quarantine and the need to isolate compassionately in care homes in the future


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protocols in place that minimise or eradicate the interaction between different ‘bodies’ of humans in the care home – the residents themselves, the staff and professionals that provide their care, and visitors be they trades, suppliers or guests. To minimise infection, we need to:


l Restrict unnecessary contact between residents in the home and any type of visitor to the home and resident-facing services.


www.thecarehomeenvironment.com• December 2020


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