Risk Assessment and outbreak management

Risk assessment and decision making

Any decisions around admitting visitors remain the responsibility of providers and ultimately the Registered Manager. It is recommended that risk assessments are carried out, considering the most up to date government guidance and local information. Service-wide risk assessments should also be accompanied by appropriate individual risk assessments. Care homes may wish to develop a short individual visiting plan for each resident.

Visitors should bear in mind that because of the necessity to risk assess individual residents and care home premises, and the different outcomes from those assessments, decisions around visitor admission will vary at different times within a care home and between different care homes.

Outbreaks within settings

In the event of any suspected or actual outbreak of COVID-19, or a suspected or known case of COVID-19 within a care setting, visiting restrictions may need to be immediately implemented. It is recommended that contingency arrangements are in place, should it be necessary to introduce further restrictions.