Scottish care workers lose out as UK PPE manufacturers focus on England, leading care industry figure claims
By
Scottish care workers have been hit by UK companies making coronavirus protective gear failing to send kit north of the border, it has been claimed.
Donald Macaskill, CEO of Scottish Care, said there had been a “massive dry-up” of personal protection equipment (PPE) coming to Scotland because companies were prioritising England.
Dr Macaskill said the problem had “a really serious impact” on Scottish care homes and had been reported to him as the CEO of the body representing the independence social care sector.
He highlighted the issue amid continuing fears about the spread of the virus in care homes and PPE shortages for health and care workers.
Within two or three days we have had a massive dry-up of procurement into Scotland and that’s had an impact – a really serious impact on our care homes and home care.”
Donald Macaskill of Scottish Care
Speaking on Radio Scotland, Dr Macaskill acknowledged that work being carried out by the Scottish Government was helping bridge the PPE gap but said he still had concerns that it was not being distributed quickly enough.
Dr Macaskill said: “We are facing an additional problem and that is that the care home sector and the home care sector have traditionally ordered PPE from various sources. The four largest companies in the UK last week said they were not sending to Scotland and their priority was going to be England NHS and the English social care providers.
“So within two or three days we have had a massive dry-up of procurement into Scotland and that’s had an impact – a really serious impact on our care homes and home care.”
He went on to say that Scottish makers of the kit were “absolutely maxed out” and there were some areas of the country that did not have access to PPE sources.
“I had one care provider over the weekend saying that they had been told that if they ordered now they might get something by July, which is completely useless,” Dr Macaskill said.
Dr Macaskill did say that the triage system set up by the Scottish Government had improved matters.
Under the system, care homes can get in touch with a call centre to request PPE.
“The women and men who are working in that call centre are doing an amazing job and things have improved over the weekend,” he said. “I am confident and I have been told that the stuff is there. It just needs to be put out.”
Dr Macaskill raised his concerns as it emerged that five elderly residents at Almond Court care home in Glasgow had died from suspected coronavirus.
The deaths mean Almond Court became the fourth Scottish care home to report deaths from the outbreak. But care home operators have estimated hundreds more are likely to have died from the outbreak in care homes.
Official statistics on care home deaths are due to be published for the first time on Wednesday. Nine elderly residents reportedly died at Tranent Care Home in East Lothian; eight others died after showing symptoms at Castle View care home in Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire; and 13 residents died at Burlington Court care home in Glasgow.
Health and care workers sign PPE petition
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman; Cllr Jonathan McColl; Catherine Sweeney, the Dumbarton care workers who died; First Minister Nicola Sturgeon; Crosslet House, the main care home in Dumbarton; Chief Medical Officer Gregor Smith, and Labour spokesperson, Monica Lennon.
Meanwhile, hundreds of doctors, nurses and care workers have signed a petition calling on the Scottish Government to provide the correct PPE.
The petition was launched days after the publication of an open letter signed by more than 100 medical professionals raising frontline concerns about PPE provision.
Labour health spokeswoman Monica Lennon said: “Frontline health care workers are under unprecedented pressure and their basic right to protective equipment should be guaranteed.”
At her daily coronavirus briefing in Edinburgh, Nicola Sturgeon was asked about PPE concerns.
Ms Sturgeon was asked how many health and social care workers were in Scotland and how many of them had access for full PPE that would last them for the week.
The first minister was unable to give the figures off the top of her head. Later the Scottish Government came back saying there were 165,909 NHS staff and headcount staff employed by the NHS in Scotland and 204,610 people in social services. There was no detail of how many had PPE.
The first minister said: “We want to make sure that everyone who needs PPE has it when they need it. That is an ongoing challenge and responsibility.”
She said the health secretary, the interim chief medical officer Dr Gregor Smith and herself were focused on getting PPE to frontline staff and the situation was being monitored on a daily basis.
“There are few things that the health secretary and I take more seriously than making sure those working so hard for us have the protection they need,” Ms Sturgeon said.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman added that existing suppliers were being asked to increase productivity.
New suppliers would be brought into the market, provided their PPE products were of good enough quality, Ms Freeman added.
- SNP council leader Jonathan McColl refuses to discuss anything to do with the coronavirus pandemic with The Democrat, as does West Dunbartonshire Council. Labour, Conservatives and an Independent councillor have never complained about this anti democratic disgrace. Only the Community Party have complained about this denial of democracy. One wonders what the SNP have left to hide since they have so far been exposed on so many fronts for being economic with the truth.
When you instruct a denial of essential medical equipment to another country it could literally be described as an act of genocide. But that exactly is what UK authorities have done in cancelling essential medical supplies to Scotland.
Back in the day in the late 1760s when the British were conquering North America the commander in chief of British Forces Sir Jeffrey Amherst conceived a plan whereby small pox could be utilised to quell native Indians.
An absolutely evil policy kept from the minds of those who believe in the noble British Empire but something that is well remembered by remaining native Indians. Indeed visitors to Canada can visit a war memorial that commemorates the terrible tale and how British settlers befriended native Indians with small pox laden blankets and linen.
But that is North America so let us look a little closer to home, to Ireland a century later where between 1845 and 1849 the potato crop failed through blight. With millions dying of hunger the British actually shipped food out of the country whilst the people starved in a deliberate policy to cull the population.
Ot maybe we should look a little nearer again to Gruinard Isle on the North West of Scotland where is the 1940 the RAF experimented with bombing sheep with Anthrax spores. Planning to use such technology on German cities subsequent research has confirmed that had Churchill got his way and environmental disaster worse than atomic weapons would have ensued. A British made holocaust.
So let us think carefully about the modes and moral of the itzy-bitzy choking off of medical supplies to Scotland. At its best England is looking after its own or at its worst, England wants more people to die in Scotland so that Scotland’s death toll equals or exceeds England’s.
Not difficult to see how a greatly increased death rate in Scotland could be played to political advantage. So dear reader, ask yourself this, why would Westminster instruct English companies not to supply to Scotland.
Why?
Why? According to a friend, why is the best question. Do you disagree? Why?
Asking why and understanding why are two different, but very important things.
First you have to ask and then you understand why. Do that with just about anything and you can then understand better the world around you and then maybe do something about it.
But some people never ask why, never understand why, and for them ignorance and their condition or situation is maybe bliss.
We live in a society where many many people are poor whilst a small minority a very rich. Why you may ask, and then if you understand, then you may be able to do something about it.
The Victorians were not exactly noted for their generosity. They did after all presided over the physical domination of a colonial empire stretching half way around the world. But in public hygiene they excelled constructing great public works to deliver sanitation and clean water. The loch Katrine scheme being one local example. But was it for the altruism of delivering better living conditions for the masses, or was it to deliver better health to the masses due to their plagues becoming the rich people’s plague too. Or was it both.
And therein begs a question why, which when applied to today asks the question why did our government tell us they were well prepared for the virus when they were not, why did they against world opinion operate a policy of letting the virus spread. As many many die and as our economy tanks, it would be helpful to ask why. In fact it would be more than helpful, essential in fact so that we can learn why.
But as I say, some never ask why, and some never tell, and that as history shows, is the road to absolute ruin.
And maybe is why, even on a relatively micro scale, we get no answers at all from our local authority. But at least some journals, the Dumbarton Democrat included, are asking why.