Vulnerable British without social care during Covid-19 lockdown

Local authorities “are using the coronavirus as an excuse” to deny vital care to young, disabled British people, charity bosses have warned. A deaf and blind 21-year-old man who received support day and night was not considered vulnerable enough to continue living in his nursing home.

Instead, the local government in Wales offered a prescription for sedative medication and a bed in a mental hospital – despite the man not having any mental health issues.

The Mail on Sunday has learned that families are in similarly difficult situations as a result of Covid-related social care management. A 26-year-old disabled woman with a rare genetic disorder now has to rely on her mother, 62, who has lung disease, to help her move, bathe and feed – after specialist care was stopped due to staff illness.

And a severely disabled child, Liora, has left a full-time job at a specialized school and two nights with a caregiver, nothing at all. Her mother, single Beverley Cohen, 55, from Brighton, says, “I have to keep an eye on her in case she has an epileptic seizure. If she has a seizure on our daily walk, I have to call an ambulance because she is too heavy to lift. I used to rely on the kindness of strangers to help her move, but now nobody comes close to a convulsive child with saliva coming out of her mouth. ‘

That is concern about the reduction in care services that the Partnership for Disabled Children – a coalition of 70 charities in the UK – has launched a nationwide survey to investigate how many vulnerable children are suffering.

The healthcare sector is already at a breaking point. A recent report by think tank The Health Foundation suggested that the social health workforce shortage is around 122,000, with a quarter of the workforce having a zero-hour contract.

In the UK, there are an estimated 800,000 disabled children, more than 90 percent of whom are cared for at home, and 850,000 adults who require long-term care.

A survey by the National Children’s Bureau also found that the past decade has seen a tremendous increase in children with complex needs, such as severe autism.

According to Richard Kramer, director of the leading charity Sense, thousands of families are “suddenly going adrift” as the health care sector suffers from staff shortages due to illness and self-quarantine. He warns: “Some health authorities are using coronavirus as an excuse to get strict about what support is essential and what is not. Some councils have suspended funding for vital daytime services for the community, against government guidelines.

As part of the Coronavirus Act, which entered into force on March 25, local authorities have been empowered to discontinue services during the pandemic – called healthcare – to prioritize the time of health workers for patients with ” the most urgent needs’.

This means that authorities are no longer legally obliged to meet the support needs of disabled people, as long as their “fundamental human rights” are maintained. Eight UK authorities are known to have submitted a health care plan last month. Charities say this means that thousands of vulnerable adults are likely to see their healthcare facilities disappear.

Edel Harris, CEO of Mencap, a charity for learning disabilities, warned that legislation will worsen an already existing crisis. She says: “We are already seeing more calls to our help lines, with people who are struggling to cope because their support has been removed because staff have become ill or are being transferred elsewhere in the NHS.

Some are completely isolated and cannot be fed or medicated. Others now have to rely on families. ‘

A fifth of the disabled people with the neurological condition MS have seen cuts since the outbreak, according to a recent survey by the MS Society’s charity. And while children are exempt from easement, charities warn that it won’t protect them from other cuts.

Beverley Cohen fought for over a decade to get support for her 13-year-old daughter, Liora. “She has uncontrolled epilepsy, chronic kidney disease and severe autism,” said Beverley, a former communications manager. Despite this, authorities were convinced she needed care 24 hours a day

“It was always assumed that I would do it, despite the fact that I am a single parent who has to make a living.”

Although Beverley Liora managed to secure a place in a school for disabled children, family life has always been a struggle. “She’s up at about 6 a.m. every morning and usually hits her head against the wall so far that it draws blood,” Beverley says. “And that’s after waking up at least twice most nights, wetting the bed, or having a nightmare.

“As soon as she wakes up, I have to change her diaper, administer 11 different medications, feed her with a spoon and try to avoid hurting herself. It is challenging now that she is a strong, sturdy teenager and I have osteoporosis. And then there is always the risk of her having an attack, which happens about four or five times a week. ‘

Last year, after a breakdown in Beverley’s mental health due to stress, she received additional support and stayed two nights a week with a specialist caregiver. But on March 23, Beverley was informed by the agency that it was no longer safe for Liora to stay there. “She is vulnerable and it is risky because the caregivers have few personal protective equipment and enter multiple homes,” says Beverley. “But there is no alternative.”

Around the same time, Liora was also considered too risky to go to school. The government has promised that schools will remain open to disabled children throughout the closure. But Beverley, who quit working last month to take care of Liora full-time, says, “Realistically, it is not safe for disabled children like Liora to go to school with 100 other children when an infectious disease is circulating.

“Parents are desperate for a viable, safe alternative.”

Edel Harris of Mencap agrees: “We are asking for some sort of daytime facility to defer families and a major recruitment campaign for additional social care personnel. We know that during the pandemic, the government provided additional money to care for people with complex learning disabilities, but less than half of health care providers received it from the local government. ‘

For Beverley, the responsibility of keeping her child safe is sometimes overwhelming. “Keeping my eye off her for a moment can be fatal,” she says. “She’s been in intensive care six times because of seizures, and I’m terrified it will happen again.

“If she ends up in the hospital now and the virus catches up, I’m afraid to figure out what the outcome might be.”