As winter approaches, it is important that care home managers are reminded and updated on important health considerations for their residents. Care home residents and staff in long-stay residential care homes are particularly susceptible to infections which increase over the winter months, such as seasonal influenza (flu) and stomach infections (such as norovirus). These can be very infectious and cause outbreaks in residential settings due to the close contact between residents and staff. Transmission can sometimes be facilitated by inadequate infection control
practices by carers.
Elderly people or those with chronic illnesses are also at risk of developing complications from certain vaccine-preventable diseases such as pneumococcal and shingles infections. It is important that they are immunised to prevent such complications or reduce the likelihood of outbreaks in a care home.
This briefing provides:
1. Key messages for care home managers on winter preparedness.
2. Two checklists on flu and norovirus readiness and when and how to report
outbreaks.
3. Leaflets and further information on flu, norovirus and shingles.