Dementia Support Line
ONS: Proportion of deaths in care homes is the highest ever during the pandemic - Alzheimer's Society comments
The Office for National Statistics has published data showing that, for the week of the 23rd-29th January, there were 1,971 deaths due to COVID-19 in care homes, bringing the total to 26,680.
This means that 48.96% of deaths in care homes in England and Wales were due to Covid. 23.29% of deaths from Covid in England occurred in care homes. These both represent increases from the previous week, and the highest since the pandemic began.
Fiona Carragher, Director of Research and Influencing at Alzheimer’s Society said:
'These latest figures show the highest proportion of deaths in care homes from Covid-19 since the pandemic began. Over 26,000 people have now died in care homes, many who will have had dementia – we can start getting numb to these kinds of numbers, but we have to remember each one was a person with a loving family left behind.
This tragedy needs to stop now: we need to urgently vaccinate care home staff, and offer second vaccines to people living in care homes.
'The Government must set out a clear timetable and process for safe and meaningful visits, so that people with dementia get vital contact with their loved ones. And care homes need to know what they can do to keep visits safe, alongside vaccination, testing and protective equipment.'
