The UK government misjudged the risk of coronavirus to care homes and its subsequent actions made the crisis worse, according to the founder of provider HC-One.
Speaking to the Times, Chai Patel (pictured) said the government had “clearly miscalculated” the risks from Covid-19.
The lack of PPE and testing for residents and care home staff, he added, meant the government was “under-prepared for the resource requirements needed to respond to the virus”.
Patel told the Times that the impact of Covid-19 on UK care homes, which have seen more than 15,000 deaths, has in turn led to an impending financial crisis in the sector.
Patel previously set out a five-point plan in the Times for government reform of the social care sector.
Writing in the Times last month, Patel warned against “normal service” being resumed once the Covid-19 crisis has been resolved and called for structural changes to drive up care quality.
Patel said the government should focus on creating a "detailed and actionable" social care workforce plan and draw up a road map to achieve “meaningful change within the sector, truly recognising the interlinked and interdependent nature of health and care”.
The former owner of Care Management Group, Priory Group and Westminster Care urged the government to follow through on promises to provide a “long-term funding settlement that means social carers receive the pay and working conditions they deserve”.
In addition, Patel called for a cross-sector career pathway that joins health and care career opportunities together, and a definition of minimum required skills and qualifications that would be accredited by a new independent representative body.
