Experts Say Dangers Created by the Discharge of COVID-19 Patients into Nursing Homes
USA- Npr.org writes that as the coronavirus spreads through the nation, hospital beds are in short supply. Since the beginning of the outbreak, nursing homes have been some of the hardest-hit locations. The individuals running such facilities are wary of the prospects of taking in additional patients infected with the highly contagious virus.*
Despite their reservations, some of these facilities are being ordered to take in patients who have been discharged from the crowded hospitals but who are still recovering from the coronavirus. The directives are being criticized for putting vulnerable patients at risk. The order has failed to differentiate between homes that have outbreaks of the virus and those that have not yet had any cases. Experts question the logic of introducing infected patients into nursing homes that have successfully been quarantining.
Critics of the directive also point to the ineffectiveness of the plan. For instance, they state that for each patient sent to recover in a nursing home, about 20 other people may be infected and end up taking up hospital beds at a later date.
Both New York and New Jersey have given orders to nursing homes in the state that require those facilities to take in patients, even if they have confirmed cases of the virus. However, after the medical community reacted to the directive, the states have loosened the requirements. The homes are now expected to take in these patients as long as they can continue to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID-19 guidelines.
In California, experts are condemning the directive to allow more patients while simultaneously ceasing minimum staffing requirements. The plan has been referred to as a "recipe for disaster."
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Source:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/04/20/832034662/discharging-covid-19-patients-to-nursing-homes-called-a-recipe-for-disaster