Paul Howell MP is pleased to welcome plans to bolster visiting access in health and care settings.
Visits to see loved ones in care homes, hospitals and hospices will be better protected under plans announced by the Government.
Changes will also be made to the law so that visits are a fundamental standard of care, putting them on par with having access to food and drink and properly qualified staff.
The Care Quality Commission will have a clear mandate to check that providers are meeting these obligations, so that those in care maintain vital connections with family and friends.
Visiting was restricted at the height of the pandemic to prevent the spread of Covid and keep people safe, but as restrictions eased the guidance for visiting in hospital and care settings changed accordingly.
The majority of settings adhered to the guidance, but there have been reports of people being denied access to family members and loved ones – so the Government has acted to make sure expectations around visits are clear to health and care providers.
Paul Howell MP said:
"Being able to visit our loved ones when they're in hospitals and hospices makes a huge difference not just to the wellbeing of people in care homes and hospices, but also to improving their mental health.
I know how incredibly painful it can be if you’re stopped from seeing your loved ones, especially when you don’t know how much time they have left.
It’s a situation we don’t want anyone to have to go through ever again. That’s why we’re changing the law to recognise just how much visiting those we care about matters.”
The plans announced this week have been set out in the Department of Health and Social Care’s response to ‘Visiting in care homes, hospitals, and hospices’ consultation.
This consultation proposed introducing visiting as a new fundamental standard in the CQC regulations, and the response confirms that secondary legislation will take that forward. This will provide the Care Quality Commission with a clear direction to identify a visiting breach by a healthcare setting and apply more pressure to providers who may not be following government visiting guidance.
These changes will not only cover inpatients but also account for the need to enable patients attending hospice and hospital outpatient appointments, emergency department and diagnostic services to be accompanied by someone if they need or wish to be.
The Government will take steps to lay regulations as soon as possible.