What is the Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund?

Introduced in May 2020, initially worth £600 million, the fund was bought into action to help tackle the spread of the Coronavirus in care homes.

Now, due to its success, it has been extended to March 2021 with an additional £546 million, giving care providers further funding to help control the spread of the virus.

This funding is “specifically for supporting providers with the additional costs they will face in complying with the government guidance on infection prevention” and in particular for measures that restrict staff movement. The funding can also be used to buy necessary equipment which supports infection control measures and for ‘capital based alterations’ to allow safe visiting.

How do you receive funding?

This kind of funding you don’t need to apply for. Local authorities are given the money to automatically distribute to care providers based on the number of beds they have.

What about PPE?

This funding was not put in place to cover the costs of PPE. The Government has set up a PPE portal where a range of health and care providers can request free PPE to help meet extra demands due to the pandemic. 

How can Fireco help care homes with germ control?

A recent study carried out in Australia found that the virus that causes COVID-19 can last on some surfaces for up to 28 days, making a clean and hygienic environment key to controlling the spread. 

In order to improve germ control, the government has highlighted the importance of:

• Improving ventilation
• Keeping pinch points, such as doorways and corridors clear
• Social distancing
• Limiting touchpoints and sanitising them frequently

Fireco manufactures a range of products that can help with germ control throughout care homes whilst also keeping you compliant in other areas, such as fire safety. We have different versions of each product, offering different levels of compliance.

Dorgard, Dorgard SmartSound & Dorgard Pro

Dorgard is a fire door retainer. It allows you to hold doors open, closing them upon the sound of the alarm.

Freedor SmartSound & Freedor Pro

Freedor is a free-swing door closer which takes the weight out of heavy fire doors and allows you to place them open at any angle, closing upon activation of the fire alarm.

Holding fire doors open can help with ventilation, reduce the need to touch door handles and aid in social distancing by keeping pathways clear.

Germgard

Germgard is a smart sanitiser that uses digital signage to promote the use of hand sanitiser. It is available as a portable station or a system that can be installed on the wall and integrated with other systems like access control. Integrating Germgard can allow you to make the use of hand sanitiser a requirement to gain entry, limiting the chances of cross-contamination.

For more information about the Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund, click here.

To find out how Fireco’s products can help your care home with germ control, call us on 01273 320650.