Three people die at Newbury Willows Edge care home following coronavirus outbreak
Council has launched an investigation
Three residents at a West Berkshire Council-run care home have died following an outbreak of Covid-19.
The council said that 28 residents and 18 staff had tested positive.
It said that five residents had died since the outbreak began two weeks ago, three of which had been confirmed as having coronavirus.
The council said it was working with teams from Public Health England and the NHS Rapid Response Team with testing in place for residents and staff and a medical team based at the home to provide medical care for the residents.
The council's executive member for adult social care, Graham Bridgman (Con, Burghfield & Mortimer) said: "There's a covid outbreak. The officers are dealing with it and have been since notification.
"We will want to investigate to the extent that we can identify a causation, that may actually prove impossible.
"We're trying to nail down exactly how covid got into the care home. It's too early to say. We are dealing with the outbreak, that's what officers are involved in and it's to early to say anything else".
Willows Edge is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to people aged 65 and over, and can support 39 people.
The council said that the first positive test was recorded on Sunday, December 6.
It added that it does not yet know how coronavirus entered the care home, despite it having strict infection control measures in place.
Mr Bridgman said: “My heartfelt sympathy goes to the families of our residents who have very sadly died.
“It’s hugely disappointing that after so much hard work coronavirus has found its way into Willows Edge. Council staff have responded quickly to the outbreak and, together with the NHS and Public Health England, are focussed on removing coronavirus from the care home and treating those people who have it. We’re grateful for the expert advice and practical support they are providing to us.
“Our care home staff continue to do a great job in difficult circumstances and I want to thank them for all they are doing. From the outset we have been keeping the families informed about the situation and the steps we are taking and are grateful for their understanding while we manage the situation.”
The news follows a sharp increase in cases in the district in the last week, with the rate per 100,000 population at 174.2, with 276 cases in the seven days to December 11.
West Berkshire will move into Tier 3 restrictions at 12.01am tomorrow (Saturday) following the increased number of cases.
The district had been in Tier 2 since the end of the second national lockdown two weeks ago.
