Former Health Minister Matt Henkok has defended the controversial policy of evacuating hospital patients into the early stages of Coveid-19, and said “the least decision” at that time, despite the devastating number of death.
The policy, which was implemented in early 2020, was quickly transferred from hospitals to care centers in an attempt to release the beds and prevent NHS from drowning with the spread of the virus.
The strategy has been under strong supervision, especially as it is heard that there were more than 43,000 killed viruses in the UK care homes between March 2020 and July 2022.
A government employee earlier this week described the toll as “generational slaughter in care homes”.
Mr Henkuk, attending the inquiry on Wednesday, acknowledged that the policy of evacuation is “an extraordinary issue”. However, he said, “No one has yet provided me with a replacement that was at the time that saved more lives.”
The current focus of the inquiry in the care sector is while the disadvantaged, whose loved ones died in care houses, continue to be truthful and accountable from those who provide evidence.
However, there is no policy that requires patients before hospitalization or to separate asymptomatic patients, until mid -April.
Despite the increasing awareness of the dangers of people without Coveid-19 symptoms, it was able to spread the virus.
Mr Henkuk, who resigned from the government in 2021 after accepting guidance from social minds with a relationship with a colleague, has raised evidence several times.
He said he returned to a full -fledged meeting to meet questions about the care department, he said that the hospital evacuation policy was a government decision, but was “now led by Sir Simon Stevens, the chief executive of the time.
“It was officially a government decision. The prime minister was signed. It was actually led by Simon Stevens, CEO of NHS, but was widely discussed.”
The investigation heard that Mr. Henkuk said in a statement that the British NHS had “insisted” on the policy, and while he did not make his own decision, he took charge of it as the health secretary of the time.
He said it is a “wonderful issue”, but added, “No one has yet provided me with a replacement that was at the time that saved more lives.”
He said there is no good option, adding, “It has decided at least that can be taken at the time.”
He said he was more pressing, saying he had agreed with it at the time and defended the decision.
In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that government policies to discharge hospital patients to care homes at the beginning of the epidemic at the beginning of the epidemic.
While the judges said that patients need to be dismissed “to maintain NHS capacity”, they found that the government was “irrational” that the government did not recommend that patients should be separated from existing residents 14 days after admission.
Responding to a question about March 17, 2020, when NHS employers were ordered to begin evacuation, Mr Henkuk said officials were “very hard” to convert more PPE to care homes. He said the lack of advice to care homes to separate residents without symptoms is “wrong”, but at that time it was in line with clinical guidance.
In 2023, attending a separate module of inquiry, Mr. Henkuk admitted that his so -called bodyguard said that he was in care houses early on, saying that he understood the power of people’s feelings about the issue.
It is completely ridiculous and offensive that he said they tried to throw a protective ring around the care houses, when his part policies caused Cavid to spread like fire among the most vulnerable loved ones in the community.
At a Downing Street press conference on May 15, 2020, Mr. Henkuk said: “From the beginning, we have tried to throw a protective ring around our care houses.”
“I am stressing in that rhetoric, what I said is” we had tried ” – protecting what I wanted,” Mr Henkok said.
“Protection was not as clear as we liked at the time, but other options were even worse,” he said.
We were trying to protect as much as possible.
“All I can do is bring you back to the real decisions and resources we had at that moment,” he said.
“We were trying to do whatever we could probably, we were in the dark,” he continued.
The Jacqueline Kerry Inquiry Advisor highlighted the anonymous evidence given to the investigation, saying, “One person specifically said that he (Mr. Henkuk) was clearly lying about the situation with care houses. He can no longer help the community.”
Mr Henkuk said the research is not useful for “exchanging bricks”, “but continued,” I did everything we have done as a section, and we all have as much as we can save to save lives – this is what I try to throw a protective ring.
“Of course, it wasn’t complete. It was impossible – it was an unprecedented epidemic, and it was extremely difficult.
“What I care about is the material we have done, the protections we have put in, and most importantly, what we can do in the future to ensure that the existing options are better than the last time.”
Deprived families had previously called the term “protective ring” and “joke”.
Nicolas Brook, a lawyer on behalf of more than 7,000 families of COVID-19 deprived families for British justice (CBFFJ), said Mr Henkuk’s claim that the evacuation policy was the least available “was” insulting anyone who died “.
“He knew at the time that many care houses were not capable of separating people who are discharged from the hospital and that Kavid is in the air,” he said.
“It is completely ridiculous and offensive that he says they tried to throw a protective ring around the care houses, when his policies caused Cavid to spread like fire among the most vulnerable loved ones in the community, he said.
“Mr Henkuk claims that the decision to evacuate people’s homes will be led by Simon Stevens, the chief executive of NHS, but the investigation will not call him. We want the decision to be reviewed immediately.”
The CBFFJ Group had earlier expressed Baroneses, the Baroneses chief, to express his concern in some of the “key decision makers” who are not expected to be called in the module, including the former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“There is a need for reform and need to be corrected,” said Mr. Henkuk, describing the status of the Adult Social Care Department on the outbreak of the epidemic.
He said that potential epidemic programs, prepared by local authorities for adult social care, were “well -used” at the time and described the “accountability of the account” between local councils and government agencies.
He claimed that if another epidemic is treated, the situation for care houses has not been “worse”, and suggested suggestions, including having isolation facilities in care homes and ensuring the accumulation of personal protective equipment (PPE).
The sixth module of this research focuses on the impact of this epidemic on the social care sector of public and private adults across the UK.
Public meetings for the Module of the Care Division are expected to be held by the end of July.
