Nursing Report: Almost every second corona death lived in a home

According to a recent report, almost every second corona death in Germany previously lived in a care facility. This emerges from the care report of the Barmer health insurance company, which is available to the “Rheinische Post” (Tuesday).

Based on the years 2020 and 2021, the proportion of people who died with Covid-19 from care facilities was 45 percent.

Acceptance of the Corona rules played a role

At the same time, the report shows major regional differences. While in December 2021 – at the peak of the second corona wave – in Bremen (0.57 percent) and Schleswig-Holstein (1.27 percent) only a very small proportion of the residents were ill, this proportion in Thuringia (9 .73 percent) and Saxony (10.3 percent) were significantly higher.

“Countries with a lower acceptance of the corona measures also had higher proportions of Covid in the population,” the authors write, according to the newspaper report.

Loneliness due to contact restrictions

The contact restrictions “not only led to limited medical care, but also had negative effects on the mental health of those who lived in the home, not least through the experience of loneliness,” the “Tagesschau” quoted from the report.

The corona vaccinations have meanwhile led to a decrease in the number of corona deaths in nursing homes. However, home residents are still at high risk. “Preparations for new variants of the virus and further waves are therefore indicated. In order to prevent the negative indirect effects, measures to reduce contact should be avoided as far as possible,” the report says.

Dramatic effects also in nursing staff

The pandemic also left its mark on the nursing staff. According to the Barmer study, almost 70 percent say that they are often physically exhausted, compared to 43 percent before the pandemic.

The number of caregivers who can no longer sleep through the night has risen from 29 percent to 43 percent. In addition, 43 percent have considered giving up their job. Before the pandemic, it was almost 20 percent, according to the report.

Patient advocates speak of a staggering record and call for daily tests in homes

The German Foundation for Patient Protection spoke of a shocking balance sheet. The report shows very clearly where the government measures in the fight against the pandemic have failed, explained CEO Eugen Brysch. “This year alone there have already been around 5,600 corona deaths. But the population hasn’t found out where the virus died for a long time.”

Brysch criticized that the remaining corona protection measures in geriatric care are now falling. “But infections remain life-threatening for people in need of care. But there is still no daily testing regime for nursing staff.”