Care home deaths data released following pressure to publish

Almost 4000 people died with Covid-19 in care homes across Scotland, according to data released on Wednesday that was previously being withheld.

Statistics released by the Care Inspectorate show that 3774 death notifications related to Covid-19 deaths in care homes were received between March 16, 2020, and March 31, 2021.

A collaborative project by STV News, The Herald, The Scotsman and DC Thomson had asked for the information as part of an effort to report the full scale of the pandemic on the care sector.  

Details of the number of deaths in individual care homes across Scotland from coronavirus were being withheld by the Care Inspectorate and the National Records of Scotland (NRS) in a move that the information watchdog said lacked “transparency”.  

Data released from the Care Inspectorate showed the watchdog recorded more coronavirus-related deaths in care homes than the National Records of Scotland (NRS) – 3774 between March 16 2020 and March 31, 2021 – although it said its data could not be of the same quality.

The NRS said a total of 3317 people in total have died in care homes in Scotland, where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate. The Care Inspectorate number is higher because it includes care home residents who died in other settings, such as hospitals.

The NRS released data on Wednesday showing the number of deaths in individual care homes across Scotland from coronavirus.

NRS, which has the responsibility to officially record all deaths in Scotland, had been asked to release the number of confirmed and suspected Covid-19 related deaths in each of Scotland’s care homes but had refused for almost eight months.

NRS had supplied submissions from the Care Inspectorate, Scottish Care and the Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland.

The joint request, submitted under freedom of information legislation, was rejected on a number of grounds by NRS – a decision that was overturned in a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner (SIC).  

A spokesperson for the Care Inspectorate said: “We are acutely aware of the potential distress and possible harm that publication of some information may cause. 

“Therefore, it is very important that data relating to deaths is considered in context to have a fuller understanding of the impact of the virus in care settings. Following a decision by the Information Commissioner and after internal review, the data has now been published. 

“We know from our inspections and our experience of the pandemic that the relationship between the quality of care experienced by people in care homes, and the impact of Covid-19 is complex. 

“We know that any care service can be affected by Covid-19 and that residents of care homes were tragically particularly vulnerable to the virus. We also know that the quality of care experienced by residents did not necessarily provide an indicator of the risks in relation to the virus.”

The figures from the Care Inspectorate show care homes accommodating older people were most affected.

A total of 3761 deaths (99.7%) of care home deaths recorded were in such care homes, while 510 providers in this category reported at least one Covid-related death during the pandemic.

The Care Inspectorate spokesperson added: “Our findings relating to care homes indicate there may be relationships between a high number of deaths related to Covid-19 and size of service and geographical location, including urban or rural settings. 

“We continue to undertake analysis to help us better understand what we can learn from these findings to support quality improvement within the care sector. 

“The Care Inspectorate has worked closely with care providers, the Scottish Government and partners to support care services to respond to and recover from the pandemic and continues to do so.” 

In its ruling, the Information Commissioner said submissions by NRS in support of withholding the data were “speculative in nature”.

The government body had argued that the information could be “highly misleading when presented out of context”. However, the watchdog didn’t accept that disclosure would lead to “any confusion or misinterpretation”.  

Concerns raised included that the release of the data could “damage public confidence in the care home sector” and lead to financial difficulties for some providers. The arguments weren’t accepted by the Information Commissioner who ruled that NRS had “failed to comply” with the legislation.

Ordering the release of the data by June 28, the Information Commissioner said there was a “strong public interest in disclosure to ensure older people and their relatives have the necessary information to make an informed decision when choosing a care home or care home provider”.

A National Records of Scotland spokesperson: said: “NRS continues to publish a range of information on Covid-related mortality, including where the location of death is a care home.

“Our statistical analysis provides valuable information on characteristics of the deceased as well as presentation at health board and local authority level.

“Following review by the Scottish Information Commissioner of a FoI request to release data on individual care homes, NRS will make this data available in line with the original FoI request and the timeframe set out by the SIC.”

The ruling by the SIC came as legal concerns were also raised last week by a new report looking into patients being moved from hospitals to care homes in Scotland at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Mental Welfare Commission’s new report into decision-making for people in hospital who lack capacity has studied a sample of all discharges from hospitals to care homes from March to May 2020.

Public Health Scotland said last month it “cannot rule out” a link between hospital discharges and Covid-19 outbreaks in care homes, with nearly a third of those experiencing an outbreak.

The new report, Authority to Discharge, studied the detail of 457 moves – around 10% of the number reported at the time by Public Health Scotland – and found 20 of those to have been unlawful.

Speaking at a Scottish Government coronavirus briefing last Friday, Nicola Sturgeon said: “The total number of people who sadly lost their lives to Covid-19 who were residents in care homes has been reported, so there is no masking of the scale of that.

“This was an issue about the publication of data that allowed that overall number to be broken down to individual care homes – that wouldn’t have changed the overall number.

“There is an absolute determination on the part of me, everybody in the government and I think all of us to learn on every possible lesson from what we’ve been through in the past 14 months, so that we can have proper scrutiny and accountability.

“But, more fundamentally, so that we can learn the right lessons – that’s why I want to see a public inquiry get up and running as quickly as possible, but it’s also why we will continue to learn the lessons as we go from the data.”

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said that those responsible must be held accountable.

He said: “This is utterly shameful. The SNP Government breached legislation and kept the scale of care home deaths secret for eight months.

“This is another devastating blow for the care home residents and families who have been denied justice. Those responsible must be held accountable and lessons must be learned.

“We need a Scottish public inquiry without delay.”

Care home deaths related to Covid-19 by local authority: (Source: Care Inspectorate)

Aberdeen City – 171
Aberdeenshire – 129
Angus – 69
Argyll & Bute – 21
City of Edinburgh – 385
Clackmannanshire – 45
Dumfries & Galloway – 54
Dundee City – 104
East Ayrshire – 94
East Dunbartonshire – 120
East Lothian – 81
East Renfrewshire -92
Falkirk – 100
Fife – 182
Glasgow City – 537
Highland – 65
Inverclyde – 60
Midlothian – 101
Moray – 11
Na h-Eileanan Siar – 2
North Ayrshire – 94
North Lanarkshire – 213
Orkney – 0
Perth & Kinross – 103
Renfrewshire – 214
Scottish Borders – 36
Shetland Islands – 5
South Ayrshire – 118
South Lanarkshire – 291
Stirling – 54
West Dunbartonshire – 85
West Lothian – 138

Most coronavirus-related deaths by care home: (Source: National Records of Scotland)

Erskine Home, Renfrewshire (Erskine Hospital) – 34
Guthrie House, Edinburgh (Four Seasons) – 27
Darnley Court, Glasgow (HC-One) – 26
Whitehills Care, South Lanarkshire (Thistle Healthcare) – 25
Hillview, West Dunbartonshire (Advinia) – 25
Newcarron Court, Falkirk (Advinia) – 24
Elderslie, Renfrewshire (Advinia) – 23
Highgate, North Lanarkshire (HC-One) – 23
Torry, Aberdeen (Renaissance) – 23
Westerton, East Dunbartonshire (Bearsden Care) – 23
Victoria Manor, Edinburgh (HC-One) – 24
Ailsa Craig, Glasgow (HC-One) – 22
Fullarton, Irvine (HC-One) – 22
Berelands House, Prestwick (Priory) – 22
Drummond Grange, Midlothian (Barchester) – 22
Braemount, Renfrewshire (Advinia) – 22
Caledonian Court, Falkirk (Care UK) – 21
Rowantree/Rodger Park, South Lanarkshire (Advinia) – 20
Orchard Nursing Home, Clackmannanshire (HC-One) – 20
Drummohr Care Home, East Lothian (HC-One) – 20

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