Care worker dies of suspected case of coronavirus

A care worker has died in West Dunbartonshire of suspected coronavirus.

The news comes as cases of Covid-19 rise to 3706 in Scotland, with the number of people who have since died of the virus standing at 220.

On Sunday, Scottish Labour Health Spokesperson Monica Lennon said the news would be met with “great sadness” by those in the social care system.

The MSP said: “Social care staff are the unsung heroes of the Coronavirus pandemic. The death of a member of the social care family will be met with great sadness.

“Scotland-wide, it is worrying that absence levels among the social care workforce are soaring, as are fears about lack of personal protective equipment.”

Sad news. A care worker in West Dunbartonshire has died.

Please stay home and help save lives. Whilst the individual circumstances of this death remain private the lack of PPE for frontline workers is public knowledge.

Carers are working 24/7 too and are being put at risk. pic.twitter.com/OxQ7UmVPEc
— Monica Lennon (@MonicaLennon7) April 5, 2020

Ms Lennon added that scarce supplies of PPE for carers in the area have led her to contact the First Minister to guarantee safe systems of work for those in social care.

“The GMB Scotland membership survey of home carers should have been a wake-up call to the First Minister when I raised it with her in Parliament,” she said.

“Home carers in my region have been asked to use PPE sparingly due to scarce supplies. This is far from an isolated example and I have written to the First Minister today asking her to guarantee safe systems of work for all social care staff because lives are at stake.”

‘In this time of crisis, we all owe a huge debt of gratitude to those heroic health and care workers who risk their lives daily to care for and treat those in need.’
Jackie Baillie, Deputy Scottish Labour Party Leader

Jackie Baillie, Deputy Leader of the Scottish Labour Party, and MSP for Dumbarton, added: “In this time of crisis, we all owe a huge debt of gratitude to those heroic health and care workers who risk their lives daily to care for and treat those in need.

“This very sad news will come as a great blow to the family and to my local community. My thoughts are with them and I share in their grief.

“It is clear that access to protective clothing and equipment for health and social care staff is a problem across Scotland. Supplies are rationed because there is simply not enough and the strategy appears to be determined by that shortage of supply, rather than what health guidance dictates.

“This is simply not good enough and is putting lives at risk. The Scottish Government must act urgently to protect our brave frontline workers. It is our duty to do so.”