Nurses have been left in the dark over whether new self-isolation rules coming into force on Thursday apply to them.
The Prime Minister announced this week mandatory self-isolation for those who have tested positive for Covid-19 will no longer be legally required from Thursday.
Those laws will be replaced by guidance advising people take ‘personal responsibility’ not to infect others, similar to how one might act if they had the flu, Mr Johnson suggested.
But so far, there is no detail on what the plans mean for healthcare staff.
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It remains unclear whether healthcare staff will also no longer be required to isolate, patients will be able to turn up to healthcare settings with Covid symptoms and IPC guidance for general practice will be relaxed.
An NHS England spokesperson told Nursing in Practice sister publication Pulse on background that it will publish new guidance for healthcare professionals on self-isolation as soon as it can. However, they declined to provide a formal statement.
And the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) did not respond to Pulse’s requests for clarification.
‘Passing the buck’ to nurses
Responding to the announcement, the RCN raised concerns that the rules could mean ministers are ‘passing the buck’ to nursing staff and employers as to when to work if they fall sick with Covid-19.
It called on the Government to produce a plan that supports nursing staff working in health and social care when they are unwell.
Pat Cullen, RCN chief executive, said: ‘Rather than passing the buck and leaving it up to employers and individuals to decide, ministers must grip the issue and present a clear plan for health and social care staff.
‘Health and social care isn’t like other sectors – staff treat some of the most vulnerable in society whose wellbeing, and their own, mustn’t be put at risk.’
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The Government’s ‘Living with Covid’ strategy published yesterday set out further details of the new guidance coming into force on Thursday.
It said: ‘From 24 February the Government will remove the legal requirement to self-isolate following a positive test.
‘Adults and children who test positive will continue to be advised to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for at least five full days and then continue to follow the guidance until they have received two negative test results on consecutive days.
‘Those who test positive should avoid contact with anyone in an at-risk group, including if they live in the same household.’
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The document, which applies only to England, added that there will be ‘specific guidance for staff in particularly vulnerable services, such as adult social care, healthcare, and prisons and places of detention’.
And it said that the NHS will ‘continue’ to provide access to free PPE until the end of March 2023 ‘or until the IPC guidance on PPE usage for Covid-19 is amended or superseded – whichever is sooner’.
A version of this story was originally published on Nursing in Practice sister publication Pulse.
