Wag & Company : Covid-19 Policy
Covid-19 Policy : Subject to Government policy.
We review our Covid-19 guidance on an ongoing basis. Based on legislation and the position of a number of key stakeholders and consultation with our Trustees, our updated policy for visiting as at 4 January 2022 is as below:-
For all visiting, we ask that our volunteers take responsibility for ensuring sure that:-
Visits never go ahead if a volunteer feels unwell, is demonstrating any symptoms of Covid-19 or if they have been in contact with Covid-19 until they have received a negative PCR test result.
Great care should still be taken with hand washing and personal hygiene.
Friendship Dogs must be on normal, short leads, extending leads cannot be used inside care and medical environments.
Take care to freshly launder all uniform in between visits including the dog's bandana.
Anti bacterial hand wipes should be given to poeple who have stroked the dog before leaving.
Visiting in Care or Nursing Homes:-
Covid-19 visiting policy is determined by the Care or Nursing Home in line with current legislation and Public health policy.
These organisations provide us with their requirements for our volunteers to visit safely.
From October 2021, their entry requirements changed in line with the new legislation, so that anyone working or volunteering in a CQC-registered care home in England for residents requiring nursing or personal care must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 unless they have a medical exemption.
Some medical establishments have advised us that their current policy is for visitors to wear masks/PPE rather than a blanket requirement for vaccinations. Others are introducing a fully vaccinated requirement.
Home visiting:
It is necessary for all Wag home visiting volunteers to be fully vaccinated.
Since we started visiting our 1:1 friends inside again in June, our policy preference has always been that both the volunteer and the person being visited would be fully vaccinated. Since September, this has been our visiting requirement for home visiting.
Discussions will take place individually with any volunteers or people being visited with medical exemptions to manage their specific placement needs effectively and safely for all parties.
At today’s date, we understand that all Wag home visitors are fully vaccinated and only a very small number, less than 3, of our over 400 volunteers have advised us that they cannot be vaccinated.
Full home visiting policy follows:-
Routine lateral flow testing takes place before visits - see link below for acquiring lateral flow test kits.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing/regular-rapid-coronavirus-tests-if-you-do-not-have-symptoms/
Mask wearing on entry and then again to move about or if you need to become closer than 2m.
Sensible distancing - typically 2m distance without a mask, 1m distance with a mask. Where it’s possible to ventilate the room that will be important but is obviously subject to prevailing weather conditions.
If the environment's suitable and everyone’s happy and comfortable with it, the dog can be off the lead in the house to avoid the need for a short lead which would bring you too close.
PCR testing after any suspected Covid contact and only visit after negative test result received. If you have any difficulties point out the nature of the visiting that you are doing, ie people involved in social care don’t have to have symptoms.
Take care not to visit at all with any symptoms of any contagious illness.
Practice regular hand washing.
Take and use your own mug for tea, coffee etc.
Leave a 14 day period before visiting after any bout of Covid or flu.
Any enquiries can be directed to me or anyone in our team.
Diane Morton
Chair of the Trustees
diane@wagandcompany.co.uk
4 January 2022
