(LPS) Liberty Protection Safeguards July 2020 Newsletter

Keeping you up to date

“Important information on the progress of LPS and something to think about on Infection Prevention Control”

As most of you know, the buzz word in 2019 was LPS (Liberty Protection Safeguards). This was very much around the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019, passed through parliament, receiving Royal Assent in May 2019. The proposed timetable had been set for a draft Code of Practice to be released in the spring of this year and implementation of LPS, replacing DoLS (Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards) from October 1st, 2020. Well you can breathe a little!

Following many requests from the team at CBAT and many others no doubt, the government finally released a statement on July 16th. Within the statement the Minster for Care, Helen Whately announced the implementation for LPS is to be moved to April 1st, 2022. Let us hope it is not an April fools.

So, what does this mean for you?

It’s time to hold your horses. The government will release a draft set of regulations and Code of Practice on LPS at some stage in the future. This will include a public consultation of twelve-weeks and then a further six months to allow proper scrutiny of parliament. Therefore, by my accounts, we will not be seeing the draft documents until the summer of 2021. As it stands, nothing changes until then. Continue with your DoLS processes and keep training your teams in the subject of MCA & DoLS. Don’t be tempted with training companies offering LPS training, as without the regulations and Code of Practice, it is a shot in the dark that the information given is correct.

If you would like to read the ministers statement, just click the link below.

https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2020-07-16/HCWS377

“When CQC comeback to Inspect on a more regular basis, make sure you have all your Infection Prevention Control documents in order.”

At some point in the near future, we will see the emergence of inspectors at your door. Whilst they have not gone dormant in the Covid19 period, they are certainly a lot quieter. That does not mean we can forget about them, as Arnie say’s “I’ll be back”, have a think about what they will look for when they do. The pandemic has brought about a period where evidence in what you have been doing, is going to want to be seen. One area I particularly want to focus your attention on, is Infection Prevention Control.

Did you know it is a requirement under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 that all companies produce an Annual Statement for Infection Prevention Control?

If you did, great! Make sure its available to present to your CQC Inspector when they visit. If you are wondering what the heck, I am going on about, then read on.

The code of Practice on the prevention and control of infections and related guidance refers that the Infection Prevention and Control Lead produces an annual statement with regard to compliance with good practice on infection prevention and control and makes it available for anyone who wishes to see it, including clients and regulatory authorities.

The annual statement should provide a short review of any;
• known infection transmission event and actions arising from this;
• audits undertaken and subsequent actions;
• risk assessments undertaken for prevention and control of infection;
• Training received by staff; and
• Review and update of policies, procedures and guidance.
I’m sure you are looking at the above and thinking, good we have all of this, but do you have it in a simple readable two to three-page document? If not, it is time to write the statement.

Now here comes a little sales pitch.

Over the last few months our team of clinical experts have been working on the creation of Infection Prevention Control Lead training and it’s just about to become accredited. Our course has been developed to run over two-days and is available via our Virtual Classroom suite. In my opinion, every site should have an Infection Prevention Control Lead, suitably trained. CBAT will be delivering these courses either in ‘open format’ where you can book on our website by clicking HERE or to groups who want it more bespoke and delivered to their teams across the country. If you would like more information, please contact one of our team at admin@cba-training.co.uk on 01772 816922

Finally

CBAT would like to tell you how proud we are of all you all. This has been one of the most testing times known in our industry and my goodness, your teams are standing up to the test. To be associated with such great clients, is what keeps us motivated to continually improve.

Stay safe and keep up the amazing work.

Kind Regards

Paul Blane

MD – CBAT