UK | Dr Jane Townson OBE, CEO of the Homecare Association, has called for a revolutionary shift from hospital-centric to community-centric readiness.
As the final day of hearings for Care Sector Module 6 of the UK COVID-19 Public Inquiry concludes, the Homecare Association has called for a revolutionary shift from hospital-centric to community-centric pandemic preparedness, describing the traditional approach as a "fatal flaw" that contributed to over 100,000 excess deaths at home.
Dr Jane Townson OBE, Chief Executive of the Homecare Association, said the pandemic revealed a devastating paradox.
“Whilst the UK government told people to “Stay at Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives”, many at home were left without access to healthcare, increasing deaths from non-COVID-19 conditions, such as dementia, cancer and heart disease. The unintended consequence was over 100,000 excess deaths at home by July 2022, only seven percent of which were attributed to COVID-19, a stark displacement that revealed the fatal flaw in hospital-centric emergency planning," said Dr Townson.
The Association argues that home-based support and care should be treated as essential infrastructure, comparable to water, electricity, or transport networks. With at least nine million people needing or receiving support at home, compared with just over half a million in hospitals and care homes combined, the sector's role is critical to national emergency preparedness.
"Just as we wouldn't plan an emergency response without considering water or electricity networks, we cannot plan a health and care system pandemic response without home-based care and support as critical infrastructure," Dr Townson said.
During the pandemic, some successful international approaches prioritised community-based care. In Italy, Dr Luigi Cavanna's revolutionary home-based COVID-19 care achieved hospitalisation rates of fewer than 10 percent, while regions embracing community-centric models saw death rates six times lower than hospital-focused areas.
South Korea similarly demonstrated that sophisticated medical intervention can be delivered at home whilst maintaining wider healthcare access rather than restricting it, proving that home can be the safest place during a pandemic, if we design our systems properly.
"The government's 10-Year Health Plan creates an unprecedented opportunity," said Dr Townson.
"It’s three shifts, from hospital to community, illness to prevention, and analogue to digital – align perfectly with the lessons from this Inquiry."
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