Written question asked by Caroline Lucas (Green Party) on Tuesday, 19 May 2020, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 June 2020. It was answered by Helen Whately (Conservative) on Wednesday, 3 June 2020 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Care Homes: ICT

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 18 May 2020 to Question 43872, what estimate he has made of the number of portals that would be required to roll out the pilot to enable all care home residents to connect with loved ones during the covid-19 outbreak; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Initial findings from the Facebook Portal pilot suggest having access to just one Portal device in a care home can help residents to connect with loved ones during the COVID-19 outbreak. Although the pilot is ongoing and Portals are still being deployed, based on current numbers just over 70% of the devices will be in care homes. As there are approximately 15,500 care homes in England according to Care Quality Commission data, it is estimated up to 14,000 Portals or similar devices may be required to scale the pilot to all care homes nationally. The Facebook Portal is one of a number of solutions NHSX is looking at to help to reduce isolation and support video and remote care during COVID-19.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 48970
Session: 2019-21
Related items: Care Homes and Hospitals: ICT
Monday, 18 May 2020
Written questions
House of Commons
Subjects: Care homes ICT Pilot schemes Coronavirus
Contains statistics: Yes
Link: View this Written question on www.parliament.uk