Blundering Freeman

IT is a tragedy of unspeakable proportions, robbing hundreds of families across Scotland of loved ones.

Some care homes have infection rates of up to 73 per cent, in a chilling illustration of the speed with which coronavirus has taken hold among a vulnerable population.

HC-One, the chain which operates a care home in Skye where six residents have died in the past week, has apologised over its handling of the situation, admitting that ‘we know we have not always got things right’. It admitted it had brought in staff from as far afield as Kent – more than 600 miles away – after the lockdown to plug staff shortages.

Against that bleak backdrop, Health Secretary Jeane Freeman’s shambolic performance yesterday is a cause of major concern. She admitted she had not seen the final updated guidance which suggested patients can be discharged from hospital into care homes before receiving the results of a Covid-19 test.

This flatly contradicts Miss Freeman’s suggestion that negative test results are needed before a discharge can take place.

The confusion deepened when she claimed the guidance was published in error. Frankly, the relatives of those who have died in care homes as a result of Covid-19 deserve better than this display of shocking ineptitude.

Miss Freeman should guard against any more blunders of this kind before public confidence in her ability to manage this crisis is irrevocably damaged.