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When I started working on #scabies outbreaks in #carehomes some of my colleagues thought it was a weird, marginal interest. Now with #COVID19 it's changing. Everyone's realising that infection is a big deal in these #EndOfLife settings.
#Carehomes for older people are hard to study. Residents often have #dementia, staff are run off their feet, #consent to research is difficult - brilliant colleagues including @MedVetAcarology sorted this https://academic.oup.com/phe/article-abstract/10/1/90/2907881?redirectedFrom=fulltext
Life expectancy on entry to a #carehome for older people is typically 8 months - these settings are largely #LastHomes. Everyone needs a plan for what will and won't happen for the common things likely to make them ill or deteriorate. #CPR probably not part of it
Our experience in #scabies research showed us how badly served #carehomes are in terms of guidance and support for #infection outbreaks. Just read this summary of our work. Late recognition and poor access to advice are the norm https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25195595
Like #COVID19, #scabies looks different and has different consequences in older people compared to younger - recognising a pattern here? https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(18)30347-5/fulltext
And the #transmission dynamics in care homes are different from wider populations as @TAH_Sci and colleagues have discussed. https://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006046
In @ARC_KSS we are rapidly bringing together research skills in #carehomes and in #infection to address #COVID19. But when it's all over I'll be back on #scabies. Shockingly neglected, this #NTD remains a scourge in the UK.
Finally, you will really love watching the #ScabiesOpera which will transport you into the world of #infections in #carehomes Click on the Vimeo link. With wonderful colleagues @Edhughes @petecant, featuring @acciptrium who sings words of #JoyFromSheppey http://www.sussex.ac.uk/crcpa/projects/music
Oops meant @Accipitrium
And the omnipresent #ScabiesSweetheart I have left off but thought I had tagged is the wonderful @michaelghead
