Dr. Siobhán Kennelly:

There has obviously been some impact because some of those staff are isolating or cocooning and cannot necessarily provide the services they would have been able to. Physiotherapy, chiropody and personal care services involve a lot of intimate and close contact with residents.

Within HSE services there has been a huge emphasis on the provision of multidisciplinary services which, in some cases, have been diverted to residents in those settings, in particular after an outbreak. There is an issue around the continued provision of services. In the drafts on visiting guidance issued from September and October onwards we made a very clear distinction between essential service providers, including those who provide all the services the Senator listed, and a number of other important service providers, such as those who provide supports like hairdressing that support the well-being of people in nursing homes. We have tried to cover that, but access is contingent on what is happening within a nursing home at any one time and the type of care that needs to be delivered for the residents. It is very much dependent on the service provider.