Key Summary
- The report said that the spread of Covid-19 had a "devastating impact beyond hospitals".
- GPs and pharmacists were expected by the Department of Health and Social Care to procure their own PPE.
- Given the size of the social care sector and its vulnerability, it was a major failure in planning.
The lives of NHS staff, other frontline health workers and patients were put at risk during the Covid-19 pandemic because of a lack of adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), the fifth report of the Covid inquiry has said.
The chair Baroness Hallett described the "vast" waste in pandemic procurement, amounting to £9.9bn – two-thirds of the £14.9 billion the UK and devolved governments spent on PPE.
The country entered the pandemic with its stockpile of masks, gowns and gloves in a "perilous state" and was "simply not ready to compete" in the global race to secure new supplies, added the chair.
Impact beyond hospitals
The report said that the spread of Covid-19 had a "devastating impact beyond hospitals".
"PPE was needed in a wide range of settings, especially in the social care sector, but the stockpile was not established for this purpose.
"During a pandemic, the social care sector and community healthcare providers, such as GPs and pharmacists, were expected by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to procure their own PPE.
"Given the size of the social care sector and the vulnerability of those in care requiring protection from the spread of disease, this was a major failure in planning."
Pharmacy sector let down
Commenting on the findings, the Royal College of Pharmacy President Tase Oputu said, “The Government and NHS repeatedly tried to provide reassurance that adequate supplies of PPE were available to the pharmacy profession and that the guidance was robust. This was not the reality experienced by our members and we called for urgent change to reflect the real-world situation.
“The vast majority of frontline pharmacy teams were unable to maintain safe social distancing either from staff or patients and struggled to source PPE to protect themselves, their patients and their families.
“Pharmacies were one of the last places keeping their doors open to the public without an appointment and yet seemingly an afterthought when it came to sourcing PPE for staff.
“It is crucial that we learn lessons ahead of any potential future pandemic and ensure that pharmacists across care settings are protected so they can keep looking after patients.”
The fifth module considered the procurement and distribution to end-users across the four nations of the United Kingdom of key healthcare related equipment and supplies, including PPE, ventilators and oxygen.
A further five reports will follow with autumn 2026 seeing the publication of the Module 6 report, examining the care sector.
