Clapping for Carers in the Covid-19 crisis: Carers’ reflections in a UK survey

This paper reports and discusses the weekly Clapping for Carers - described as “front-line heroes” that took place across the UK during the first national lockdown of the coronavirus pandemic. Data are drawn from a UK wide online survey of health and social care workers that was completed in May-July 2020. The survey received 3,425 responses of which 2,541 were analysed; and free text comments were categorised. One question asked specifically: ‘Do you think the 'Clap for Carers' was a helpful response from the public?’
Responses were extracted from 815 free-text comments and categorised as: unequivocally Yes; predominantly Yes; mixed feelings; predominantly No; and unequivocally No. Most most survey participants held mixed feelings about the helpfulness of Clapping with only a minority being entirely supportive. The free-text comments offer some explanations for these views with many feeling that Clapping was a distraction from the severity of the pandemic and the lack of adequate resources. The free text comments reveal workforce concerns that the support demonstrated for the frontline workforce in Clapping may be transitory and that it may not translate into workforce improvements and political commitment to funding of health and social care. Some saw the value of Clapping as illustrative of community cohesion. There was little mention of Clapping for heroes, and where there was the notion of heroism was rejected. The demonstration of public support in Clapping for Carers may have directly benefitted the public, but only indirectly the workforce. Future recruitment data may help discern if public support has translated into a desire to join the workforce