Due to the restrictions on leaving the social care homes, in some establishments medicinal products and other small items for residents were bought by designated employees332, and all items given to residents by families and relatives had to be quarantined for 24 hours and disinfected before handing over to the resident333. This was not a common practice and in some establishments, due to staff shortages, no purchases for residents were made at all. Psychological support The coronavirus pandemic posed a threat not only to the physical health of residents and staff of long-term care facilities, but also to their mental condition. Long-term isolation, lack of contacts with loved ones, fears about their life and health, and in some cases also death of another resident were the problems faced by residents of care facilities, including nursing homes. This was also emphasized by the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy who requested voivodeship governors to pay special attention to these aspects and to sensitize the homes’ managers to the situation of their residents, particularly those with mental disorders, whose mental condition could deteriorate significantly in connection with the introduced restrictions regarding visits and leaves334. Unfortunately, despite the ministerial recommendation, contact with a psychologist was not ensured by the institutions335. However, in the vast majority of them, psychological support was available, although in various forms. In some facilities, contact with a psychologist was possible by telephone336 or by videoconference337, and in some homes also through direct contact (where psychologists were employed full-time by the facility)338. In some homes, the residents could use all the three forms. Notably, the pandemic clearly showed the problem of ensuring access to psychological support for SCH residents, which problem has been emphasized by the NMPT for many years339. In the 332 At the SCH in Folusz, items for residents were bought by social workers, in accordance with the needs and preferences of the residents. 333 SCH for veterans in Warsaw. 334 Letter of 30 June 2020 ref. no. DPS-V.070.412.2020.DW of the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy, to the Social Policy Department of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Voivodeship Office. SCH in Kock, SCH in Siedlce (due to a confirmed infection of the home’s psychologist and the fact that most of the residents were in home isolation, psychotherapy support was impossible for some time). 335 SCH in Tomczyce, SCH in Jakubowice, SCH in Skarżysko-Kamienna, SCH in Drzewica, SCH of the Congregation of St. Vincent de Paul Sisters of Mercy in Poznań; SCH in Biskupice, SCH in Tonowo (telephone contact was possible with a psychologist employed in the home, and confidentiality was maintained: the residents could hold the conversations in a separate room. Their mental health was monitored on an ongoing basis by a psychiatrist employed in the facility). 336 337 SCH in Bochnia. 338 SCH in Pleszew, SCH for veterans in Warsaw, SCH in Skierniewice, SCH in Krzyżanowice, SCH in Folusz. 339 The issue is discussed in more detail inter alia in the Report of the Commissioner for Human Rights on the activities of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture in 2018. 129