Four more coronavirus deaths as Northamptonshire hospitals gear up for 'busiest' weeks

Four more coronavirus deaths as Northamptonshire hospitals gear up for 'busiest' weeks Nearly half intensive care beds are now being used to treat patients with the virus. 

NHS England confirmed four more coronavirus deaths as the number of Covid-positive patients in Northamptonshire's hospitals continues to rise. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

See also:

• Covid-19 infection rates are falling fast in these 11 areas of Northampton...but not fast enough Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• Schools may close early for Christmas - these are the current plans across the four nations Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Police set to double number of Covid fines in Northamptonshire in just six weeks Northamptonshire Telegraph

Improving the nation's health: the future of the public health system in England

Improving the nation's health: the future of the public health system in England In light of the impact of the pandemic and the government’s decision to abolish Public Health England (PHE), this briefing explores what needs to be put in place to make progress on the government’s commitments to improve the nation’s health. It looks at the role government can play in improving the nation’s health before examining how England might transition to a new public health system and what the main priorities for any new system should be. Health Foundation 

Study reveals why one in four have found rules harder in second lockdown

Study reveals why one in four have found rules harder in second lockdown A new study from Ipsos MORI and the Policy Institute at King's College London reveals that one in four people (26%) say they’ve found it harder to follow the rules during England’s second national lockdown than they did during the first. 

See also:

• One quarter of Britons found the second national lockdown harder to follow The Daily Mail

How England will end new cases of HIV: final report & recommendations

How England will end new cases of HIV: final report & recommendations The HIV Commission is an ambitious, independent process to find the path to ending new HIV transmissions and HIV attributed deaths in England by 2030. Their report sets out twenty achievable and evidence-based actions that need to be taken if this goal is to be met. 

Digital health and Covid-19: a PRSB consultation

Digital health and Covid-19: a PRSB consultation This report examines the digital transformation of health and care services during the pandemic and recommends how the system can use the lessons from Covid-19 to advance digital change, while maintaining safety and prioritising citizen’s needs. The report is based on consultation with more than 100 PRSB members and partners including the Royal Colleges, social care system leaders, health care providers, patient groups, regulators and others. Professional Record Standards Body (PRSB) 

Integrating care: next steps to building strong and effective integrated care systems across England

Integrating care: next steps to building strong and effective integrated care systems across England This document gives details of NHS England's proposals for a more effective and responsive care system across England. It sets out how NHS organisations, local councils, frontline professionals and others will join forces in an integrated care system (ICS) in every part of England from April 2021. Patients, NHS staff, partner organisations and interested members of the public are asked to submit their views on the proposals. The closing date for responses to the consultation is Friday 8 January 2021. NHS England

Guidance: Liberty Protection Safeguards factsheets

Guidance: Liberty Protection Safeguards factsheets Information about the LPS system, which will be replacing the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

DoLS is the system used to authorise the care or treatment arrangements of an individual who lacks mental capacity to consent to their arrangements. These safeguards apply when a person is ‘deprived of their liberty’ in a care home or hospital, in England or Wales. Department of Health and Social Care 

Community testing to help lift restrictions in highest tiers

Community testing to help lift restrictions in highest tiers Details have been set out by the Government to help local areas detect asymptomatic cases and offer a route out of the toughest restrictions. Department of Health and Social Care

See also:

• Policy paper: Community testing Department of Health and Social Care

Analysis of the health, economic and social effects of COVID-19 and the approach to tiering

Analysis of the health, economic and social effects of COVID-19 and the approach to tiering Over the course of this year much has been learned about COVID-19 and the measures it is necessary to take to combat it. This paper sets out some of that learning as well as the evidence and rationale behind the tiered approach. Department of Health and Social Care 

See also:

• England's Covid tiers impact report: what it says and doesn't say The Guardian
• No way to assess costs of Covid tiers against no action, Tory MPs told The Guardian
• NHS workforce ‘could not cope’ with third wave The Independent 

Covid-19: Lung damage 'identified' in study

Covid-19: Lung damage 'identified' in study Covid-19 could be causing lung abnormalities still detectable 

more than three months after patients are infected, researchers suggest.

A study of 10 patients at Oxford University used a novel scanning technique to identify damage not picked up by conventional scans. BBC News

See also:

• Hidden damage to lungs from Covid-19 revealed in new study University of Sheffield
• Covid vaccine: Rumours thrive amid trickle of pandemic facts BBC News
• Covid vaccine: Moderna files for approval in US BBC News
• Sally Davies: 'Poor public health made Covid worse' BBC News
• Covid-19: No plans for 'vaccine passport' - Michael Gove BBC News
• Covid UK: 12,330 new cases and 205 deaths in daily toll The Daily Mail
• Coronavirus lockdown England: 17m in Tiers 2 and 3 though cases fell The Daily Mail
• More than ONE-THIRD of children with coronavirus have NO symptoms of the infection The Daily Mail
• Novavax delays US trials for COVID vaccine and says late-stage study will begin 'in coming weeks' The Daily Mail
• The Government is wrong to suggest that only lockdown has saved us from an overflowing NHS The Daily Telegraph
• How the Government's mass Covid testing plan will work The Daily Telegraph
• Have hope – the UK has a track record of successful vaccine campaigns The Guardian
• Thousands refused help to self-isolate by cash-strapped English councils The Guardian
• Doubts raised over rapid Covid tests in plan for English care home visits The Guardian
• Matt Hancock under pressure to explain £30m test tube work for ex-neighbour The Guardian
• The speed of coronavirus vaccine development shouldn’t alarm you The Independent
• Covid deaths eight times higher than those from flu or pneumonia The Independent
• Jeremy Hunt criticises NHS bosses’ ‘inadequate, vague’ answers on Covid plan and staffing The Independent

Breastfeeding mums ‘lacked support’ during lockdown

Breastfeeding mums ‘lacked support’ during lockdown A leading breastfeeding charity in the UK says it is in "a desperate situation" trying to support mothers who have given birth in lockdown.

Between April and September, The National Breastfeeding Helpline answered 125 per cent more calls than they did in the same period last year.

Due to coronavirus restrictions, face-to-face professional and peer support was cancelled, and simple procedures like tongue-tie operations were severely restricted. BBC News

'I was at war with my body': my year as a day patient on an eating disorders ward

'I was at war with my body': my year as a day patient on an eating disorders ward At 32, I was given a choice: go to hospital every day – or risk a long wait to become an inpatient. Could I face down the demons that had stalked me since I was a child? The Guardian 

Google-owned DeepMind cracks 50-year-old 'protein folding problem'

Google-owned DeepMind cracks 50-year-old 'protein folding problem' DeepMind, the British-based artificial intelligence (AI) firm owned by Google, has 'largely solved' one of science's toughest and most enduring challenges.

The firm's new AI system, called AlphaFold, has cracked what is known as the 'protein folding problem' – the question of how a protein's amino acid sequence dictates its 3D atomic structure. The Daily Mail