Strongest Covid immunity occurs 7 days after your second dose - how the vaccination process works A Covid-19 vaccine has now been approved for widespread use in the UK, with vaccinations to get underway as early as next week.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine has been found to be 95 per effective across all age groups, with experts stating that the best protection comes after the second dose. Northamptonshire Telegraph
Mental Health Surge Model The Strategy Unit has produced a model to help local services plan their response to the impact of the pandemic on the nation’s mental health. Using this model, they estimate that there will be around 11% more new referrals to mental health services, each year for the next three years; and associated costs amount to an extra £1 billion a year. This is around 8% of annual NHS expenditure on mental health services. Includes a web-based interactive version of the model.
How are total triage and remote consultation changing the use of emergency care? The rapid response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has engendered a global shift in practice across a variety of health care settings. During the early stages of the pandemic in March 2020, NHS England advised all GPs to move to ‘total triage’ (where every patient contacting the practice is triaged before an appointment) and remote consultations (consultations by telephone, video or online). The Health Foundation
Chart of the week: Weekly deaths once again exceeding 20-year average during pandemic’s second wave Each week we present analysis of data in chart form to illustrate some key issues and invite discussion. This week, as the second wave of coronavirus leads to the start of another major spike in overall deaths, John Appleby and Billy Palmer take a look at historic trends in weekly mortality and finds cause for concern. Nuffield Trust
Ian Paterson: Thousands of jailed surgeon’s patients recalled by private hospital group More than 5,000 former patients of jailed breast surgeon Ian Paterson are being contacted by the private hospital where he worked.
The recall of 5,500 patients by Spire Healthcare comes after the company was criticised by an independent inquiry earlier this year for not doing enough to follow up with Paterson’s patients. The Independent
