Confirmed: Northampton General Hospital to be one of the country's first coronavirus vaccination hubs

Confirmed: Northampton General Hospital to be one of the country's first coronavirus vaccination hubs Northampton General Hospital has been confirmed as one of the country's first coronavirus vaccination hubs as part of the biggest immunisation programme in history.

People aged 80 and over as well as care home workers will be first to receive the jab along with NHS workers who are at higher risk. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

See also:

• Northampton infection rates are 'knocking on Tier Three's door' compared to rest of county, says council leader Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• There's 63 Northants people who knew they had Covid-19 but wouldn't tell test and tracers who they might have passed it on to Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• Coronavairus deaths in Northamptonshire pass a sobering milestone  Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Warning from public health officials as coronavirus hospital admissions keep rising in Northamptonshire Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Northamptonshire areas with consistently high coronavirus rates will be targeted by public health officials Northamptonshire Telegraph

Northampton and Kettering General Hospital set out direct appeal to public after 'very high demand' this weekend

Northampton and Kettering General Hospital set out direct appeal to public after 'very high demand' this weekend Both of Northamptonshire's hospitals have directly asked the public to think twice before visiting A&E after struggling with "very high demand" this weekend. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Northamptonshire County Council: Failing children's service improves from low base

Northamptonshire County Council: Failing children's service improves from low base A children's services department that was "failing to keep children safe" has started "to improve, albeit from a very low base", Ofsted inspectors said.

Northamptonshire County Council's children's services were rated inadequate in July 2019. 

An independent trust took control of children's services last month. BBC Northampton 

Digital technology and health inequalities: a scoping review

Digital technology and health inequalities: a scoping review This report, published jointly by Public Health Wales and the King’s Fund, explores how a lack of access, skills and motivation for using digital technologies could contribute to inequalities in health and other outcomes. It explores approaches to reduce widening differences between groups.

Tracing positive COVID-19 cases and their contacts less successful in more deprived areas, new analysis reveals

Tracing positive COVID-19 cases and their contacts less successful in more deprived areas, new analysis reveals New Health Foundation analysis published in The Lancet shows that a smaller proportion of positive COVID-19 cases and their contacts are reached by NHS Test and Trace in more deprived areas than in less deprived areas.

The analysis found that among the most deprived group of local authorities in England, 83% of positive cases were reached as compared to 86% in the least deprived. The difference was greater when it came to reaching the contacts of those who had tested positive – 56% were reached in most deprived areas as compared to 62% in the least deprived.

Coping with PPE: top tips from actors used to working in restrictive clothing & equipment

Coping with PPE: top tips from actors used to working in restrictive clothing & equipment The Covid crisis has highlighted the vital need to support healthcare staff and Performing Medicine has released a suite of free digital resources; including ‘Coping with PPE.’ 

‘Coping with PPE’, developed in response to a request from University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH), addresses some of the issues around wearing PPE for extended periods of time and includes tips from performers used to wearing heavy restrictive costumes, masks, puppets, animatronics and prosthetics. From advice on orientation and spatial awareness, and non-verbal communication, to breathing techniques and body-scans; ‘Coping with PPE’ is an effective resource for everyone working in the healthcare sector.

Over half a million people taking part in pioneering COVID-19 research

Over half a million people taking part in pioneering COVID-19 research 637,379 participants from across the UK have now taken part in public health research into the effects of, and treatment for, COVID-19 in just over 8 months. Department of Health and Social Care 

See also:

• Correspondence: COVID-19 vaccinations and care homes: programme launch Department of Health and Social Care
• Guidance: Face coverings: when to wear one, exemptions, and how to make one Department of Health and Social Care
• Hospitals to start biggest ever NHS Vaccination Programme this week NHS England
• Guidance: COVID-19 vaccination: women of childbearing age, currently pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding Public Health England
• Guidance: COVID-19: the green book, chapter 14a Public Health England

Coronavirus: NHS to begin vaccine rollout this week

Coronavirus: NHS to begin vaccine rollout this week The coronavirus vaccine is the "beginning of the end" of the epidemic in the UK, Prof Stephen Powis has said, as vaccinations begin on Tuesday. 

But the NHS England medical director warned the distribution of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine would be a "marathon not a sprint".

It will take "many months" to vaccinate everybody who needs it, he said. BBC News 

See also:

• Covid-19: Vaccine rollout 'ready' for any Brexit outcome BBC News
• Covid: NHS rapid test use defended amid accuracy concerns BBC News
• Covid: Care home testing paused over safety concerns BBC News
• Where are England's coronavirus hotspots among older people? BBC News
• Virus levels falling across England, says ONS survey BBC News
• Moderna can make 500m covid vaccine doses in 2021 - but not 1bn The Daily Mail
• People could get 'immunity certificates' after coronavirus vaccine, SAGE says The Daily Mail
• Pfizer CEO 'not certain' its Covid vaccine prevents transmission The Daily Mail
• Coronavirus UK: Health chiefs reveal UK will get FOUR MILLION vaccine doses by the end of the year The Daily Mail
• First look at new NHS Covid-19 vaccination identity card The Daily Mail
• Falling flu rates AND Covid vaccine may make NHS miss winter crisis The Daily Mail
• Worst-hit areas by Covid first wave also fared worse in Spanish flu, study finds The Daily Telegraph
• The world can start dreaming about the end of the coronavirus pandemic, UN health chief says The Daily Telegraph
• Covid vaccine to have only 'marginal impact' on winter hospital admissions The Guardian
• Covid-19 vaccine 'very safe and highly effective', UK health chief says The Guardian
• Doctors step up drive for probe into PPE and Covid deaths among health workers The Guardian
• 'We won't forget our dead colleagues': NHS doctors on life on the frontline The Independent
• Coronavirus: Extra social mixing at Christmas will increase pressure on NHS, chief medics warn The Independent
• Nearly a third of Britons don’t want to take vaccine, poll shows The Independent
• Covid vaccine backlash: Doctors warn that more medics could die — as NHS staff moved down the priority list iNews
• COVID-19: NHS chief hails 'beginning of the end' of virus as vaccine begins arriving at hospitals Sky News

More people signed off sick with mental health problems during lockdown, analysis reveals

More people signed off sick with mental health problems during lockdown, analysis reveals The proportion of people applying for fit notes from their GP for mental health reasons jumped 6 per cent during lockdown in England, according to new research.

It adds to growing concern the UK will see a surge in mental health problems as a result of the pandemic and the impact on society and the economy. The Independent 

Revealed: The 'reasonable worst case' if EU talks collapse

Revealed: The 'reasonable worst case' if EU talks collapse A leaked government document outlines the 'reasonable worst case' scanario if EU talks collapse which includes problems with the supply of medicines. ITV News

See also:

• Scotland's health chiefs warn of no-deal Brexit risk BBC News
• No Deal Brexit could lead to medicine supply shortage, inflation and public disorder, No10's secret 34-page 'worst-case scenario' dossier shows The Daily Mail
• Medicine supply could be cut to 60 per cent in event of no-deal Brexit, leaked document warns The Daily Telegraph
• Coronavirus vaccine supply would not be disrupted by no-deal Brexit, says regulator The Independent
• Brexit latest: Military planes ‘to fly in Covid-19 vaccine from EU’ to avoid border chaos iNews
• No-deal Brexit: What it means for the UK if trade talks with the EU fail to reach agreement iNews