Kettering and Rushden to get new Covid Lateral Flow Device testing sites

Kettering and Rushden to get new Covid Lateral Flow Device testing sites Two new Lateral Flow Device testing sites have been launched giving residents in Kettering and Rushden access to a community testing site. Northamptonshire Telegraph

Support for domestic violence victims in NHS 'highly inconsistent'

Support for domestic violence victims in NHS 'highly inconsistent' Support for domestic abuse victims in hospitals remains “highly inconsistent” more than 10 years after a major report concluded a lack of action to improve care in the NHS was “a disgrace”, Women’s Aid has warned. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Unemployment and mental health: Why both require action for our COVID-19 recovery

Unemployment and mental health: Why both require action for our COVID-19 recovery The relationship between mental health and unemployment is bi-directional. Good mental health is a key influence on employability, finding a job and remaining in that job. Unemployment causes stress, which ultimately has long-term physiological health effects and can have negative consequences for people’s mental health, including depression, anxiety and lower self-esteem. The Health Foundation

Reform of social care doomed to fail unless the structural issues of fragile provider market are addressed

Reform of social care doomed to fail unless the structural issues of fragile provider market are addressed A report from the Nuffield Trust warns that years of delay to social care reform and a fragmented market has left provider services unstable and without support for innovation.

See also:

• Fractured and forgotten? The social care provider market in England (report) Nuffield Trust
• Ongoing woes: the difficulties of the social care provider market Nuffield Trust

Nearly 1 in 12 people on NHS waiting lists have been stuck waiting over a year

Nearly 1 in 12 people on NHS waiting lists have been stuck waiting over a year Today’s figures paint a bleak picture of the challenges facing the English health service in the wake of Covid-19. As NHS staff have battled the pandemic, waiting times for routine care have increased. The King's Fund

See also:

• Significant investment needed as waiting list for routine hospital care continues to grow The Health Foundation

Survey shows doctors fear NHS will take years to recover from pandemic

Survey shows doctors fear NHS will take years to recover from pandemic As the country edges its way back towards normality, many doctors fear the NHS will take years to recover. According to our 10th survey of members, the majority of doctors (59%) say it will take at least 18 months to get the NHS back on an even keel, including almost a third (30%) who say the huge backlogs in care resulting from the pandemic will take more than 2 years to clear. Royal College of Physicians

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 variants identified in UK

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 variants identified in UK Public Health England releases weekly updates on the number of confirmed new cases of variants of concern and variants under investigation identified in the UK.

The dominant variant continues to be VOC-20DEC-01 (B.1.1.7) and PHE will continue to monitor all variants closely. The best way to stop the spread of the virus is to remember: hands, face, space and follow the restrictions in place.

See also:

• Transparency data: Weekly statistics for NHS Test and Trace (England): 1 April to 7 April 2021 Department of Health and Social Care
• Official Statistics: National flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports Public Health England

Brain clots 'more likely' with Covid infection than vaccine

Brain clots 'more likely' with Covid infection than vaccine The risk of developing a serious brain clot - known as a cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) - is 8 to 10 times higher in people with Covid than those who get a vaccine, a study suggests.

Based on US data, the Oxford research team says people being vaccinated should be reassured by the findings.

It follows investigations into links between the AstraZeneca vaccine and rare blood clots. BBC News

See also:

• Cerebral venous thrombosis: a retrospective cohort study of 513,284 confirmed COVID-19 cases and a comparison with 489,871 people receiving a COVID-19 mRNA vaccine (open access) University of Oxford
• Covid: 'Getting the vaccine in Ramadan helps others' BBC News
• You're close enough to catch Covid from someone else if you can smell their breath, expert says The Daily Mail
• Fewer Britons are sticking to 10-day self-isolation following a positive test result, survey finds The Daily Mail
• Pfizer CEO says a THIRD Covid vaccine dose will be needed as soon as six months The Daily Mail
• Rapid Covid testing in England may be scaled back over false positives The Guardian
• What is a lateral flow Covid test and how accurate is it? The Guardian
• Covid: Past infection ‘does not protect young people against reinfection,’ study warns The Independent
• NHS trusts in London preparing to make Covid vaccinations compulsory for workers, leaked email reveals The Independent

Puberty blockers: NHS to set up independent review group

Puberty blockers: NHS to set up independent review group A new independent review group will assess the prescription of puberty blockers for under-16s, NHS England has announced.

Puberty blockers are prescribed to some young people who are experiencing gender dysphoria - a "mismatch" between their biological sex and gender identity. BBC News

Families need cannabis prescriptions support, say MPs and peers

Families need cannabis prescriptions support, say MPs and peers MPs and peers are calling for funding for families forced to buy medicinal cannabis for their children privately.

The treatment was made legal with a prescription in 2018 for those with an "exceptional clinical need".

But a cross-party letter from 100 politicians says only three NHS prescriptions have been given out since, forcing families to spend thousands on private treatments. BBC News 

Ethics row after human-monkey embryo created in major scientific breakthrough

Ethics row after human-monkey embryo created in major scientific breakthrough Scientists have grown human cells in monkey embryos with the aim to understand more about how cells develop and communicate with each other.

Researchers from the Salk Institute in California have produced what is known as monkey-human chimeras, with human stem cells - special cells that have the ability to develop into many different cell types - inserted in macaque embryos in petri dishes in the lab. The Daily Telegraph

See also:

• Human cells grown in monkey embryos spark ethical debate BBC News