Concerns over public shunning rapid Covid-19 tests as cases tumble in Northamptonshire

Concerns over public shunning rapid Covid-19 tests as cases tumble in Northamptonshire Health chiefs are puzzled by recent falls in numbers of rapid Covid-19 tests being taken in Northamptonshire.

The county's Public Health team has launched an online survey in a bid to understand why people are shunning lateral flow device testing. Northamptonshire Telegraph

See also:

• The new guidance for care home residents going out in England - and visiting rules explained Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• When Boris Johnson is expected to announce the next lockdown update - including rules for foreign travel Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• KGH hosted Government 'Covid passports' trial Northamptonshire Telegraph
• More £10,000 Covid-19 fines taken off Northamptonshire's tally as MPs label system "muddled and unfair" Northamptonshire Telegraph
• How you can sign up for Covid vaccine trial in Corby Northamptonshire Telegraph

Visiting restrictions at Northampton General Hospital to partially lift

Visiting restrictions at Northampton General Hospital to partially lift Visiting restrictions at Northampton General Hospital will be partially lifted this week after more than a year of strict rules to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

The Cliftonville hospital will allow pre-booked visits from Wednesday (May 5) as lockdown eases. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

See also:

• Kettering General Hospital patient visits to restart Northamptonshire Telegraph

Sir Simon Stevens steps down – the end of an era?

Sir Simon Stevens steps down – the end of an era? Sir Simon Stevens’ departure as Chief Executive of the NHS in England marks the end of an era. Pity his successor. The ‘to-do list’, or perhaps more accurately the ‘still-to-do list’ is enormous.

Sir Simon has been, by any measure, by far the most effective and powerful chief executive of the NHS, of whom there have been – in one form or another – eight, since 1985. If the test for ‘Who have been the greatest health ministers?’ is that they found the NHS as one thing and left it as another, Stevens, as a chief executive rather than a minister, passes that test easily. The King's Fund

Management of chronic asthma in children aged 16 years and under

Management of chronic asthma in children aged 16 years and under Asthma is the most common lung disease in the UK. 1.1 million children are diagnosed with the condition.

Our investigation looked at the risks involved in the management of children aged 16 years and under diagnosed with asthma. Diagnosis and the management of asthma, particularly in children and young people, can be complex. It is important to get it right, as otherwise significant harm or death can result. Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch

Stillbirths and other adverse outcomes for babies in Britain during the pandemic

Stillbirths and other adverse outcomes for babies in Britain during the pandemic Covid-19’s impact on all health services has caused concern about its effect on those whose health need is nothing to do with the virus – worries that have extended to maternity care. In this blog, Liz Fisher assesses the evidence around stillbirths and other adverse outcomes for babies in Britain over the past year. Nuffield Trust

Pandemic patient experience II: from lockdown to vaccine roll-out

Pandemic patient experience II: from lockdown to vaccine roll-out In 2020, patients told the Patients Association about their experiences of living with health and care needs during the Covid-19 pandemic. Their testimony painted a bleak picture in many ways. This follow-up survey report (drawing on 453 responses, submitted over February, March and early April 2021) finds that many aspects of their experiences are not much better, and some are worse. General practice services remains difficult for many, and patients overall do not regard remote consultations as an adequate replacement for in-person appointments. Patients Association

Change the law now to ensure end to blanket bans on care home visits, urges Joint Committee

Change the law now to ensure end to blanket bans on care home visits, urges Joint Committee The Joint Committee on Human Rights has prepared a draft statutory instrument to lay before Parliament to secure legal protection for care home residents deprived of family visits, and therefore, their human rights.

In today’s report, Care homes: Visiting restrictions during the covid-19 pandemic, the Committee calls on the Government to make the existing requirements for individualised assessment for visits mandatory by laying its draft Regulations, as soon as possible. 

See also:

• Covid: MPs want law to protect care home visiting rights BBC News

New cutting-edge testing centre to fast-track COVID-19 variant vaccines

New cutting-edge testing centre to fast-track COVID-19 variant vaccines Vaccines tailored to tackle COVID-19 variants are to be accelerated through new state-of-the-art labs, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has announced today (Wednesday 5 May).

The government will invest £29.3 million through the Vaccines Taskforce in Public Health England’s new testing facilities at Porton Down, to assess the effectiveness of existing and new vaccines against variants of concern. Department of Health and Social Care

See also:

• 50 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine administered in UK Department of Health and Social Care
• Government to launch 40,000 person daily contact testing study Department of Health and Social Care
• UK sends further life-saving support to India Department of Health and Social Care

Another Covid lockdown unlikely, says scientist

Another Covid lockdown unlikely, says scientist It is unlikely that there will be more lockdowns in the UK, the scientist whose modelling led to the first nationwide restrictions has said.

Prof Neil Ferguson told the BBC the UK is "likely to be on a steady course now out of this pandemic".

However, he said there could be a "roll back" of some freedoms if any new variants proved resistant to vaccines. BBC News

See also:

• Covid-variant vaccines fast-tracked with more investment BBC News
• Pfizer is working on a new version of its Covid vaccine that could be stored in a refrigerator The Daily Mail
• Downing Street hints NHS app may not be ready for travel restart The Daily Mail
• Coronavirus: Life in UK will 'feel a lot more normal by the summer', says SAGE adviser Neil Ferguson The Daily Mail
• Boris Johnson wrongly cleared over Covid contracts, say MPs The Guardian

‘No one judges you out here’: fishing prescribed for NHS patients

‘No one judges you out here’: fishing prescribed for NHS patients They talk with almost mythic reverence about the 24lb common carp. It is the prize fish in this quiet Manchester fishing pond, where the catch below the surface is a much-needed distraction from the troubles on land.

Last week a group of NHS patients has become some of the first in the country to be recommended fishing to improve their mental health. Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust has partnered with a local fishing organisation, Tackling Minds, with the aim of helping patients overcome issues such as depression and anxiety. The Guardian

Women bear brunt of ‘gargantuan challenges’ for health and care services during pandemic

Women bear brunt of ‘gargantuan challenges’ for health and care services during pandemic Women are bearing the overwhelming brunt of the “gargantuan challenges” health and care services are grappling with during the Covid pandemic, health leaders have said.

A new study by the NHS Confederation’s Health and Care Women Leaders Network found female health and care workers’s physical and mental health substantially deteriorated due to working during the coronavirus crisis. The Independent

See also: 

• COVID-19 and the female health and care workforce survey update NHS Confederation

Health service staff to help make NHS net zero carbon pledge a reality

Health service staff to help make NHS net zero carbon pledge a reality More than one million NHS staff will be asked to make a personal commitment to help the health service achieve its goal of being net zero on carbon emissions by 2045. The Independent 

Apetamin: NHS urges Instagram to clamp down on 'dangerous' weight-gain drug

Apetamin: NHS urges Instagram to clamp down on 'dangerous' weight-gain drug NHS England has urged Instagram to stop users selling a "dangerous" unlicensed weight-gain drug.

Apetamin is being sold and promoted on Instagram and other sites as a way to achieve an hour-glass figure in the mould of celebrities like Kim Kardashian.

However, senior health leaders say the appetite stimulant could cause "serious harm". Sky News