Monday 7 June 2021

Indian Covid variant now 'dominant' strain in East Northants and South Northants

Indian Covid variant now 'dominant' strain in East Northants and South Northants Latest figures released today by the director for Public Health for Northamptonshire's two councils have revealed that there have been 88 confirmed cases of the new so-called Indian variant of the coronavirus.   Northamptonshire Telegraph 

‘Our son was let down’: Northampton man, 38, who died on the Racecourse ‘fell through mental health net’, inquest hears

‘Our son was let down’: Northampton man, 38, who died on the Racecourse ‘fell through mental health net’, inquest hears Daniel Sullivan's parents feel their son was 'let down by the NHS and other agencies'.

A Northampton man who died last year had been suffering with mental health issues which had worsened in the six months prior to his death, an inquest heard. Northampton Chronicle and Echo 

Corby's Lakeside Surgery apologises for appointments woes

Corby's Lakeside Surgery apologises for appointments woes A GP surgery has apologised after patients said they were unable to contact them or make appointments.

Lakeside Surgery in Corby, Northamptonshire, said the number of patients trying to contact them each week had risen from 4,000 in April to 7,000 in May.

Patients said they were "frustrated" at a phone system that either cut them off or keep them on hold. BBC Northampton 

What have we learned from a year of NHS Test and Trace?

What have we learned from a year of NHS Test and Trace? NHS Test and Trace celebrated its first birthday last week.

Through its first year, we’ve tracked its up and downs and reported on its successes and failures. In this blog, we reflect on what we learned and what’s to come of this £37bn government programme. The Health Foundation

Ethnicity coding in English health service datasets

Ethnicity coding in English health service datasets The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted ethnic disparities in health care and outcomes in England, but data on the ethnicities of patients remains poor. This report looks at the quality and consistency of ethnicity coding within health datasets and calls on NHS England to provide new guidance for health service providers and GPs. Nuffield Trust

Clinical radiology: UK workforce census 2020 report

Clinical radiology: UK workforce census 2020 report The RCR's annual workforce census reveals huge shortages across radiology departments – both diagnostic radiologists who enable accurate treatment, and interventional radiologists who treat via non-invasive procedures. The RCR report states that without significant investment in workforce, equipment and new ways of working, patients will suffer, diagnoses will be further delayed, and fewer patients will benefit from life-saving minimally invasive interventional radiology. Royal College of Radiologists

Prevalence of ongoing symptoms following coronavirus (COVID-19) infection in the UK

Prevalence of ongoing symptoms following coronavirus (COVID-19) infection in the UK Estimates of the prevalence and characteristics of people with self-reported “long COVID”, and associated activity limitation, using UK Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey data to 2 May 2021. Office for National Statistics

See also: 

NHS vaccine lead urges people not to delay second dose

NHS vaccine lead urges people not to delay second dose The director of England’s NHS COVID vaccination programme, Dr Emily Lawson, is urging people that are contacted to bring forward their second jab, to rebook as soon as possible, after she received her follow-up jab this week. NHS England

See also: 

Covid-19: Government 'open' to delaying 21 June England lockdown end date

Covid-19: Government 'open' to delaying 21 June England lockdown end date The government is "absolutely open" to delaying the final lifting of England's Covid lockdown on 21 June if necessary, the health secretary has said.

Matt Hancock insisted 21 June was a "not before" date to end restrictions and No 10 "would look at the data".

He said the Delta variant first seen in India was about 40% more transmissible than the Alpha (Kent) strain. BBC News

See also:

Patient data transfer still set to start in July

Patient data transfer still set to start in July The government is proceeding with the creation of a central store of data from GP records in England next month, despite the NHS suggesting a delay.

The data is moving to a central NHS Digital database, with the Department of Health saying it expects GPs to introduce the system from 1 July.

The NHS wanted a delay until September so patients had more time to learn about the system, the BBC has learned. BBC News

See also:

UK needs national register for eating disorder deaths, MPs say

UK needs national register for eating disorder deaths, MPs say Eating disorder deaths need to be recorded on a national register, MPs are urging, as experts warn of an underreported “crisis” in the growing number of people in the UK experiencing life-threatening disorders.

While Office for National Statistics figures show 36 people died in 2019 from conditions such as anorexia, there are concerns this underestimates the true toll. The Guardian

See also: