Our blog will be taking a short break...

Due to annual leave the health news blog will be taking a short break. 

We'll be back on Monday the 20th of September.

Don't forget you can also follow us on Twitter for more health related updates.

Covid-19: Clubbers urged to get tested in Corby as rate rise

Covid-19: Clubbers urged to get tested in Corby as rate rise People going to nightclubs in the area with the highest Covid case rate in England have been urged to take regular lateral flow test to curb infections.

Corby, in Northamptonshire, had 623 cases per 100,000 people in the week to 4 September, a 23% week-on-week rise.

Health officials said the increase might also be partly caused by some Corby schools returning in mid-August. BBC Northampton

See also:

• Covid-19 testing site at University of Northampton to permanently close this weekend Northampton Chronicle and Echo
• NHS ‘will be at breaking point by November’ without masks and social distancing Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Northampton man accused of wasting police time for lying about positive Covid-19 test Northamptonshire Telegraph

Between 275 and 279 people in Northamptonshire died while waiting for social care in last three years

Between 275 and 279 people in Northamptonshire died while waiting for social care in last three years Between 275 and 279 people in Northamptonshire died while waiting for social care over the last three years, analysis of NHS data has revealed.

The figure, found by sister site NationalWorld, is made up of those who applied for adult social services from their local council between April 2017 and March 2020 died before they received any support. Northampton Chronicle and Echo 

What will the end of the Universal Credit uplift mean for areas of poor health?

What will the end of the Universal Credit uplift mean for areas of poor health? The end of the £20 uplift to Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit in October 2021 has the potential to further widen health inequalities and leave some areas further behind the average for living standards. 

Areas with a higher proportion of the population receiving Universal Credit or Working Tax Credit also tend to have lower healthy life expectancy. The Health Foundation 

Thousands of Black, Asian and minority ethnic staff in mental health trusts experience harassment, bullying, or abuse at work, new analysis finds

Thousands of Black, Asian and minority ethnic staff in mental health trusts experience harassment, bullying, or abuse at work, new analysis finds Thousands of ethnic minority staff working in mental health trusts are subjected to harassment, bullying, or abuse at work from members of the public, colleagues, or their managers, new analysis of NHS data has found.

The analysis of the NHS annual staff survey was carried out by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

See also:

• Third of BAME staff in NHS mental health services face racist abuse at work The Guardian

Home For Good: Successful community support for people with a learning disability, a mental health need and autistic people

Home For Good: Successful community support for people with a learning disability, a mental health need and autistic people The Care Quality Commission’s Home for Good report celebrates examples of successful community support provided to people with complex needs.

The report includes eight stories of people who have previously been placed in hospital settings, often called Assessment and Treatment Units and how all are now thriving in community services across England.

Is Manchester greater?: a new analysis of NHS integration

Is Manchester greater?: a new analysis of NHS integration The government is embarking on the most significant NHS reforms for a decade, with the aim of improving collaboration and integration across health and social care. However this analysis of existing pilot schemes finds no compelling evidence of overall improvement. This report finds that in Greater Manchester, where integration is most advanced, results have been generally poor. Centre for Policy Studies

NHS appoints national director of learning disability and autism

NHS appoints national director of learning disability and autism NHS England has announced the appointment of Tom Cahill as the national director for learning disability and autism.

Tom, who has been chief executive of Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust since 2009, will join NHS England to build on progress already made in providing people with a learning disability or autism with care in the community, rather than in inpatient settings. 

Consultation on mandatory vaccination for frontline health and care staff

Consultation on mandatory vaccination for frontline health and care staff The government is seeking views on plans for staff in health and care settings in England to be required to have COVID-19 and flu vaccines to protect vulnerable people. 

The consultation, running for a period of 6 weeks, looks at whether requirements should apply for health and wider social care workers: those in contact with patients and people receiving care. It would mean only those who are fully vaccinated, unless medically exempt, could be deployed to deliver health and care services. The consultation will also seek views on whether flu vaccines should be a requirement for health and care workers. Department of Health and Social Care

Weekly national flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports published

Weekly national flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports published National influenza and COVID-19 report, monitoring coronavirus (COVID-19) activity, seasonal flu and other seasonal respiratory illnesses. Public Health England

See also: 

• Research: COVID-19 vaccine surveillance reports Public Health England

Covid: Boosters not needed for all, says Oxford jab creator

Covid: Boosters not needed for all, says Oxford jab creator Giving booster jabs to everyone is unnecessary, says the scientist behind the Oxford vaccine, as she calls for doses to be sent to countries in need.

Prof Dame Sarah Gilbert told the Daily Telegraph some vulnerable groups would need boosters but immunity was "lasting well" in the majority of cases.

"We need to get vaccines to countries where few of the population have been vaccinated so far," she added. BBC News

See also:

• Covid: Pfizer and AstraZeneca approved as booster vaccines BBC News
• Covid England: PHE data highlights how vast majority of people being hospitalised are unvaccinated The Daily Mail
• Covid cases in England rose 9% last week as schools went back The Daily Mail
• Covid cases in Israel fall sharply amid mass booster vaccine rollout The Daily Mail
• More than 8,000 people in hospital with Covid in UK The Guardian
• Ministers hoping vaccines watchdog will back mass rollout of booster jabs The Guardian
• NHS 'faces breaking point by November' without masks and social distancing as Covid cases rise iNews

Record 5.6m people in England waiting for hospital treatment

Record 5.6m people in England waiting for hospital treatment The number of people in England waiting for hospital treatment has reached a new record high.

A total of 5.6 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of July, according to figures from NHS England. This is the highest number since records began in August 2007 and includes those waiting for hip and knee replacements and cataract surgery. The Guardian

See also:

• NHS performance summary: July-August 2021 Nuffield Trust
• Long waits for ambulances continue in England BBC News
• One in 10 people in England now on NHS waiting list, figures show The Daily Mail
• Spire reports £4.7m profits on back of long NHS waiting lists The Guardian
• Johnson’s hopes of banishing NHS backlog likely to remain wishful thinking The Guardian
• NHS waiting list hits record high, new figures show The Independent

Johnson’s hopes of banishing NHS backlog likely to remain wishful thinking

Johnson’s hopes of banishing NHS backlog likely to remain wishful thinking Analysis: Persistent understaffing and ageing estate means drive to slash waiting lists will be very hard to achieve

Every day brings reminders of how permanently under-resourced the NHS is: a ward closing here because there are too few nurses, a queue of ambulances – each with a patient in the back – stuck outside an overstretched A&E there. The Guardian

See also: 

• Raising the levy: will the new health and social care tax work? The King's Fund
• Additional funding alone not enough for momentous recovery task ahead for health and care services Nuffield Trust
• Minister defends social care bill reform wait BBC News
• Don't kid yourself tax rises will fund a better NHS The Daily Telegraph
• Left in its current state, the NHS will squander every penny of Boris' windfall The Daily Telegraph
• Nearly half of all NHS staff have no medical qualifications The Daily Telegraph
• I don't want NHS managers to be paid 'unacceptable' salaries with health tax funds, says care minister The Daily Telegraph
• NHS will run out of extra cash promised by government in two years, IFS analysis shows The Independent

Remote GP calls may have contributed to five deaths, says coroner

Remote GP calls may have contributed to five deaths, says coroner Remote GP appointments may have been a contributing factor in the deaths of five people who did not see their doctor face to face, a coroner has concluded.

Alison Mutch, senior coroner for Greater Manchester South, said important information missed in telephone appointments may have been acted on if they were seen in person. The Daily Telegraph

NHS trust AI pilot prompts 80% drop in admissions of vulnerable patients

NHS trust AI pilot prompts 80% drop in admissions of vulnerable patients A pilot at South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust has shown that predictive artificial intelligence improved care for vulnerable people and reduced hospital appointments by 80%.

Data from the MySense pilot between May 2020 and April 2021 showed that it also significantly reduced unnecessary burden on GPs and other healthcare workers. Public Technology