Northamptonshire health boss wants tighter Covid rules

Northamptonshire health boss wants tighter Covid rules Directors of public health have been asking the government to reintroduce face mask requirement and tighter self-isolation rules, a health boss said.

Lucy Wightman, Northamptonshire's director of public health, said she and her colleagues have been "lobbying hard" for the changes.

The county has some of the highest rates in England with Wellingborough having the second highest. BBC Northampton

See also: 

• What are the rules and guidance for face masks and coverings? BBC News

New ‘wonder drug’ injection for severe asthma given approval on NHS

New ‘wonder drug’ injection for severe asthma given approval on NHS A new ‘wonder drug’ for the treatment of uncontrolled asthma has been approved for use on the NHS in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Dupilumab has been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for some patients whose asthma does not respond to conventional treatments. Northamptonshire Telegraph 

Suicide in children and young people: National Child Mortality Database Programme thematic report

Suicide in children and young people: National Child Mortality Database Programme thematic report This report draws on data from the NCMD to identify the common characteristics of children and young people who die by suicide. It investigates factors associated with these deaths and pulls out recommendations for service providers and policy makers. National Child Mortality Database 

Tackling health inequalities

Tackling health inequalities This briefing highlights the leading role trusts can play in creating lasting change in how inequalities in care are understood and dealt with across the NHS. NHS Providers 

NHS delivers over three million COVID boosters in first month

NHS delivers over three million COVID boosters in first month More than three million top up COVID-19 jabs have been delivered in just four weeks, as the NHS vaccination rollout continues to protect those most at risk from coronavirus.

A total of 3.1 million top ups have been administered with two in five people aged 50 and over who are eligible already coming forward for their extra jab.

More than a third of health and care workers who are eligible have also had their booster vaccine. NHS England 

Covid-19 in the UK: How many coronavirus cases are there in my area?

Covid-19 in the UK: How many coronavirus cases are there in my area? There have been 8.4 million confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and more than 138,000 people have died, government figures show.

However, these figures include only people who have died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus.

So far, about 86% of people aged 12 and over in the UK have had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine and nearly 79% have had their second. BBC News

See also: 

• Prof Sarah Gilbert, Covid vaccine creator: Now let’s take on 12 more diseases BBC News
• Covid: Which children are being vaccinated and why? BBC News
• Investigation ordered into Wolverhampton Covid lab test failings BBC News
• Households with children THREE times as likely to have a Covid infection as those without The Daily Mail
• Covid England: Outbreak is now biggest it's been since JANUARY with one in 60 infected last week The Daily Mail
• Statins could cut risk of Covid deaths ‘by 12 per cent’ The Daily Telegraph
• Why Britons are tolerating sky-high Covid rates – and why this may not last The Guardian
• Pregnant women at risk from NHS workers’ mixed messages over safety of jab The Guardian
• England to open walk-in Covid clinics for children aged 12-15 within weeks The Guardian
• Covid cases near peak of second wave as schoolchildren fuel rise The Independent
• COVID-19: UK daily coronavirus cases highest since July as Professor Chris Whitty warns of 'exceptionally difficult' winter for NHS Sky News

NHS England hospitals having to rely on ‘obsolete’ imaging equipment

NHS England hospitals having to rely on ‘obsolete’ imaging equipment Research by Channel 4’s Dispatches reveals use of CT and MRI scanners that are 10 years old or more in about third of trusts

About a third of NHS trusts in England are using “technically obsolete” imaging equipment that could be putting patients’ health at risk, while existing shortages of doctors who are qualified to diagnose and treat disease and injuries using medical imaging techniques could triple by 2030. The Guardian 

Psychosis cases soar in England as pandemic hits mental health

Psychosis cases soar in England as pandemic hits mental health Cases of psychosis have soared over the past two years in England as an increasing number of people experience hallucinations and delusional thinking amid the stresses of the Covid-19 pandemic.

There was a 75% increase in the number of people referred to mental health services for their first suspected episode of psychosis between April 2019 and April 2021, NHS data shows. The Guardian 

Covid has made us more miserable than ever before

Covid has made us more miserable than ever before Britons were more miserable than ever in the first year of the Covid pandemic, data revealed today. 

Wellbeing levels plunged to the lowest figure since records began almost a decade ago.  

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) report also revealed anxiety rates soared to their highest ever level in the year ending March 2021.  The Daily Mail

See also: 

• Coronavirus and the social impacts on Great Britain Office for National Statistics

Concern police will be able to ‘strong-arm’ NHS to hand over patient data under new plans

Concern police will be able to ‘strong-arm’ NHS to hand over patient data under new plans Police forces will be able to “strong-arm” NHS bodies into handing over confidential patient data under planned laws that have sparked fury from doctors’ groups and the UK’s medical watchdog. The Independent