Hundreds of Northants school pupils told 'stay at home' as Covid hits

Hundreds of Northants school pupils told 'stay at home' as Covid hits Hundreds of students at a Northamptonshire secondary school have been told to 'stay at home' after staffing levels dropped so low that safety could not be guaranteed. Northamptonshire Telegraph

See also:

• Corby Covid vaccine trial volunteers thanked for commitment to newly-approved Novavax jab Northamptonshire Telegraph
• Memorial stone laid at Kettering General Hospital to commemorate those lost to Covid-19 Northamptonshire Telegraph

Northamptonshire GPs held 200000 face-to-face appointments in December despite Covid jabs rollout pressure

Northamptonshire GPs held 200000 face-to-face appointments in December despite Covid jabs rollout pressure NHS figures reveal numbers of doctors seeing patients in person dropped only fractionally as vaccine rollout ramped up.

Fewer GP appointments were carried out in Northamptonshire in December, figures show, as health care workers across England focused on the coronavirus booster jab rollout. Northampton Chronicle and Echo

Northamptonshire: Fresh oversight for troubled children's service

Northamptonshire: Fresh oversight for troubled children's service A newly-created Independent Improvement Board will monitor children's services in Northamptonshire.

It comes after the county's children's services commissioner, Andrew Christie, stepped down.

Government minister for children and families, Will Quince, has appointed Jenny Coles as chairwoman of the board. BBC Northampton

Doctors consider high levels of racism in the NHS to be a ‘debilitating’ problem, finds largest survey of racism in medicine

Doctors consider high levels of racism in the NHS to be a ‘debilitating’ problem, finds largest survey of racism in medicine  The BMA has shared interim findings from the Association’s Racism in Medicine survey and these reveal that doctors from all ethnic minority backgrounds consider racism a problem in the medical profession.

With over 2000 responses from doctors and medical students across the UK, the BMA believes the survey to be one of the largest of its kind on the experience of racism in the medical profession and workplace. Just over 90% of Black and Asian respondents, 73% Mixed and 64% of White respondents said racism in the medical profession is an issue.

See also:

• NHS 'riddled with racism' against ethnic minority doctors BBC News

Levelling up the UK: what you need to know

Levelling up the UK: what you need to know This briefing provides an overview and analysis of the levelling up white paper and analyses what it means for the health and care sector. NHS Confederation

Draft standards consultation: specialist community public health nursing, community specialist practice qualifications, and associated programme standards - consultation findings

Draft standards consultation: specialist community public health nursing, community specialist practice qualifications, and associated programme standards - consultation findings The consultation sought views on three sets of draft standards: those for specialist community public health nursing, those for community nursing specialist practice qualification and the associated programme standards. This report shows a large majority of the 2,363 respondents welcomed the three sets of standards, agreeing they were largely fit for purpose. Nursing & Midwifery Council

NHS publishes electives recovery plan to boost capacity and give power to patients

NHS publishes electives recovery plan to boost capacity and give power to patients The NHS and government have today set out a blueprint to address backlogs built up during the COVID pandemic and tackle long waits for care with a massive expansion in capacity for tests, checks and treatments.

NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard and Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid announced that the health service will build dozens more community diagnostic centres as part of the new elective care recovery plan. NHS England

See also:

• Delivery plan for tackling the COVID-19 backlog of elective care NHS England
• Statement to Parliament: Oral statement on the NHS Delivery Plan for tackling the Covid-19 backlog Department of Health and Social Care
• Platform to improve transparency on wait times and provide additional patient support Department of Health and Social Care
• Workforce constraints must be tackled if the Elective Recovery Plan is to deliver BMA
• NHS elective recovery plan The King's Fund
• NHS Confederation responds to elective recovery plan NHS Confederation
• Trusts will work flat out to bear down on backlogs NHS Providers
• Nuffield Trust response to the NHS elective recovery plan Nuffield Trust
• NHS backlog needs radical ideas – but also, understanding that pressures are not confined to hospitals Royal College of General Practitioners
• Plan to tackle NHS backlog 'aspirational' without enough nursing staff Royal College of Nursing
• RCP responds to NHS Elective Recovery Plan Royal College of Physicians
• RCPsych responds to the NHS elective recovery plan Royal College of Psychiatrists 
• Plan to tackle NHS waits backlog unveiled BBC News
• NHS 'waiting lists are going to continue to grow', says Academy of Medical Royal Colleges chair Channel 4 News
• Sajid Javid finally unveils NHS backlog plan that pledges to eliminate one-year waits for ops The Daily Mail
• Plans to tackle NHS backlog threaten extra pressure on overstretched GPs GPonline
• England’s hospital waiting list will keep growing, says Sajid Javid The Guardian
• NHS waiting list plan ‘will fail’ unless pressure on A&E is lifted, doctors warn The Independent

Patients to receive better care as NHS and social care systems link up

Patients to receive better care as NHS and social care systems link up Patients will receive better, more joined-up care under new plans announced today to improve the links between health and social care.

The Integration White Paper sets out a vision for an integrated NHS and adult social care sector which will better serve patients and staff. Department of Health and Social Care

UK to pilot world-leading approach to improve ethical adoption of AI in healthcare

UK to pilot world-leading approach to improve ethical adoption of AI in healthcare Biases in artificial intelligence will aim to be eradicated in a world first as the NHS in England trials a new approach to the ethical adoption of AI in healthcare.

Algorithmic Impact Assessment (AIA), designed by the Ada Lovelace Institute, will be piloted to support researchers and developers to assess the possible risks and biases of AI systems to patients and the public before they can access NHS data. Department of Health and Social Care

Improvements seen in children and young people's wellbeing

Improvements seen in children and young people's wellbeing Thousands of children and young people in England are benefiting from support for their mental health and wellbeing in education, as new research shows an improving picture in their recovery from the pandemic.

The Department for Education has today (8 February) published its third annual State of the Nation report, providing an in-depth picture of the experiences of children and young people aged 5 to 24 throughout the pandemic during the 2020 to 2021 academic year. Department for Education

Weight loss jab recommended on NHS

Weight loss jab recommended on NHS Adults struggling with their weight could soon be offered a weekly injection to help shed unhealthy fat.

The treatment, semaglutide, branded Wegovy, makes people feel fuller, so they eat less, and not as hungry.

In trials, used alongside a healthy diet and exercise, it helped obese people lose a 10th of their body weight - about two stone (13kg) on average. BBC News

Call for six new mental health hospitals in England as buildings ‘crumble away’

Call for six new mental health hospitals in England as buildings ‘crumble away’ Thousands of mental health patients in England are being treated in buildings that are “dangerous” and unfit for purpose, Britain’s most senior psychiatrist has warned.

Dr Adrian James, the president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, urged the government to fund six new mental health hospitals as part of its promise to build 48 new hospitals by 2030. The Guardian

Chris Whitty tells medics they have a 'professional responsibility' to get vaccinated against Covid

Chris Whitty tells medics they have a 'professional responsibility' to get vaccinated against Covid Sir Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, today publicised his letter to NHS colleagues urging them to take up the offer of a Covid vaccine to protect their patients from the deadly virus. The Daily Mail

See also: 

• AstraZeneca vaccine: Did nationalism spoil UK's 'gift to the world'? BBC News
• Minister sorry for not ending visit after Covid result BBC News
• More-infectious 'stealth' Omicron variant makes up 4% of Covid cases in the US The Daily Mail
• Pfizer forecasts $54 billion in revenue in 2022 from sales of its Covid vaccine and antiviral pill The Daily Mail
• Daily Covid cases collapse by 41% in a week to just 66,183 The Daily Mail
• Long Covid fuelling staff absences among UK employers, research finds The Independent