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CQC admits it is failing to keep patients safe

The Care Quality Commission has admitted it is failing to keep patients “safe” and is losing the confidence of ministers and the NHS, HSJ  has discovered.

HSJ has seen part of an internal “problem statement” produced by interim chief executive Kate Terroni. It says that “stakeholders and the Department of Health and Social Care are losing confidence in our ability to deliver our purpose”.

The statement adds: “The way we work is not working and we are not consistently keeping people who use services safe.

“Our people are not able to effectively identify and manage risk and encourage improvement and innovation.

“Our organisational structure, flow of decision making, roles, internal and external relationships do not promote a productive and credible way of working.” 

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Source: HSJ, 26 June 2024

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CQC admits it falsely claimed not to know about trust maternity concerns

The Care Quality Commission has admitted it did know about concerns over the death of a baby at a trust being investigated for serious maternity failures after initially denying it had been informed.

Baby Harriet Hawkins died during her mother’s six-day labour at Nottingham City Hospital in 2016 following a series of mistakes by hospital staff. 

Last year, the CQC launched an independent external review after Harriet’s parents Sarah and Jack claimed a right of reply statement provided by the regulator to the ITV documentary Maternity: Broken Trust was “dishonest”.

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Source: HSJ, 28 November 2025

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Covid’s effect on mental health not as great as first thought, study suggests

Covid-19 may not have taken as great a toll on the mental health of most people as earlier research has indicated, a new study suggests.

The pandemic resulted in “minimal” changes in mental health symptoms among the general population, according to a review of 137 studies from around the world led by researchers at McGill University in Canada, and published in the British Medical Journal.

Brett Thombs, a psychiatry professor at McGill University and senior author, said some of the public narrative around the mental health impacts of Covid-19 were based on “poor-quality studies and anecdotes”, which became “self-fulfilling prophecies”, adding that there was a need for more “rigorous science”.

However, some experts disputed this, warning such readings could obscure the impact on individual groups such as children, women and people with low incomes or pre-existing mental health problems. They also said other robust studies had reached different conclusions.

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Source: The Guardian, 8 March 2023

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Covid: Younger adults at risk of organ damage

A new study has found younger adults admitted to hospital with Covid-19 may suffer similar complications as to those over 50 year old. 

The research, conducted by 7 different universities, the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England found that around half of all adult patients in hospital with Covid-19 suffered a least one complication.

Professor Calum Semple who led the work has said, "The message is that this is not just a disease of the elderly and frail".

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Source: BBC News, 16 July 2021

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Covid: Woman left blind after treatment delayed in pandemic

A woman has become blind after her monthly eye injections were delayed for four months during lockdown.

Helen Jeremy, 73, said everything she enjoyed doing has "gone out of the window" after losing her eyesight. She has glaucoma and was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration four years ago.

Monthly injections controlled the condition and meant she could still drive and play the piano. However, her appointments were cancelled when the pandemic struck and her eyesight deteriorated.

"I was panicking. It was terrifying. Because I'm a widow I'm on my own and it was awful," she said.

"Suddenly my eyesight was basically gone. By the time of my next appointment I was told there was no point in going on with these injections because the damage had been done to the back of my eye."

Thousands more people in Wales are at risk of "irreversible sight loss" because of treatment delays, RNIB Cymru warns.

The Welsh Government said health boards are working to increase services.

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Source: BBC News, 27 November 2020

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Covid: Where are the seven mass vaccination centres opening next week?

The government has confirmed plans to open seven new mass vaccination centres across England next week.

The seven centres opening are:

  • ExCel Centre (Nightingale), London
  • Etihad Tennis and Football Centre, Manchester
  • Centre for Life, Newcastle
  • Robertson House, Stevenage
  • Epsom Downs racecourse, Surrey
  • Ashton Gate Stadium, Bristol
  • Millennium Point, Birmingham

The exact opening dates for each site have yet to be established, however the prime minister’s official spokesperson said they would be opening “next week”. More details on how the vaccination sites will operate are expected to be revealed over the coming days. 

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Source: The Independent, 6 January 2021

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Covid: What is the mental health cost to the young?

Young people's risk of becoming ill with COVID-19 is tiny - but could the long-term mental health impact of virus restrictions be far more damaging?

A growing number of psychologists, psychiatrists and child health experts believe the needs of the young are being ignored in this pandemic.

Prof Ellen Townsend, an expert in child and adolescent self-harm and suicide from Nottingham University, says the way students are being treated "is massively damaging for their mental health".

"It doesn't make sense to lock up young people," she says. "We have to move past this one disease - a more nuanced approach is needed."

She is not alone - a group of UK academics who work with children and adolescents have set up an online noticeboard collecting scientific evidence that these age groups are being forgotten by policy-makers.

Problems such as self-harm and anxiety were already on the rise before lockdown, particularly among teenagers, with one in eight children and young people estimated to have a mental health condition. There is a lack of hard evidence, but research suggests growing feelings of loneliness and social isolation during the pandemic have had a negative impact.

A study in The Lancet Psychiatry found children's mental health deteriorated most during that period compared with other age groups.

More worrying was the "massive drop-off" in troubled children and teenagers being sent to specialist psychiatrists over several months - from 40 a day to four a day, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Although services stayed open during lockdown, either the message didn't get through or people were too frightened to make contact. The fear is that these young people could now become more seriously ill without the help they need. Eating disorders, which have a high death rate, are a particular concern.

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Source: BBC News, 10 October 2020

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Covid: Wales' NHS doctors 'bullied for raising safety fears'

Doctors in Wales have faced bullying and disciplinary action for raising concerns over working conditions and safety, a union leader has said.

Dr Phil Banfield, of BMA Wales, said doctors who complained about work, both before and during the Covid pandemic, were seen as "troublemakers".

He said there are worries bullying among staff will get worse as longer post-Covid waiting lists are tackled.

The Welsh government said bullying of NHS staff was "entirely unacceptable".

Dr Banfield, who is chairman of the BMA Welsh consultants' committee, said staff have faced the prospect of being victimised by colleagues, or even being forced to leave the Welsh NHS, for raising concerns over bullying or health and safety.

He said: "Staff are quite good at raising concerns, but they don't raise concerns if they're going get in trouble for it, or they sense nothing is going to happen. What happens is you think 'I can't be bothered'.

"Decent people develop a kind of learned helplessness and it means that people who keep raising concerns stand out."

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Source: BBC News, 15 May 2021

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Covid: Vulnerable NHS patients to be offered new drug

A new Covid drug designed to reduce the risk of vulnerable patients needing hospital treatment will be available on the NHS from today.

Sotrovimab is a monoclonal antibody given as a transfusion to transplant recipients, cancer patients and other high-risk groups. If given quickly after symptoms develop it is should help prevent people from falling seriously ill with the disease.

Initial tests suggest it should still work against the Omicron variant.

"These new drugs have an important role to play," said Prof Steven Powis, the national medical director of NHS England.

"If you test positive and are at high risk then we will be contacting you, and, if eligible, you will be able to get access to these new treatments."

Around 1.3 million of the highest risk NHS patients are eligible to receive Sotrovimab, along with other new Covid treatments as they become available.

The drug is most effective if taken in the first five days after infection and is likely to be given in clinics or to outpatients in hospital.

It has been approved for use in vulnerable groups - such as those with cancer, diabetes or heart disease.

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Source: BBC News, 20 December 2021

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Covid: Vaccine offered to all care home residents in England, says NHS

Coronavirus vaccines have been offered to residents at every eligible care home for the elderly in England, according to health officials.

NHS England said that more than 10,000 homes had been visited by staff delivering the jab in a bid to prioritise those most vulnerable to COVID-19.

Vaccinations were postponed at a small number of homes for safety reasons during a local outbreak and some residents have not received a jab for clinical reasons.

However, staff will return to those homes as soon as possible, a spokesperson for NHS England said.

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Source: The Independent, 1 February 2021

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Covid: Vaccine complications dwarfed by virus risks

A major review of vaccines suggests the AstraZeneca jab does raise the risk of blood clots and another serious condition that can cause bleeding. However, the study also found the complications following coronavirus infection to be much higher.

The University of Oxford-led team also found an increased risk of stroke after the Pfizer jab but also found it at a much lower rate than after infection. This comes after a coroner ruled that BBC Radio Newcastle presenter Lisa Shaw died due of complications from the AstraZeneca jab.

Lead author Professor Julia Hippisley-Cox said it was "important people were aware of the risks, but that they were kept in context given the higher risk from being infected".

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Source: BBC News, 26 August 2021

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Covid: Up to one in four admitted to hospital for other reasons

New data from the NHS suggests 23% of patients with Covid infections were admitted into hospital for other reasons. 

The government has denied the numbers were previously overstated due to NHS pressures, with each patient being tested for Covid whenever they come into hospital, regardless of the reason. This measure has been said as "still the most important" by the The Department for Health and Social Care because of the impact patients who have tested positive can have on NHS capacity and workforce pressure.

"The main role for hospitalisation statistics is to indicate the pressure on the NHS. Patients with Covid have to be treated in a resource-intensive way, whether Covid was the primary reason for their admission or not, and even if they caught it in hospital. Therefore the total number in hospital with Covid seems an appropriate overall summary statistic, although this new breakdown does provide additional information." Says Prof Sir David Spiegelhalter, from the Winton Centre for Risk and Evidence Communication at the University of Cambridge

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Source: BBC News, 31 July 2021

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Covid: Unpaid carers 'struggled to get pain relief' for terminally ill

Unpaid carers looking after terminally ill friends and relatives during the pandemic struggled to access pain relief, with some patients dying in unnecessary pain, a survey has found.

The survey of 995 unpaid carers by Marie Curie also found people had difficulties getting personal care and respite nursing for loved ones.

Figures show the number of people dying at home rose by 42% in the past year.

Nearly two-thirds of carers surveyed by the charity said their loved one did not get all the pain relief they needed when they were dying.

Susan Lowe, from Solihull, cared for her mother Sheila before she died with bowel cancer in April last year, aged 74.

She said caring for her mum during lockdown was hard as "the system was just under so much pressure that we had to manage largely on our own".

The public health worker says she struggled to get the right pain relief medication for her mother in her final weeks and spent hours travelling to different chemists.

Susan, 50, told the BBC: "My biggest regret is that my mum died in pain - more pain than she needed to be. She really wanted to be comfortable at the end. She knew she was dying."

"What she really wanted - and this is what she was assured would happen - was to be comfortable. She was told she would get the drugs that she needed for it to be as bearable as possible... I remember breaking down in tears a couple of times in the pharmacy when I was told the medication mum needed wasn't in stock."

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Source: BBC News, 8 April 2021

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Covid: UK government wasn't ready for pandemic, report finds

The UK government was not properly prepared for a pandemic like COVID-19, a new report has found.

The report by the National Audit Office (NAO) said the government lacked detailed plans on shielding, job support schemes and school disruption.

The spending watchdog added that lessons needed to be learned.

In response, the government said the unprecedented pandemic had challenged health systems around the world - not just the UK.

The NAO said preparations for a flu pandemic or highly infectious diseases like Ebola were prioritised over diseases with similar characteristics to Covid.

The watchdog said the UK government did not have specific plans to tackle a disease like COVID-19, which has a lower mortality rate than Ebola but has the ability to spread in communities with asymptomatic infected people.

The report suggests the government had some mitigations in place for a pandemic, like a stockpile of personal protective equipment, but it lacked preparation for "wide-ranging impacts" coronavirus and other pandemic-inducing viruses can have on society and the economy.

A government spokesperson said: "We have always said there are lessons to be learned from the pandemic and have committed to a full public inquiry in spring.

"We prepare for a range of scenarios and while there were extensive arrangements in place, this is an unprecedented pandemic that has challenged health systems around the world."

Labour's shadow Cabinet Office minister Fleur Anderson, said the report showed "Conservative ministers failed to prepare and they failed the public".

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Source: BBC News, 19 November 2021

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Covid: UK first country to approve dual-strain vaccine

The UK has become the first country to approve a dual vaccine which tackles both the original Covid virus and the newer Omicron variant.

Ministers say the vaccine will now form part of the autumn booster campaign.

Moderna thinks 13 million doses of its new vaccine will be available this year, but 26 million people are eligible for some form of booster.

Health officials say people should take whichever booster they are offered as all jabs provide protection.

Moderna's latest vaccine - called Spikevax - targets both the original strain and the first Omicron variant (BA.1), which emerged last winter. It is known as a bivalent vaccine as it takes aim at two forms of Covid.

The UK's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has considered the evidence and given the vaccine approval for use in adults.

Dr June Raine, the regulator's chief executive, said: "What this bivalent vaccine gives us is a sharpened tool in our armoury to help protect us against this disease as the virus continues to evolve."

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Source: BBC News, 16 August 2022

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Covid: Time running out to protect vulnerable, campaigners warn

Time is running out for hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people who are facing another winter shielding from Covid, campaigners have said.

They are calling on the government to buy a drug called Evusheld to provide some protection against the virus.

The government says it is not clear how long that protection will last when up against the Omicron variant. But patients, charities and health experts argue the protection offered is better than nothing.

There are around 500,000 people in the UK with suppressed immune systems. That means their bodies struggle to produce antibodies, so the existing vaccines offer them little or no protection, leaving them very vulnerable to Covid.

Blanche Hampton has lupus, a condition where her immune system has turned against her.

The drugs she takes to control the lupus also suppress her immune system, meaning her body has no defences against Covid.

Blanche has been shielding for two and a half years, but she believes Evusheld offers a chance for at least some kind of existence outside of her small flat in Inverkip, west of Glasgow.

"Evusheld would give me a layer of protection, that is better than nothing. Because that's what I have currently - nothing."

And Blanche, like many people who find themselves in the same situation, says she feels abandoned.

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Source: BBC News, 17 October 2022

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Covid: Three in 10 care home staff in England not vaccinated

Three in 10 care home staff have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 despite being in the top four priority groups, according to data from NHS England.

More than 435,000 workers in care homes for older adults are eligible in England, but only 304,600 have received a first dose.

In London, only 52% of staff have had a jab, rising to 75% in the South West.

The UK target of vaccinating 15 million people was met at the weekend. However, these figures, up to 14 February, suggest there are large groups of care workers, who are in the top four priority groups, who have still not come forward.

Some care home staff have previously said they refused the vaccine because of "cultural issues", but organisations representing care providers say they must be convinced to have one - to protect them and the services they work in.

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Source: BBC News, 18 February 2021

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Covid: Stillbirth and prematurity risks may be higher

A large UK study suggests having coronavirus around the time of birth may increase the chance of stillbirths and premature births - although the overall risks remain low.

Scientists say while most pregnancies are not affected, their findings should encourage pregnant women to have jabs as soon as they are eligible.

The majority are offered vaccines when they are rolled out to their age group.

The study appears in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. The research, led by the National Maternity and Perinatal Audit, looked at data involving more than 340,000 women who gave birth in England between the end of May 2020 and January 2021.

Researchers say a higher risk of stillbirth and prematurity, as well as a greater chance of having a Caesarean section, remained even once factors such as the mother's age, ethnicity, socio-economic background and common health conditions were taken into account.

Babies born to women who tested positive were more likely to need special neonatal intensive care because they were born early and needed more support - rather than being infected with coronavirus itself.

Professor Asma Khalil, co-author of the paper, said it was important for women and healthcare workers to be aware of the potential risks.

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Source: BBC News, 21 May 2021

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Covid: Staff propped up care homes without extra pay, says report

Many care home staff worked extra hours without extra pay to prop up the system during the pandemic, a study suggests.

Public money helped stabilise UK care homes during the first wave of Covid-19 but it was withdrawn too soon and not focused on staff, says the research, led by Warwick Business School.

The researchers studied the accounts of more than 4,000 UK care home companies, from just before the pandemic and during the first year of the health crisis.

They found nearly two thirds (60%) of care homes were already financially fragile as the pandemic took hold.

The report concludes: "The decision by government to end financial support for care home companies after the peak of the pandemic had passed has likely contributed to the current financial and operational difficulties experienced by the sector."

It states the financial plight of many staff and the immense pressure they were under "means it is not surprising the care home sector has struggled to both recruit and retain staff once lockdown restrictions were removed and the wider economy re-opened".

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Source: BBC News, 12 April 2023

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Covid: Some asthma patients being told to wait longer for vaccine

People with asthma who are eligible for a coronavirus vaccine are being refused it by some GPs who are not following government guidance, the BBC has found.

An NHS England letter sent to GPs in mid-February says people who have "ever had an emergency asthma admission" to hospital fall into priority group six, which is currently being vaccinated.

But some patients are being told a hospital admission within the past 12 months is required.

GPs say they look at various factors, including age and ethnicity, as well as some degree of clinical judgement, the Royal College of GPs said.

Charity Asthma UK says a lot of people have been in touch with them to report this issue, and they've had thousands of calls to their helpline asking for advice on coronavirus and the vaccine rollout over the past year.

Sarah Woolnough, chief executive of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation, said: "We know that there are different interpretations of the official guidance from GP surgery staff and we're not sure why exactly this is happening."

"We know that GPs are very busy and trying to vaccinate so many people quickly, and keep on top of very complex daily new information about COVID-19 and the vaccination programme. But it's essential that GPs follow official guidance, so that people with asthma who need to be prioritised are protected now.''

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Source: BBC News, 5 March 2021

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Covid: Six of 10 inspected hospitals ‘non-compliant’ with infection-control procedures (Republic of Ireland)

According to the state's health watchdog Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa), six out of 10 hospitals inspected last year were non-compliant with aspects of infection-control procedures against Covid-19. 

Recurring issues such as poor physical infrastructure, capacity issues and workforce challenges were found to hinder efforts to cope with the pandemic, and despite investments, issues around infrastructure and capacity have been worsened by the pandemic.  

“In most instances, we found an effective approach to adapt to this unprecedented crisis in hospitals. However, hospitals’ efforts were made more difficult due to underlying historic problems with infrastructure, limited bed capacity and unequal or limited access to specialist workforce input and advice – problems that Hiqa’s prior monitoring work against national standards has consistently highlighted.”  said Hiqa’s director of regulation, Mary Dunnion.

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Source: Irish Times, 10 August 2021

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Covid: Shropshire hospitals 'discharging patients who then infect their families'

Patients with coronavirus have been discharged from a hospital and infected family members, a councillor claimed.

Heather Kidd,  a Liberal Democrat member of Shropshire Council, said a woman in south Shropshire told her that her husband had been "sent home with Covid". 

She initially found evidence of four cases but said those were the "tip of the iceberg" with more coming to light.

The medical director of Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) said they were following guidelines, but would look into the "concerning" cases.

Ms Kidd said since she first spoke out, she had been contacted by a number of people who have had Covid-positive family members discharged from the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the Princess Royal in Telford back into their homes.

Arne Rose, the medical director at SaTH, said there was now a "special swab squad" testing patients every 24 hours as opposed to every 48 hours. He said some patients, who after 28 days of their first positive Covid test were no longer considered infectious, would be the subject of a "careful risk assessment".  They could then be discharged with advice on self-isolating at home.

"The cases... sound concerning," Mr Rose said, adding he would investigate to "learn if anything went wrong."

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Source: BBC News, 7 March 2021

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Covid: Scientists reveal ‘perfect’ room layout to prevent spread of virus

The ‘optimal layout’ for an isolation room to contain the spread of Covid has been created following tests at a London hospital.

The room was designed by researchers at Imperial College London to reduce the risk of infection for health care staff as far as possible.

Researchers used a state-of-the-art fluid model to simulate the transmission of the virus within an isolation room at the Royal Brompton Hospital in Chelsea, west London.

They found that the area of highest risk of infection is above a patient’s bed at a height of 0.7 to two metres, where the highest concentration of Covid is found.

After the virus is expelled from a patient’s mouth, the research team explained that it gets driven vertically by wind forces within the room.

The research, published in the journal Physics of Fluids, is based on data collected from the room during a Covid patient’s stay.

The work centred on the location of the room’s air extractor and filtration rates, the location of the bed, and the health and safety of the hospital staff working within the area.

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Source: The Independent, 8 February 2023

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Covid: Schools aren't infection hubs, says public health boss

Public Health England's medical director has said schools are not "drivers" or "hubs" of Covid infection.

"We understand, and I understand fully, that parents may be nervous but I would stress again that schools are not the drivers and not the hubs of infection." Said Dr Yvonne Doyle.

However, Prof Calum Semple, a government scientific adviser, said with most adults vaccinated, schools were likely to be a "greater part of the problem"

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Source: BBC News, 02 September 2021

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Covid: Sajid Javid orders review of medical device racial bias

A review into whether medical devices are equally effective regardless of the patient's ethnicity has been ordered by Health Secretary Sajid Javid.

Research suggests oximeters, which are clipped to a person's finger, can overstate the level of oxygen in the blood of people from ethnic minorities.

Ministers want to know whether bias could have prevented patients receiving appropriate Covid treatment.

Mr Javid said any bias was "totally unacceptable".

But the doctors' union the British Medical Association (BMA) said the review should not simply look at equipment, but also "structural issues" within healthcare that affect ethnic minorities.

Mr Javid announced the review in the Sunday Times, saying he was determined to "close the chasms that the pandemic has exposed".

Asked later on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether he thought people had died of Covid because of pulse oximeters, Mr Javid said: "I think possibly yes, yes. I don't have the full facts."

He said there was racial bias in some medical instruments, adding: "It's unintentional but it exists."

"And the reason is that a lot of these medical devices, even some of the drugs, some of the procedures, some of the textbooks, most of them are put together in majority white countries and I think this is a systemic issue around this," he said.

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Source: BBC News, 21 November 2021

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