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Sam

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  1. Sam
    More patients and healthcare staff will benefit from single electronic patient records as 7 hospital trusts receive a share of £8.7 million to introduce digital records and e-prescribing, Minister for Patient Safety Nadine Dorries announced today on World Patient Safety Day.
    The roll-out has already been introduced to over 130 NHS trusts, and is part of a £78 million investment to deliver the ambition set out in the NHS Long Term Plan to introduce electronic prescribing systems across the NHS.
    NHS trusts will now be able to more quickly access potentially lifesaving information on prescribed medicines and patient history, and build a more complete, single electronic patient record, which reduces duplication of information-gathering, saves staff time and can reduce medication errors by up to 30%.
    The funding was announced at a virtual conference organised by Imperial College London to mark World Patient Safety Day. 
    Read press release
    Source: Gov.uk, 17 September 2020
  2. Sam
    Today, the nonpartisan nonprofit Patient Safety Movement Foundation will lead a demonstration in the nation’s capital to raise awareness for the patient safety crisis that claims more than 200,000 lives annually in the U.S. due to preventable medical harm.
    The demonstration begins from Freedom Plaza and participants will walk down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol Lawn, where they will hold a remembrance of loved ones lost needlessly to preventable medical errors. The demonstrators will also demand the creation of a National Patient Safety Board to implement data-driven standards, transparency, accountability, and aligned incentives.
    “COVID-19 has exposed the safety gaps in our healthcare system that already cause 200,000 deaths a year,” said Dr. David B. Mayer, CEO of the Patient Safety Movement Foundation. “Many of us also have very personal stories of loss and tragedy related to preventable medical harm. Now is the time for change and improvement as we work toward zero preventable patient deaths by 2030.”
    Read full story
    Source: Patient Safety Movement
  3. Sam
    People requiring A&E will be urged to book an appointment through NHS 111 under a trial in parts of England. The aim is to direct patients to the most clinically-appropriate service and to help reduce pressure on emergency departments as staff battle winter pressures, such as coronavirus and flu.
    The pilots are live in Cornwall, Portsmouth, Hampshire and Blackpool and have just begun in Warrington. 
    If they are successful, they could be rolled out to all trusts in December. However, people with a life-threatening condition should still call 999.
    Under the new changes, patients will still be able to seek help at A&E without an appointment, but officials say they are likely to end up waiting longer than those who have gone through 111.
    More NHS 111 call handlers are being brought in to take on the additional workload, alongside extra clinicians, the Department of Health and Social Care said.
    A campaign called Help Us Help You will launch later in the year to urge people to use the new service.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 17 September 2020
  4. Sam
    Health inspectors have uncovered multiple problems with infection control and the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in care homes in England ahead of a second spike in COVID-19, which is starting to be detected in care facilities across the country.
    The Care Quality Commission (CQC) found homes where PPE was not being worn and that had out-of-date infection prevention policies and were failing to take steps to protect black and minority ethnic residents and staff who have been identified as potentially more vulnerable to the virus.
    The checks took place last month in 59 English care homes and were triggered by concerns about safety and quality or complaints by residents, staff and relatives.
    The checks precede a government announcement within days of a winter infection control fund that is expected to broadly match the £600m already committed this year. The fund will pay additional staff costs stemming from using fewer highly mobile temporary workers, who have been shown to spread the virus.
    However, the CQC inspections found PPE being worn inconsistently by staff members, limited supplies of masks in some places, and a failure to store PPE safely away from infection risk.
    “We found examples of infection prevention and control policies that were out of date,” the inspectors said. “Some had been updated early on in the Covid-19 outbreak but had not been amended since and so contained out-of-date information. This posed a risk to the staff and people who live in the care home. Others had not been updated since 2019. One care home had completed a [contingency] plan, but it only covered the hot weather and did not include preparations for autumn and winter.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 16 September 2020
  5. Sam
    Thousands of stroke patients have suffered avoidable disability because NHS care for them was disrupted during the pandemic, a report claims.
    Many people who had just had a stroke found it harder to obtain clot-busting drugs or undergo surgery to remove a blood clot from their brain, both of which need to happen quickly.
    Rehabilitation services, which are vital to help reduce the impact of a stroke, also stopped working normally as the NHS focused on Covid, the Stroke Association said. It is concerned “many could lose out on the opportunity to make their best possible recovery”.
    Juliet Bouverie, the charity’s chief executive, said: “Strokes didn’t stop because of the pandemic. Despite the tireless efforts of frontline clinicians who have gone to herculean efforts to maintain services under extremely difficult conditions, some treatments still became unavailable and most stroke aftercare ground to a halt. This means more stroke survivors are now living with avoidable, unnecessary disability.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 17 September 2020
  6. Sam
    Detainees held in an immigration centre in the US have been subjected to potentially unnecessary hysterectomies performed without informed consent, a nurse whistleblower has alleged.
    Dawn Wooten, who filed a whistleblower complaint with the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security, says she was demoted and her hours slashed after she complained about substandard medical care, questionable surgeries on women, and failure to protect detainees and staff from COVID-19.
    A report of the charges1 was filed by four non-profit rights and welfare groups on behalf of the detained immigrants at the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia, which is operated by the private prison company, LaSalle Corrections.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: BMJ, 16 September 2020
  7. Sam
    Ministers have given the green light for NHS England and Improvement to consult before December on a proposed new basket of metrics to replace the four-hour accident and emergency target.
    The Department of Health and Social Care announced the move, a significant step towards ditching the target, while confirming another batch of winter capital funding allocations, and confirming a national “111 first” model.
    The announcement does however mean the process of replacing the four-hour target with new A&E standards will move slower than NHSE/I had outlined this summer. It said in July it wanted the new A&E standards in place before winter, a plan also backed by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine as revealed by HSJ.
    These moves come amid mounting concern that people unable to get COVID-19 tests are heading to emergency departments; and that some emergency departments are now becoming busy with growing non-covid demand. 
    The proposals for the consultation have not yet been finalised. HSJ understands they will consist of work largely drawn up by NHSE’s clinical review of standards group before March but put on hold when the COVID-19 outbreak hit the UK.
    Likely choices for the metrics are: time to initial clinical assessment in A&E, time to emergency treatment for critically ill, mean waiting time, and a new 12-hour metric where the clock starts from when the patient arrives at the emergency department rather than at decision to admit as is currently the case.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 17 September 2020
  8. Sam
    An acute hospital in Greater Manchester is now experiencing a spike in coronavirus patients, following weeks of high infection rates in the community. 
    Figures released by Bolton Foundation Trust today said it currently has 26 suspected covid patients, including three in critical care. These are the highest numbers reported by the trust since the end of May.For most of July, August and early September, the trust had fewer than five covid patients on its wards at any one time.
    The borough of Bolton has reported high infection weeks for several weeks, with the latest figures suggesting 200 infections per 100,000 people, the highest rate in the country.
    Dr Francis Andrews, the trust’s medical director, said: “We are seeing more people being admitted with confirmed or suspected covid-19 as a result of the very high rate of infections in Bolton.
    “This is not a shift we want to see. The situation at the hospital is under control and we were well prepared for this. However, the rate continuing to rise is of concern, and we continue to urge the people of Bolton to consider others when making decisions that could jeopardise their safety."
    Read full story (paywalled) 
    Source: HSJ, 15 September 2020
  9. Sam
    A UK oncologist with a world reputation is facing allegations by the General Medical Council that he provided medication inappropriately in an attempt to keep terminally ill patients alive.
    Justin Stebbing, professor of cancer medicine and oncology at Imperial College London, who has a private practice in Harley Street, faces allegations at a medical practitioners tribunal of failing to provide good clinical care to 11 patients between March 2014 and March 2017.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: BMJ, 15 September 2020
  10. Sam
    A protective device against coronavirus for at-risk doctors is to be provided free to the NHS.
    The SNAP device for ear, nose and throat surgeons was created after Burton-upon-Trent consultant Amged El-Hawrani died with COVID-19 in March. He was one of the UK's first senior medics to die with the virus, his death showing that they were at serious risk.
    The device clips over patients' masks to prevent the virus spreading through coughs and sneezes. It was developed by surgeons Ajith George and Chris Coulson, with the help of Aston University, who said nasendoscopy procedures - where a small flexible tube fitted with a camera is inserted into the nose - often made patients cough, splutter and sneeze.
    It works by clipping on to either side of a normal surgical face mask, creating a hole for an endoscope to be inserted while keeping the patient's nose and mouth completely covered. When it is removed, a one-way valve closes the hole so no virus can escape.
    "We were concerned about the safety of doctors but also about the risk of missed diagnoses and opportunities for treatment of patients," Mr Coulson, an ENT surgeon working at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, said.
    "Our aim has been to produce an easy-to-use, cheap device that would allow clinicians to return to routine practice."
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 16 September 2020
  11. Sam
    Tens of thousands of people may require kidney dialysis or transplants because of coronavirus, according to experts who warn the long-term effects of Covid are causing an “epidemic in primary care”.
    Up to 90% of coronavirus patients admitted to hospital may still experience symptoms two to three months later – from breathlessness to joint pain, fatigue and chest pain – scientists told the Lords science and technology committee on Tuesday.
    Donal O’Donoghue, a consultant renal physician at Salford Royal NHS trust, said damage to the kidneys was of major concern. It is believed the virus may attack the organ directly, he said, while the kidneys could also be injured by body-wide inflammation caused by the virus.
    “Normally we see maybe 20% of people that go on to intensive care unit need to have a form of dialysis. During Covid it was up to 40% – and 85% of people had some degree of kidney injury,” he said. “No doubt that is happening out in the community as well, probably to a lesser extent.”
    Tom Solomon, professor of neurology at the University of Liverpool, told the committee more needed to be done to support Covid survivors. “[GPs] are seeing lots of patients who are left over with problems from their Covid and they need to be able to refer them to get help in understanding what is going on,” he said, adding: “This is really the current epidemic in primary care.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 15 September 2020
  12. Sam
    "It’s March and I’m lying awake at 3am struggling to breathe. There’s a heaviness in my chest. I’m terrified at the speed and inconsistency of my heartbeat, but I’m too afraid to call for medical help again. They’ve told me that it will get better and I need to persevere. I live on my own, and I’m trying to control my panic."
    Six months later Louise Cole is still dealing with the symptoms. Like thousands of others, it turns out she has “long Covid”. Like them, Louise has struggled to be taken seriously by doctors. 
    "While for some life is slowly returning to normal, the same cannot be said for long-term COVID-19 patients. Forgetting us is not an option — not least because the burden of caring for people like me is something the NHS and government will have to reckon with. Something must be done to ease our suffering — and that starts with paying us some attention."
    Read full story
    Source: Evening Standard, 11 September 2020
  13. Sam
    A damning report into Devon’s NHS 111 and out of hours GP service has revealed shocking stories of patients who have either had their health put at risk or tragically died due to the service being in need of urgent improvement.
    Devon Doctors Limited, which provides an Urgent Integrated Care Service (UICS) across Devon and Somerset, was inspected by independent health and social care regulator the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in July, after concerns were raised about the service.
    They included the care and treatment of patients, deaths and serious incidents, call waits, staff shortages, and low morale. Inspectors found 'deep rooted issues'. The CQC concluded it was not assured that patients were being treated promptly enough and, in some cases, they had not received safe care or treatment.
    It is calling for the service to make urgent improvements which will be closely monitored.
    Since August 2019, the report stated Devon Doctors had received 179 complaints. Nine had been identified by the service as incidents of high risk of harm and six had been identified by the service as incidents of moderate risk of harm.
    These had been recorded on the service’s significant event log. However, on review, the CQC identified an additional 30 events from the complaints log which could also have been classed as either moderate or high risk of harm.
    Read full story
    Source: Devon Live, 15 September 2020
  14. Sam
    A lack of coronavirus tests for NHS staff is leading to staff absences and services being put at risk, hospital bosses have warned.
    NHS Providers, which represents hospital trusts in England, said staff are having to self-isolate rather than work because they cannot get tests for themselves or family members. It comes after widespread reports of people struggling to get tested.
    The home secretary defended the system, saying capacity was increasing.
    The government's testing system - part of its test, track and trace operation which Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised would be "world-beating" - has faced criticism in recent weeks. An increase in demand for coronavirus tests has led to local shortages - with some people being directed to test sites hundreds of miles from their homes.
    One doctor working in a coronavirus hotspot said she applied for a test for herself and her partner after they developed coughs and fevers. After refreshing the website for five hours, she managed to get an appointment but on arrival was told no booking had been made.
    She had taken screenshots of a confirmation code but was not sent a QR code to scan. "I showed the screenshots but I was told that the appointments weren't happening," she said.
    "I have to say I burst into tears. I was meant to be seeing patients and I feel guilty."
    Dr Rachel Ward, a GP in Newbury, told BBC Breakfast she was seeing a lot of patients who were struggling to get tests, saying a lot of families were "at the end of their tether" as it was "very stressful when you are faced with two weeks off work".
    She said if the staff at her practice were unable to get tests and had to self-isolate it would have a "huge impact" on patients as some of their healthcare workers are booked in to administer 100 flu jabs in a day.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 14 September 2020
  15. Sam
    A trust which accounted for one in eight of covid deaths in hospital during part of the summer has been criticised by the Care Quality Commission for its infection control.
    Staff did not follow social distancing rules in a staff room at East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust, did not always practise hand hygiene, and the trust had used incorrect PPE, the CQC said.
    In addition, two hourly cleans were not always carried out, soap and hand sanitiser were missing, and the emergency department at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford did not have enough sinks for staff and visitors to wash their hands in. There was also a lack of hand hygiene guidance on display.
    Inspectors added that not all staff understood what needed to be done when a walk-in patient presented with covid symptoms, and the emergency department did not have an escalation plan if areas were crowded and patients could not socially distance.
    The CQC inspected the William Harvey Hospital on 11 August and took enforcement action after the visit. It has yet to publish the report but the initial feedback was summarised in the trust’s latest board papers, together with the trust’s response. 
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 14 September 2020
  16. Sam
    The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has today published an overview report on the lessons learned from notifications of significant incident events in Ireland arising from accidental or unintended medical exposures in 2019. 

    In 2019, HIQA received 68 notifications of significant events of accidental or unintended medical exposures to patients in public and private facilities, which is a small percentage of significant incidents relative to the total number of procedures taking place which can be conservatively estimated at over three million exposures a year.

    The most common errors reported were patient identification failures, resulting in an incorrect patient receiving an exposure. These errors happened at various points in the patient pathway which, while in line with previous reporting nationally and international data, highlights an area for improvement.

    John Tuffy, Regional Manager for Ionising Radiation, said “The overall findings of our report indicate that the use of radiation in medicine in Ireland is generally quite safe for patients. The incidents which were reported to HIQA during 2019 involved relatively low radiation doses which posed limited risk to service users. However, there have been radiation incidents reported internationally which resulted in severe detrimental effects to patients so ongoing vigilance and attention is required."
    John Tuffy, continued “As the regulator of medical exposures, HIQA has a key role in the receipt and evaluation of notifications received. While a significant event is unwanted, reporting is a key demonstrator of a positive patient safety culture. A lack of reporting does not necessarily demonstrate an absence of risk. Reporting is important, not only to ensure an undertaking is compliant but because it improves general patient safety in a service and can minimise the probability of future preventative events occurring.”
    Read full story
    Source: HIQA, 9 September 2020
  17. Sam
    A third of those who died with diagnosed or suspected COVID-19 in English hospitals did so at Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care Foundation Trust in the seven days to 10 September.
    The Greater Manchester Trust has seen a significant rise in COVID-19 deaths, from a weekly total of five on 4 September to 18 six days later. The total number of COVID-19 hospital deaths in the seven days to 10 September across England was 54.
    COVID-19 deaths at Tameside and Glossop had fallen to a weekly total of zero on 23 July, before beginning to climb steadily from 20 August. The last time the trust recorded 18 deaths in a seven-day period was in late April when the pandemic was still close to its first peak.
    The highest seven day figure recorded by the trust was 28, meaning the 10 September figure is equivalent to 64% of its peak covid-19 mortality. Nationally, hospital deaths with the virus are running at less than 1 per cent of the early-April peak.
    No other trust recorded more than three covid-19 deaths during the seven days to 10 September.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 13 September 2020
  18. Sam
    The government has now officially recognised the long-term health implications some people can suffer after contracting coronavirus.
    Lung inflammation, gastrointestinal disturbance, and fatigue are just some of the listed long-term health effects published by Public Health England.
    But it’s no new revelation - as campaigners made up of politicians, expert clinicians and sufferers have fought hard over the past few months to bring what has become known as ‘long covid’ into the public domain.
    One of them is Jo Platt, former Labour MP for Leigh, who says the virus hit her ‘like a train’ in the week before lockdown in March - when it wasn’t possible to get a test. She's been left with symptoms months on - although recently tested negative twice for COVID-19.
    “It was like a train hitting me, like a switch, I felt so unwell for two days. I had general dizziness, fatigue but nothing you could pinpoint. I didn’t have a cough or a temperature, although I felt hot; had gastric trouble; shortness of breath; then it eased and I was okay and thought ‘thank goodness. It must have just been mild’,” Jo said.
    Two days later the symptoms came back, but that spell of illness lasted for two weeks. Jo said she couldn’t get out of bed, suffered intense headaches and a burning sensation in her lungs, was unable to concentrate and couldn’t read.
    “I’m not normally an anxious person, but then came anxiety", she said. "I felt a real sense of dread, a heightened pending sense of doom. It continued on and off for months, and particularly worsened at the weekend.
    The 48-year-old got in touch with her GP who said anxiety was bringing the symptoms on. It wasn’t until a week later when Jo read an article by Professor Paul Garner, of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, who talked about his fight with symptoms, that she realised she wasn't alone.
    “Everything he was saying was the same as what I was going through. I cried and cried. It was all validated. Then the journey began of finding other people - which does make it feel better,” said the mum-of-three.
    Prof Garner has described coronavirus as a 'very bizarre disease' that left him feeling 'repeatedly battered the first two months' and then experiencing lesser episodes in the subsequent four months with continual fatigue.
    “Navigating help is really difficult,” he said in a BMJ webinar.
    With the help of Jo's connections in parliament, Prof Garner, and meetings with the shadow cabinet health team, a support group for long covid sufferers has been formed, which has 20,000 members. They’re calling for recognition, which they finally got from the government on 7 September 7, research and rehab.
    Matt Hancock said at the Health and Social Care Committee the following day: “The long-term impacts of covid are not very strongly correlated with severity of the initial illness. While we have a significant amount of work going into supporting those who come out of hospital, this is not just about people hospitalised.
    “In fact, this is especially relevant for now with the latest rise largely among young people, it doesn't matter how serious your infection was the first time, the impact of long covid can be really debilitating for a long period of time, no matter if your initial illness wasn't all that severe.”
    The Health Secretary, when questioned on calls by the Royal College of GPs for covid clinics, said the NHS has set up clinics, but he is ‘concerned’ that not all GPs know how to ensure people know how to get into those services. “That’s something I am sure we can resolve,” he added.
    Read full story
    Source: Manchester Evening News, 13 September 2020
     
  19. Sam
    Almost 86% of doctors in England say they expect a second peak of coronavirus in the next six months, according to a new survey, as concern continues to grow over a recent rise in cases.
    On Friday, new results from a population-based study suggested the R number for England is now at 1.7, with infections doubling every 7.7 days. While the prevalence of the disease remains lower than it was in the spring, an R value above 1 means cases could grow exponentially.
    Sunday marked the third day in a row that new coronaviruses cases reported for the UK topped 3,000 – the highest figures since May – with 2,837 new cases reported in England alone. While testing has increased over the past months, experts have said this does not fully explain the recent surge.
    In a poll, the British Medical Association (BMA) asked more than 8,000 doctors and medical students in England what their top concerns were out of five possibilities, from a second peak of coronavirus to sickness and burnout among staff and winter pressures, including a possible flu outbreak. Almost 30% of respondents selected a second peak as their number-one worry.
    Overall, 86% of respondents said they believed a second peak of coronavirus during the next six months is either “quite likely” or “very likely”.
    When asked which of a range of factors might risk causing a second peak, almost 90% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that failures of the test-and-trace system posed a risk, while a similar proportion cited a lack of infection-control measures in places like bars and restaurants, and 86% agreed or strongly agreed confusing messaging on public health measures was a risk.
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 14 September 2020
  20. Sam
    The government has written to care home providers in England to warn them of a rise in new coronavirus infections within the sector.
    A letter from the Department of Health urged care bosses to take "necessary action to prevent and limit outbreaks". Cases were mainly among staff but risked spreading to residents, it said.
    It comes as a further 3,330 positive cases were recorded in the UK - the third consecutive day in which cases have been over 3,000. It brings the total number of confirmed cases to 368,504.
    Friday's letter from the Department of Health and Social Care said testing data had revealed an increase in the number of positive results in care homes and called on the care sector to work with the government.
    "You will know already that we are experiencing a rise in confirmed Covid-19 cases across the UK population," wrote Stuart Miller, director of adult social care delivery.
    "I need to alert you to the first signs this rise is being reflected in care homes too."
    "I am writing at the earliest opportunity, so we can work in partnership to prevent further spread of the disease. The rapid flow of data and information, to and from care providers, is vital to this effort."
    Mr Miller said the infections had been detected chiefly among staff but had been transmitted to residents in some cases. He went on to stress "the importance of regular testing and consistent use of PPE".
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 14 September 2020
  21. Sam
    GP practices are being told they must make sure patients can be seen face to face when they need such appointments.
    NHS England is writing to all practices to make sure they are communicating the fact doctors can be seen in person if necessary, as well as virtually. It's estimated half of the 102 million appointments from March to July were by video or phone call, NHS Digital said.
    However, the Royal College of GPs said any implication GPs had not been doing their job properly was "an insult".
    NHS England said research suggested nearly two thirds of the public were happy to have a phone or video call with their doctor - but that, ahead of winter, they wanted to make sure people knew they could see their GP if needed. Nikki Kanani, medical director of primary care for NHS England, said GPs had adapted quickly in recent months to offer remote consultations and "safe face-to-face care when needed".
    Prof Martin Marshall, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said general practice was "open and has been throughout the pandemic", with a predominantly remote service to help stop the spread of coronavirus.
    He said: "The college does not want to see general practice become a totally, or even mostly, remote service post-pandemic. However, we are still in the middle of a pandemic. We need to consider infection control and limit footfall in GP surgeries - all in line with NHS England's current guidance."
    He said most patients had understood the changes and that clinical commissioning groups had been asked to work with GP practices where face-to-face appointments were not possible - for example, if all GPs were at a high risk from coronavirus.
    "Any implication that they have not been doing their job properly is an insult to GPs and their teams who have worked throughout the pandemic, continued delivering the vast majority of patient care in the NHS and face an incredibly difficult winter ahead," he said.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 14 September 2020
    Research from the college indicated that routine GP appointments were back to near-normal levels for this time of year, after decreasing at the height of the pandemic.
    "Each and every day last week an estimated third of a million appointments were delivered face to face by general practices across the country," added Prof Marshall.
  22. Sam
    Millions of people who are at risk of serious illness from COVID-19 could be asked to start shielding again if infection rates continue to rise, according to reports.
    Officials are planning to send out letters telling the most vulnerable either to stay at home or to follow advice specifically tailored to their health conditions.
    The Daily Telegraph  reports that the new programme will initially target those living in areas with dangerous levels of coronavirus but went on to quote an anonymous official as saying it could be applied to the whole of England if necessary.
    If so, it could affect up to 4.5 million people – more than double the number who were asked to shield at the start of the lockdown in March.
    The new shielding scheme is reportedly based on a "stratified risk model" which would target individuals based on factors such as their underlying health conditions, age, sex and weight. 
    Read full story
    Source: 13 September 2020
  23. Sam
    People across England have told BBC News they are struggling to access coronavirus tests.
    Health Secretary Matt Hancock said last week that no-one should have to travel more than 75 miles for a test, after the BBC revealed some were being sent hundreds of miles away.
    But dozens have now reported being unable to book a swab at all.
    The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said testing capacity was targeted at the hardest-hit areas.
    A significant rise in demand for testing led the government to reduce the number of appointments available in areas of lower prevalence, to prioritise areas with outbreaks. This in turn led to people applying for tests being directed to centres sometimes hundreds of miles away.
    But last Thursday Mr Hancock pledged to put in "immediate" solutions to make sure people did not have to travel more than 75 miles, effective from last Friday. Since then, postcodes entered into the government's booking system return a message suggesting there are no testing centres or home kits available - even if you are an essential worker with symptoms.
    Frances, in Suffolk, tried to apply for a test when her daughter developed a high temperature. She didn't think it was coronavirus but "the rules are the rules". She had understood that anyone with a temperature should apply for a test, and was not able to send either of her children to school until she did.
    "Their teachers need to be kept safe, their classmates need to be kept safe, we need to do the right thing," she said.
    But Frances was also not able to get a home kit, and when she tried to get an appointment at a drive-through centre was told no test sites were found.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 12 September 2020
  24. Sam
    Cases of coronavirus in England are doubling every seven to eight days, research has revealed in the latest figures to show a resurgence of COVID-19.
    The study, known as React-1, is a population surveillance study that began in May and uses swabs from about 120,000 to 160,000 randomly selected people in England across 315 local authority areas each month to track the spread of coronavirus using PCR analysis – the “have you got it now” test.
    “The prevalence of the virus in the population is increasing. We found evidence that it has been accelerating at the end of August and beginning of September,” said Steven Riley, professor of infectious disease dynamics at Imperial College London and a co-author of the work.
    The findings came as, elsewhere, the latest R figure for the UK was reported to be between 1.0 and 1.2, with the number of new infections somewhere between shrinking by 1% and growing by 3% every day.
    Previous rounds of the study revealed a falling prevalence of COVID-19, even as lockdown restrictions were eased: according to data for the period 19 June to 8 July, the prevalence of Covid in the general population was low, and halving every eight to nine days.
    However, the results from the fourth round of the survey suggest that is no longer the case. While the latest findings from the React study have yet to be peer-reviewed, researchers say out of more than 150,000 swabs collected between 22 August and 7 September, 136 tested positive for coronavirus, suggesting 13 people out of every 10,000 in the general population had COVID-19.
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 11 September 2020
  25. Sam
    A hospital boss championed by Matt Hancock has been told to end “a toxic management culture” after doctors were asked to provide fingerprint samples to identify a whistleblower.
    The Royal College of Anaesthetists (RCoA) has urged the chief executive of West Suffolk hospital, Steve Dunn, who Hancock described as an “outstanding leader”, to take urgent action to improve the wellbeing of senior clinicians and “thereby the safety of patients”.
    In a strongly worded letter sent to Dunn in July, seen by the Guardian, the RCoA president, Prof Ravi Mahajan, reminded him that “undermining and bullying behaviour is unacceptable”.
    Following a three-day review of the hospital, Prof Mahajan’s letter said senior anaesthetists had complained about a “toxic management culture that risks impairing their ability to care safely for patients”.
    The incident, and other failings in patient safety, contributed to the hospital becoming the first ever to be relegated by Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspectors from “outstanding” to “requires improvement” in January.
    A spokesman for the trust said: “Ensuring our colleagues work in a supportive, safe environment is good for our staff and means better patient care, which is why we have done extensive work this year to act on feedback about our working culture, including taking action to address the concerns raised by the Royal College of Anaesthetists.”
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    Source: The Guardian, 11 September 2020
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