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  1. News Article
    Teenagers in their final school year and young people starting university will be offered two doses of a vaccine to protect them against meningitis B, the government has announced. The one-off vaccination programme, which will begin in late July, comes after an unprecedented outbreak of meningitis B in Kent earlier this year along with clusters of cases in Dorset and Berkshire that, together, led to the deaths of three young people. While each group of cases involved different strains of MenB, all would have been covered by the vaccine, Bexsero. This is given as two doses at least 28 days apart, and protects against most strains of MenB bacteria, with experts noting the protection is thought to last at least six years. The vaccine will be offered to all young people in the UK born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2008 – teenagers of year-13 age in England and Wales or equivalent school years in Scotland and Northern Ireland – and people under 25 starting university or moving into some residential further education settings for the first time this autumn, including international students. The health secretary, James Murray, said: “The Kent outbreak and recent clusters indicate a possible change to the way MenB affects people. While we assess the latest evidence, we are acting now to help protect young people at highest immediate risk as they enter university and residential colleges this autumn.” Caroline Temmink, the director of vaccination at NHS England, said: “Those eligible will be contacted directly through the NHS app, by text and email, and for those under 25 starting university for the first time they will be able to book their appointment directly with available pharmacies.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 12 June 2026
  2. News Article
    The US has recorded more than 2,000 confirmed measles cases so far this year – near the total of 2,228 recorded in all of 2025, and on track to become the worst year for measles in decades as states struggle with the loss of federal funding for public health. The virus continues to spread in unvaccinated and under-vaccinated communities, including among babies too young to be vaccinated, and it reveals the depths of the twin crises of misinformation and public health in the US. The US recorded 2,030 cases on 4 June, though experts believe the true number is about three times higher. Cases in Utah appear to be winding down, while cases in Virginia and Pennsylvania appear to be picking up. “I think it’s going to be a busy summer,” said Andrew Pavia, a George and Esther Gross presidential professor at the University of Utah who spoke in his personal capacity as an infectious disease expert. Utah has shown a new side of the outbreak. “What makes Utah different than South Carolina and Texas is that it spread throughout the entire state and became much more widely distributed,” Pavia said. Even so, there were two factors that made a difference in whether cases were contained, Pavia noted: “It hit hardest in communities that had relatively low vaccination rates and relatively limited public health departments.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 10 June 2026
  3. News Article
    Three new vaccines are being developed to tackle the rare species of Ebola that has already killed nearly 250 people. The International Aids Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), which is working on one vaccine, said the outbreak was threatening to be the worst ever. The University of Oxford and the pharma company Moderna are also researching vaccines against the Bundibugyo species. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi), which is providing funding to each group, said "every day counts". There are now more than 1,000 suspected cases in the DR Congo with nine confirmed cases in neighbouring Uganda. There is growing concern this outbreak – which was detected only after it had spread in a conflict zone with limited healthcare resources – could reach the size of the largest ever Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014-16. Then, nearly 29,000 people were infected and more than 11,000 died. Dr Mark Feinberg, head of IAVI, said: "I think this is clearly threatening to be as severe an outbreak as that, if not even worse, and development of a vaccine, and other countermeasures, is clearly a priority." It echoes concerns from the medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) which said the situation was "deeply alarming" and never before had "so many cases" been recorded so soon. Read full story Source: BBC News, 1 June 2026
  4. Content Article
    More information about "Is infection prevention and control guidance fit for people? (a blog by Julie Storr)"
    Julie Storr is an expert in the field of patient safety, quality and infection prevention and control (IPC), and a Topic leader for the hub.  In this blog, Julie explores how IPC guidance can inadvertently lead to psychological harm, when it is not applied through a person-centred lens. Drawing on literature and reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic, she questions whether guidance supports both compassion and safety when applied in practice.  Infection prevention and control guidance Healthcare guidance is designed to support the delivery of safe, high quality care by providing clear and consistent recommended best practices based on available evidence. In infection prevention and control (IPC), guidance typically focuses on: transmission routes precautions clinical interventions isolation and a range of environmental controls. At the point of care, guidance is interpreted by health care workers, in context and often under pressure. IPC is widely described as fundamental to patient safety and quality of care. Its foundations in microbiology and epidemiology have saved countless lives and it has deep roots in the biomedical model. From Louis Pasteur to Florence Nightingale, its legacy is grounded in germ theory, surveillance, and control. This has resulted in highly effective, evidence-based systems and has also shaped guidance that is often highly technical, precaution-focused, and written in absolutes. The cost to human connection During COVID-19 the gap between guidance and practice was brought to the forefront. Preventing the transmission of a single infection became the dominant goal, sometimes at the expense of human connection. Stories of people dying without loved ones, or families waving through windows, are reminders that safety without humanity can equally result in harm. This gap between policy and practice became highly visible and caught the attention of many working in the field of IPC and beyond, including myself. Elements of this story have been told many times now, including in a previous blog for Patient Safety Learning. When ‘technically safe’ risks psychologically harm In reviewing a sample of international and national IPC guidelines recently, a few things stood out. Many run to hundreds of pages, detailing precautions in depth. The language is directive, one guideline from the English NHS used the word “must” close to 100 times, reinforcing certainty and compliance. By contrast, words like person-centred, compassion, loneliness, or humanity were rarely, if ever, used. Even anxiety appears only occasionally, often without guidance on how to allay fear. What is less visible in much IPC guidance is the person. This has been described by colleagues as the grey space, where the human dimension is under-specified and staff are left to navigate complexity themselves often under pressure. In those conditions, guidance can quickly become black and white. This can lead to decisions that are technically safe but that may contribute to psychological harms. As one reflection from the period of the pandemic put it, in the case of some loved ones “we protected them to death.” The implementation gap This tension between IPC guidance as written and as experienced in practice reflects a wider challenge, long recognised in patient safety: the implementation gap. As highlighted by Patient Safety Learning, this is the disconnect between patient safety guidance working in theory, but not in practice. Actions that may appear to address patient safety issues failing to account for a wide variety of organisational context, culture and capacities. In the context of IPC, guidance may be evidence-based and technically robust, but if it does not account for the realities of care delivery or the human needs of patients, it risks being applied in ways that are rigid, inconsistent or inadvertently harmful. Patient Safety Learning have emphasised that this gap persists where there is a lack of joined-up approaches, weak systems for sharing learning, limited oversight, and unclear leadership. Building on existing learning There are examples to learn from. Some guidance now acknowledges the psychological impact of isolation on people and a recent IPC guideline from Ireland is strong on person centredness. Frameworks from America and Canada have been developed that support ethical decision-making. But certainly within the guidelines I reviewed, in the majority, these elements are often brief, dare I say tokenistic, a sentence or at most a paragraph in documents of hundreds of pages, rather than embedded. Patient safety literature is increasingly recognising the importance of compassion as a core mechanism for safer care. As one review puts it, “compassionate interactions… can help to identify and address potential risks… that could endanger patient safety”. If IPC guidance is to be truly fit for purpose and for all people, it must move beyond acknowledging person-centredness to embedding it as a core element of patient safety. That means supporting staff to communicate risk in ways that inform rather than alarm, creating space for proportionate discretion, and treating patients and families as partners in prevention rather than passive recipients of rules. IPC can be person-centred. Some are already leading the way. But there is some way to go for this to be fully considered the norm across our health care systems. So where do we go from here? When IPC practitioners were asked on a recent webinar what person-centred IPC looks like, the answers were strikingly human: compassion, empathy, dignity, connection. For those designing, leading and delivering healthcare, a simple question may therefore be useful: Does our guidance support not only the prevention of infection, but the experience of safe, compassionate care? If the answer is not yet fully yes, then there is an opportunity for improvement.
  5. Event
    until
    The Ebola outbreak highlighted significant gaps in monitoring systems for healthcare professionals. Dynamic health information can be challenging to track and respond to effectively, increasing susceptibility to outbreaks of special pathogens. This webinar will describe operational challenges in post-exposure monitoring for Ebola and other special pathogens; explain how digital monitoring tools can strengthen healthcare workers’ safety; identify key design considerations for special pathogen monitoring systems; discuss how Ebola preparedness lessons can be applied to other special pathogens; evaluate how drills and simulations validate readiness; reveal near misses; test escalation pathways; improve coordination between occupational health, infection prevention, supervisors, emergency management, and public health; and recognise the importance of human oversight in digital preparedness systems. Register
  6. News Article
    Australia has recorded its first diphtheria death in almost a decade as the country grapples with the worst outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease in decades. In March, the Northern Territory (NT) declared an outbreak of diphtheria with cases also in Western Australia, South Australia and Queensland. Cases started rising in late-2025 with a sharp increase in February. This year, there have been 245 cases, marking the largest outbreak in Australia since 1991, mainly in remote Indigenous communities. On Tuesday, NT's health minister said autopsy results from an overseas lab found diphtheria was the cause of a man's death in April at Royal Darwin Hospital, the first such case since 2018. In recent weeks, the government has ramped up vaccination efforts in areas most at risk and the number of new cases was now falling, health officials said on Tuesday. "Our government has taken this situation very seriously, and we are working hard to understand the causes and working to contain the situation," NT Health Minister Steve Edgington said. Since 30 March, there have been 10,407 vaccinations, he said. Authorities are urging affected communities to update their vaccinations, especially teenagers and adults who need to get booster shots. Read full story Source: The Independent, 26 May 2026
  7. News Article
    Australia is grappling with its “biggest diphtheria outbreak“ in decades as the bacterial infection continues to spread through Northern Territory. The country’s top medical body is now urging all Australians to ensure they are fully vaccinated against diphtheria following a resurgence of the Victorian-era disease. Most of the nearly 220 cases reported so far are in Northern Territory, Western Australia, South Australia, and Queensland. Diphtheria can cause swollen glands, breathing problems and fever. The bacterial disease mostly affects children. It was considered almost eradicated following a vaccination rollout that began in the 1930s. The current outbreak is being blamed on a dip in vaccination rates. Cases began to rise in 2025, prompting the Northern Territory Centre for Disease Control to declare an outbreak in March. Almost all cases have involved Indigenous Australians, which has pushed health authorities to work with Aboriginal agencies to improve immunisation. Health authorities were awaiting the outcome of an investigation into a suspected diphtheria death, which could be the first fatality from the disease in almost a decade. "We've been recording case numbers nationally for about 35 years and this, by a very big distance, is the biggest outbreak of diphtheria we've ever seen,” federal health minister Mark Butler said. Read full story Source: The Independent, 20 May 2026
  8. News Article
    A risk assessment should be carried out on Glasgow's entire Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus, a leading safety expert has told BBC Scotland News. Andrew Poplett, who conducted safety reviews for the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, said it was "incredibly difficult" to say whether the hospital was safe or unsafe for all patients. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has admitted there were failings with the hospital when it opened and now accepts that some patient infections were probably linked to contaminated water. The board has said the whole hospital is now safe but families and lawyers for the public inquiry say they want to see further evidence to back this up. The Scottish Hospitals Inquiry was ordered in 2019 after a number of deaths and high levels of infection at the QEUH campus, which had opened just four years earlier. The inquiry drew to a close in January and Lord Brodie's final report is expected later this year. Engineer Andrew Poplett was the independent expert who wrote reports on water and ventilation, external for the inquiry. First Minister John Swinney and the health board have said Poplett's evidence supported the claim that both the QEUH and the Royal Hospital for Children, on the same site, were now safe. But in an exclusive interview with BBC Scotland News, Poplett said it was "incredibly difficult to give a black and white 'safe or unsafe' answer". He said this was because of the complexity of assessing risk when caring for vulnerable patients. Popplett said: "If you want to reassure the public that this building is safe, do a risk assessment. "You don't need to wait for a final report from the public inquiry." Read full story Source: BBC News, 12 May 2026
  9. News Article
    The drive to hit green targets was prioritised over patient safety when the beleaguered Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) was built in Glasgow, a key expert has warned. Andrew Poplett, an engineer specialising in healthcare ventilation who has conducted audits of the building, said the air cooling system installed in most patient rooms, known as “chilled beams”, was good at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but did not meet healthcare standards for circulating air. Engineers who worked on the building have also told a public inquiry, which is considering fatal infections among patients, that the drive to hit a low carbon emission target was “paramount” from the start. Under the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009, there was a fixed emissions reduction target for 2015 — the year the hospital opened — a goal the SNP government under the first minister Nicola Sturgeon later announced they had met. In previous years, milestones had been missed. The comments throw light on a key aspect of the £842 million hospital, which was opened by Queen Elizabeth amid much fanfare, but went on to encounter multiple problems, including infection outbreaks. Seven patient deaths are being investigated by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. In 2021, a review found 84 children had been infected with rare bacteria while undergoing treatment on site. Kimberly Darroch has argued for years that her daughter, Milly Main, died from an infection she caught at the hospital while recovering from leukaemia in 2017. Poplett said the “chilled beams” were installed to ventilate rooms at the QEUH. This ceiling-based system uses cold water to reduce air temperature, a little like radiators use hot water to warm rooms. They change the air, depending on room size, around two to four times per hour, compared with the level recommended for healthcare facilities of six. He told The Times: “The NHS is a government organisation committed to achieve an awful lot of different priorities, one being net-zero carbon. If you want to move towards net-zero carbon and energy efficient buildings, chilled beams are useful. “However, the protocol of the required ventilation rates from a clinical perspective is diametrically opposed to net-zero carbon. You cannot have both. “It appeared that the environmental consideration to make the hospital as energy efficient and as green as possible took priority over the clinical requirement for high change air rates.” Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Times, 11 May 2026
  10. News Article
    Passengers from the cruise ship struck by a hantavirus outbreak are being evacuated and sent to their home countries to isolate and receive medical treatment if necessary. Some other passengers from MV Hondius left on earlier flights or connections and their contacts are now being traced as a precaution. Officials say the risk of the infection spreading to the general public remains low. Crew and passengers now face having to self-isolate for more than a month to avoid any potential spread. Three died either on board or after travelling on the ship, which set sail from Argentina a month ago. Four others were medically evacuated from the ship for treatment. In an update on Thursday, Dr Maria Van Kerkhove from the World Health Organization (WHO) stressed it was not the start of a pandemic, saying: "This is not Covid, this is not influenza, it spreads very, very differently." Unlike diseases such as measles, which are highly contagious and spread easily, the Andes strain of hantavirus behind the outbreak is not that infectious. Human-to-human spread is possible but the risk of infections globally remains low, says WHO. In its latest update, external, it says eight cases - six confirmed - have been identified in people who were on the ship. It is still not clear how the outbreak started. Read full story Source: BBC News, 7 May 2026
  11. Content Article
    More information about "World Hand Hygiene Day - why I continue to promote this campaign (by Claire Kilpatrick)"
    Dr Claire Kilpatrick is a consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO) and has co-led on World Hand Hygiene Day since its launch. In this blog, Claire explains why she has always been actively involved in the campaign and what it means for patient safety.  World Hand Hygiene Day (WHHD) is a global campaign commemorated on 5 May every year, sharing targeted calls to action to support safer healthcare. Today marks its 18th year, and I have been privileged to be part of this campaign since its conception. So why do I continue to be an active supporter? The threat to patient safety Health care-associated infections, which are avoidable infections, continue to be a daily potential threat to patients in every hospital and clinic. Health care-associated infections: contribute to the antimicrobial resistance (AMR) burden cause immense suffering to patients, families and health workers can cause premature death and disability result in higher health care costs and hamper efforts to achieve high-quality care for all. Preventing harm A substantial proportion of these could, however, be prevented if hand hygiene and other infection prevention and control (IPC) actions were taken at the correct times. IPC and hand hygiene action provide a high return on investment within health system expenditure and have a significant positive effect on health outcomes for all countries. Hand hygiene and IPC best practices continue to be compromised by a substandard-built environment, including where inadequate provision of clean water, lack of effective sanitation, waste management and hygiene exist. We are seeing more of these issues arise - and not just in low and middle income countries but across some settings in high income countries where sanitation is a challenge. For WHHD 5 May 2026, the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on all those providing and supporting health care to refresh their action on hand hygiene and IPC, to ensure patient and health worker safety – because Action saves lives, as this year’s campaign slogan goes. Share your WHHD actions WHO supports campaign efforts every year by issuing a range of resources. Anyone can take part in the campaign using these or their own resources. And there is a way you can share your actions, either here on the hub (by commenting below – sign up first for free) or in the WHO IPC community of practice. Every year I collate examples from around the world and present them in the webinars! Action really does save lives - we can all be a part of WHHD.
  12. Content Article
    More information about "World Hand Hygiene Day 2026 resources (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care)"
    This stakeholder kit supports the promotion of World Hand Hygiene Day, a WHO global initiative, on 5 May. World Hand Hygiene Day is a global initiative led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and is held on 5 May each year. You are encouraged to use these resources to raise awareness about how hand hygiene can help save lives by preventing the spread of infection. To support the WHO’s theme “Action saves lives”, the Commission’s overarching theme for World Hand Hygiene Day 2026 is: “Action saves lives – Safer care starts with clean hands”. By promoting World Hand Hygiene Day, you can help reinforce the importance of hand hygiene in preventing healthcare-associated infections.
  13. Community Post
    I am looking for precision diagnostics in the UTI space. Either at home or at point of care. I am also looking for evidence of presentation at points of care for ITIs and any evidence of lived experience, impact and costs of current pathways. In particular in pharmacy first, peimary care
  14. Content Article
    More information about "Top picks: Resources about hand hygiene"
    Good hand hygiene in healthcare is essential to reduce the spread of healthcare associated infections (HAIs), which are the most frequent adverse event in healthcare globally. Although progress has been made in improving hand hygiene, there is still a pressing need to give healthcare professionals around the world the necessary knowledge and facilities to achieve effective infection control. The latest World Health Organization (WHO) data shows that globally, half of healthcare facilities do not have basic hand hygiene services, one in five facilities have no water services and one in ten have no sanitation services. We've pulled together useful resources about hand hygiene that have been shared on the hub. They include advice on effective handwashing, resources for healthcare professionals on how to promote hand hygiene and a global tool for monitoring hand hygiene interventions. 1. Scientia potentia est—Why sharing knowledge about hand hygiene remains important In this blog, hub topic leader Julie Storr looks at the question of why it's still so important to share knowledge about hand hygiene. She highlights the power of sharing knowledge to save lives, the need to address research gaps and that hand hygiene should be integrated into all aspects of frontline care. She also shares tools and resources that can be used to help train and equip frontline healthcare professionals. 2. Health Education for Scotland - Hand hygiene learning resources Resources by Health Education for Scotland to support their e-learning modules on hand hygiene. You will need an account to access the e-learning modules, but the supporting resources are available to download. 3. Improving hand hygiene in the anesthesia workspace: The importance, opportunities, and obstacles Anaesthesia professionals have consistently been leaders in patient safety and have long recognised the importance of hand hygiene in the anaesthesia workspace. Hand contamination is associated with pathogen transmission across multiple anaesthesia workspace reservoirs, and genome analysis of bacteria cultured from provider hands and infection causing pathogens have confirmed that providers transmit pathogens that result in patient infections. These findings should provide the impetus for widespread improvements in hand hygiene compliance for all intraoperative personnel, with anaesthesia professionals taking the lead. 4. WHO: Your 5 moments for hand hygiene This poster summarises WHO’s ‘Five moments for hand hygiene’ model, which WHO released in 2006 in collaboration with the infection prevention and control (IPC) research group at the University of Geneva. The approach aims to facilitate behavioural change and prioritise hand hygiene action at the right time to prevent infection transmission and avoid harm to patients and healthcare workers during care delivery. 5. Hand hygiene acceleration framework tool The Hand Hygiene Acceleration Framework Tool (HHAFT) has been developed by The Global Handwashing Partnership. It tracks the process that governments have taken to develop and implement a plan of action for hand hygiene improvement, and assesses the quality of that plan. It helps identify barriers, opportunities and priority actions for accelerating progress towards hand hygiene and drive investment to these plans. Use of this common framework allows countries to share learning and helps direct and coordinate global action. The webpage includes a dashboard that presents the latest data from different countries. 6. Supporting you to talk about hand hygiene: A primer for those in health care As a champion for hand hygiene, feeling empowered to talk about the topic to a range of colleagues is important. WHO has collated a number of hand hygiene improvement tools to help anyone working in healthcare promote good hand hygiene within their organisation. 7. Video: How to wash your hands Patients can contribute to infection prevention and control by making sure they wash their hands effectively—it’s one of the easiest and most important ways for patients to protect themselves and others from infectious illnesses. This NHS video demonstrates the best way to wash your hands and describes when you should do it. 8. WHO global taskforce on WASH in health care facilities: synthesis 2022-2023 The Global Taskforce on WASH in healthcare facilities aims to provide global strategic direction and coordination to WHO and UNICEF, and to promote information sharing and dialogue. It evolved from a series of think tanks convened by WHO. This webpage links to a summary of their work in 2022-23. 9 WHO Hand Hygiene Self-Assessment Framework 2010 The Hand Hygiene Self-Assessment Framework is a systematic tool with which to obtain a situation analysis of hand hygiene promotion and practices within an individual healthcare facility. 10 Implementation of a quality improvement project using the patient as the observer to improve hand hygiene compliance in ambulatory care practices This study published by the Journal of Hospital Infection, evaluated using patients as hand hygiene observers in an outpatient setting. It demonstrated that the implementation of a hand hygiene compliance improvement programme using the patient as the observer can be adopted successfully in the ambulatory setting. 11 e-Bug: Resources for children and young people about infection control and AMR (UKHSA) e-Bug, operated by the UK Health Security Agency, is a health education programme that aims to promote positive behaviour change among children and young people to support infection prevention and control efforts, and to respond to the global threat of antimicrobial resistance. e-Bug provides free resources for educators, community leaders, parents, and caregivers to educate children and young people and ensure they are able to play their role in preventing infection outbreaks and using antimicrobials appropriately. 12 World Hand Hygiene Day 2026 resources (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care) This stakeholder kit supports the promotion of World Hand Hygiene Day, a WHO global initiative, on 5 May. Have your say Do you have any stories, insights or resources related to hand hygiene? We would love to hear from you! Comment below (register for free here first) Get in touch with us directly to share your insights
  15. Content Article
    More information about "Top picks: 14 key resources about immunisation"
    At Patient Safety Learning we believe that sharing insights and learning is vital to improving outcomes and reducing harm. That's why we created the hub; providing a space for people to come together and share their experiences, resources and good practice examples.  To support. WHO's World Immunisation Week, we have picked 14 resources full of practical advice about vaccination in a range of settings. 1 WHO: Vaccines explained "Vaccines Explained" is a series of illustrated articles from the World Health Organization that describe how vaccines work, how they’re developed and distributed and how their safety is carefully monitored. 2 EDUCATE KS3 lesson pack: HPV vaccination Co-produced by young people and researchers from the University of Bristol and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, ‘EDUCATE’ helps teach students about the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine and provide reassurance about receiving the vaccine, which is usually offered to teenagers at school as part of the national vaccination programme. 3 The Green Book: Immunisation against infectious diseases The Green Book is published by the UK Health Security Agency and contains the latest information on vaccination procedures for vaccine-preventable infectious diseases in the UK. It offers guidance on general safety considerations and clinical procedures relating to immunisation, as well as specific information on a wide range of diseases and vaccinations. 4 Vaccination awareness toolkit for children and young people The School And Public Health Nurses Association (SAPHNA) has coproduced this vaccination toolkit with children and young people. It aims to increase young people's awareness of what vaccines are, why they are important and what to expect from different types of vaccines. 5 Improving communication about the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme among families In England, young people aged 12 to 13 years are offered immunisation against HPV as part of the NHS vaccination programme. However, research by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health Protection Research Unit in Behavioural Science and Evaluation at the University of Bristol has identified sustained inequalities in uptake by area and minority ethnic groups. They have produced a number of information videos to address information needs about HPV among young people. They were coproduced with young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and diverse ethnic groups. 6 A visual guide to vaccines for the UK routine vaccination programme This guide by the UK Health Security Agency is designed to help ensure healthcare workers administer the right vaccines at the right time. It provides photos of all vaccines used in the UK routine immunisation programme, as well as information on when each vaccine should be given and its different trade names and abbreviations. 7 Pain management in infant immunisation: A cross-sectional survey of UK primary care nurses Childhood immunisation is a critically important public health initiative. However, since most vaccines are administered by injection, it is associated with considerable pain and distress. Despite evidence demonstrating the efficacy of various pain management strategies, the frequency with which these are used during routine infant vaccinations in UK practice is unknown. This study aimed to explore primary care practice nurses’ use of evidence-based pain management strategies during infant immunisation, as well as barriers to evidence-based practice. 8 Shingles Vaccination Programme: GP toolkit for improving uptake About 1 in 5 people who have had chickenpox develop shingles, predominantly those who are over 70. However, uptake rates of the shingles vaccine are falling in London and across England. The purpose of this toolkit is to help GPs better protect their patients by suggesting ways to improve uptake of the shingles vaccine. These suggestions are based on best practice and evidence and have been shown to work with little or no cost to practices. 9 Interview with Charlet Crichton, founder of UKCVFamily UKCVFamily was set up in November 2021 to support patients in the UK who have had an adverse reaction to a Covid-19 vaccination. The group provides help and advocacy as well as raising awareness amongst healthcare professionals, the media and the Government. In this video for the hub, founder of UKCVFamily Charlet Crichton talks about why she established the group and describes the support it offers to patients. 10 Measles and rubella vaccine microneedle patch: new hope to reach the unreached children This Lancet article looks at how microneedle patches (MNPs) could potentially improve coverage of childhood vaccinations by providing a more thermostable, individual-dose, injection-free vaccine delivery device suitable for administration by local, non-medical personnel. MNPs could also reduce wasted vaccine doses, needle-stick injuries and breaks in the cold chain, as well as making waste management easier. 11 Whooping cough resurgence as vaccination rates slump Official data on whooping cough show that reports of suspected cases are at a 15-year high in the first three months of 2024. This article in the Pharmaceutical Journal looks at why cases are increasing, including falling rates of children receiving the childhood 6-in-1 vaccine and maternal vaccination. It outlines the symptoms of whooping cough, describes how it can be treated and includes a map identifying infection 'hot spots' in England and Wales. 12 Enhancing vaccine confidence across ethnic minority communities The Collaboration for Change is a group of two UK universities, nine community organisations and two small and medium size enterprises, who have conducted research on how to improve vaccine uptake among ethnic minority groups. The report highlights the factors influencing vaccine uptake. 13 Vaccination in the UK: Access, uptake and equity Over the last decade, the uptake of vaccines in the UK has stalled and is in many cases falling. Declining rates of routine childhood vaccination in a country with a well-established universal healthcare system are extremely concerning and pose a significant public health risk, with outbreaks of preventable diseases such as measles and whooping cough already being seen. The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH)'s Commission on Immunisation policy report assesses how and why vaccine uptake has stalled or declined. It outlines the evidence and our recommendations to increase uptake of routine childhood vaccinations across three broad themes: access to services, improved data systems and strengthening public information, education and communication. 14 UK Covid-19 Inquiry: Module 4 -Vaccines and therapeutics The UK Covid-19 Inquiry has published its fourth report and recommendations following its investigation into ‘Vaccines and therapeutics of the United Kingdom’. It considers and makes recommendations on a range of issues relating to the development of Covid-19 vaccines and the implementation of the vaccine rollout programme in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Issues relating to the treatment of Covid-19 through both existing and new medications were examined in parallel. Do you have a resource or story to share about immunisation safety? We’d love to hear about it - leave a comment below or join the hub to share your own post.
  16. News Article
    The rollout of Covid vaccines – the largest immunisation programme in UK history - was an "extraordinary feat", the Covid inquiry said. The fourth report from the inquiry praised the speed in which jabs were developed and deployed – 132 million were given in 2021 - alongside how the UK discovered which treatments worked best against the virus. The positive headlines contrast with the first three reports that were highly critical of the government's pandemic planning, decision-making and management of the NHS. But the report said more needed to be done to address vaccine hesitancy and those harmed by the Covid jabs should have easier access to bigger payouts. Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett praised the vaccine programme, pointing to research which suggested it saved more than 475,000 lives after more than 90% of people aged over 12 came forward for a jab. But she said while most people took up the offer of vaccination, there was lower uptake within communities in areas of higher deprivation and in some ethnic minority communities. "Governments and health services must work with communities to rebuild trust and promote a better understanding of, and confidence in, vaccines," she said. Spread of false information online and lack of trust in authority, combined with how quickly the vaccines had been developed, were contributory factors, said the report. Read full story Source: BBC News, 16 April 2026
  17. Content Article
    The UK Covid-19 Inquiry has published its fourth report and recommendations following its investigation into ‘Vaccines and therapeutics of the United Kingdom’. It considers and makes recommendations on a range of issues relating to the development of Covid-19 vaccines and the implementation of the vaccine rollout programme in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Issues relating to the treatment of Covid-19 through both existing and new medications were examined in parallel.
  18. Content Article
    It is acknowledged that aseptic compounding is one of, if not the, highest risk activities undertaken in pharmacy. Within the field of aseptic compounding, parenteral nutrition (PN) solutions are amongst the most complex and high risk products that are handled, due to their complexity, the number of ingredients, complex stability issues and the potential for the support of microbiological growth. The high risk nature of PN solutions has unfortunately been highlighted by a number of tragic incidents associated with compounding errors and microbiological contamination in recent years that have at times resulted in patient harm and even death. These incidents have occurred in the UK and abroad, and within the UK have been seen in both NHS facilities and commercial specials manufacturers. It is clear that wherever the compounding takes place, there is a risk of these errors and contamination incidents occurring and so robust systems need to be in place to ensure the risks are adequately controlled. This is equally relevant whether the PN is made in house or when the decision is made by a Trust to outsource PN to an external third party provider whether NHS or commercial. The purpose of this document is to give guidance to those outsourcing PN compounding on the risks in the outsourcing and supply process and to enable them identify where local risk control strategies will need to be developed and implemented to manage these risks. However, many of the risks highlighted will also apply to in house compounding and so those NHS units making PN for their own patients may also find this document a useful source of reference. Exploring the drivers for outsourcing and whether this is in fact the best option for supply of PN solutions is outside of the scope of this document; however these should be considered before an outsourcing decision is made.
  19. News Article
    An "alarming" report has linked meningitis to 159 deaths in the UK in one year - as pharmacists warn that childhood vaccination rates are falling. The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has called for an immunisation catch up service to be rolled out for teenagers who have missed out on being vaccinated against meningitis and other diseases. NPA chair Olivier Picard said declining immunisation rates for illnesses, including meningitis and measles, highlighted that the current strategy was "not fit for purpose" in the face of growing "vaccine hesitancy". It comes after a deadly outbreak of the disease in Kent earlier this month claimed the lives of two students. Mr Picard said: "It's clear there are gaps in the original national vaccination strategy for meningitis and pharmacies want to reach those in need of protection. "The NHS should urgently commission pharmacies to provide a catch-up vaccination service for teenagers who did not receive their MenACWY immunisations, as well as commissioning pharmacies to support NHS colleagues with wider childhood vaccinations." Read full story Source: Sky News, 28 March 2026
  20. Event
    Warming up for World Hand Hygiene Day, 5 May 2026 and for achieving the global monitoring framework for infection prevention and control (IPC). Hear from a range of speakers, exploring the actions and resources linked with World Hand Hygiene Day to help plan your approach to meeting the WHO Global action plan and monitoring framework indicators and targets, to be achieved incrementally by 2030. Register
  21. Content Article
    How the UK intends to rebuild readiness for future pandemics through a whole-of-government approach that prioritises the needs of the most vulnerable. The UK’s readiness for future pandemics is being overhauled through the publication of a new Pandemic Preparedness Strategy, backed by around £1 billion of investment in health protection measures including enhancing our access to essential vaccines and therapeutics, improving our pandemic surveillance systems and expanding our ability to roll out testing to the whole population. Published by the Department for Health and Social Care today, the strategy outlines concrete action already taken across government to embed lessons from Covid-19: PPE stockpiles will continue to be replenished with a variety of products and sizes. Departmental pandemic response plans will be reviewed to ensure government services and critical national infrastructure can be maintained effectively in a pandemic. An ‘All Pandemic Hazards Bill’ will be drafted to ensure the government has legislative options ready to review and introduce as necessary in response to a range of pathogens. This will sit alongside a suite of prepared options for community protection measures to support swift decision-making and prioritisation to keep people safe. UKHSA will build a new set of services to manage large scale testing, contact tracing and other scaled public health response measures’. Chemicals and equipment stockpiles needed for testing will be built up further to protect against supply risks that could develop in the early stages of a pandemic. Data requirements to support decision-making will be reviewed to ensure information needed in a pandemic response is available, transparent, and can be shared quickly between organisations and with the public.
  22. News Article
    A hospital trust did not immediately alert health officials about a case of meningitis in Kent. A patient first presented to East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust on the evening of Wednesday 11 March, a spokesperson said. But the trust waited until Friday 13 March, once a diagnosis had been confirmed, to notify the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), which manages an outbreak of such an illness. Dr Des Holden, acting chief executive of East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our first patient presented on the evening of Wednesday 11 March. “We recognise there was an opportunity prior to diagnosis being confirmed on Friday 13 March to notify UKHSA". Health secretary Wes Streeting said that there was a 24-hour window in which hospitals were meant to raise a suspected case with the agency, and that staff had instead done so in 26 hours. He told LBC: “The patient came in on the Wednesday unwell. By mid-morning on Thursday, the staff suspected meningitis. Now at that stage, they had 24 hours within which they should have notified the UKHSA. They did so in 26 hours. “While I can reassure people that it appears in this case that that delay did not have a material impact – we have not found evidence of onward transmission to other people through that delay that we would otherwise have traced faster – nonetheless, we have that 24-hour standard for a reason, and I am taking this seriously.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 25 March 2026
  23. Content Article
    The Covid-19 Inquiry published its second report and recommendations following its investigation into the ‘Core decision-making and political governance’ on Thursday 20 November 2025. It looked into core political and administrative governance and decision-making. It includes initial response, central government decision making, political and civil service performance as well as the effectiveness of relationships with governments in the devolved administrations and local and voluntary sectors. Recommendations include: Broadening participation in SAGE (the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies), through open recruitment of experts and representation of devolved administrations. Reforming and clarifying the structures for decision-making during emergencies within each nation. Improving consideration of the impact that decisions might have on those most at risk in an emergency: changes should aim to identify any risks to vulnerable groups, in both the planning for and response to emergencies. Ensuring that decisions and their implications are clearly communicated to the public. Laws and guidance should be easily understood and available in accessible formats. Enabling greater parliamentary scrutiny of the use of emergency powers through safeguards such as time limits and regular reporting on how powers have been used. Establishing structures to improve the communication between the four nations during an emergency to ensure better alignment of policies where desirable and to provide a clear rationale for differences in approach where necessary. See also: UK Covid-19 Inquiry Module 1: The resilience and preparedness of the United Kingdom Covid-19 Inquiry: Module 3 Report – The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the healthcare systems of the United Kingdom Questions around Government governance
  24. Content Article
    The Covid-19 Inquiry published its third report and recommendations following its investigation into ‘the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the healthcare systems of the United Kingdom’ on Thursday 19 March 2026. It examines the governmental and societal response to Covid-19 as well as dissecting the impact that the pandemic had on healthcare systems, patients and healthcare workers. Recommendations There are many lessons to be learned from the experiences of the UK’s healthcare systems during the Covid-19 pandemic and many areas for improvement. The Inquiry has made 10 recommendations and considers them all to be necessary to prevent healthcare systems being overwhelmed in the next pandemic: Recommendation 1: Ensure that decision-making on infection prevention and control is underpinned by clear structures and a cautious approach to transmission risk The UK government must ensure that there is a body (equivalent to the UK Infection Prevention and Control Cell) in place ready to be convened at the outset of any future pandemic, to consider and draft infection prevention and control guidance for healthcare settings. This body must: have clear lines of responsibility and a clear, pre-defined role and remit during a pandemic have multidisciplinary membership, including experts in the science of viral transmission as well as those with clinical expertise ensure that its guidance accounts for the risk of all plausible routes of transmission until sufficient evidence emerges to rule out specific routes ensure that guidance clearly explains the underlying rationale for the precautions recommended. Separately, the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS National Services Scotland, Public Health Wales and the Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland) should review the national infection prevention and control manuals and any future guidance to ensure that the approach to identifying risk of transmission is not confined solely to specific procedures. Emphasis should be placed on a combination of risk factors, such as rates of transmissibility, environment, setting and procedure. Recommendation 2: Guidance for visiting restrictions The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should publish guidance for the implementation of visiting restrictions in hospitals in the event of a future pandemic. The guidance should identify the circumstances in which visiting restrictions should be introduced, escalated, decreased and removed alongside the measures and exemptions at each level. The guidance should be led by the following core principles: Measures applied should be the least restrictive possible, both in terms of severity and the length of time for which they apply. Restrictions should be decided upon and applied at the most local level possible. Unless restrictions are applied at a specified level, trusts and health boards should take decisions on the severity of restrictions based on local risk assessments. Communications with the public must clearly explain the measures in place and the reasons why restrictions apply. The guidance should be reviewed every three years in line with the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report (Recommendation 4) Recommendation 3: Better preparation for fit-testing The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should work with employers, including health boards and trusts, to review the availability of qualified fit testers and take steps to increase the number of fit testers accordingly. Availability should be reviewed every three years in line with the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report (Recommendation 4). The Health and Safety Executive and the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland should update their guidance to employers to emphasise the need to ensure that sufficient fit-testing capacity is available. Recommendation 4: Improve data systems to identify individuals at high risk during a pandemic The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive must ensure that health data and digital systems have the capability to identify individuals at high risk of morbidity or mortality from a pandemic disease quickly and accurately in a future pandemic. This should include action to improve health data systems and patient record-keeping by: improving patient data by enabling more granular diagnostic coding ensuring that care records are compatible across primary and secondary care enabling secure data-sharing and linkage across multiple health datasets and systems for identifying individuals at high risk. Recommendation 5: Prepare to scale up urgent and emergency care capacity The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, in conjunction with organisations responsible for delivering services, should plan for surge capacity in urgent and emergency care during a pandemic. Plans must ensure that there is sufficient workforce capacity and the ability to surge, including the number and type of staff required, recruitment and training provision. This should be completed as part of the whole-system civil emergency strategy recommended in the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report (Recommendation 4). Plans should be published and subject to review every three years. Recommendation 6: Prepare for and test the ability to scale up hospital capacity The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should work with trusts and health boards to ensure that pandemic plans include practical steps to rapidly scale up hospital capacity to treat acutely unwell patients. This should include critical care services that can deliver multiple levels and types of organ support. It should also cover necessary equipment, supplies, space and staff, including redeployment and training. All trusts and health boards must keep an easily accessible, up-to-date record of the information needed to implement these plans in the hospital sites they operate. This should include technical aspects of critical care expansion such as power, ventilation, oxygen and waste management systems. Plans for expanding capacity should be published, subject to review every three years and tested as part of the pandemic response exercises recommended in the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report (Recommendation 6). Recommendation 7: A framework to guide the allocation of intensive care resources in the extreme event of saturation The UK government and devolved administrations should publish a UK-wide framework setting out ethical and operational principles to guide the allocation of adult intensive care resources in the extreme event that they are saturated during a pandemic. That framework must: be informed by comprehensive engagement with the public and developed in conjunction with professionals across healthcare, law and ethics, as well as with regulators of healthcare professionals set out clearly established triggers for its use, based at least in part on a UK-wide system that measures critical care capacity strain and facilitates mutual aid (such as the CRITCON tool used in England) establish clinicians’ legal and professional duties in applying the framework, which should be clearly explained to clinicians through guidance be regularly reviewed with reference to contemporary patient data during a pandemic, and any future use of it must be evaluated and reported on publicly. A plan and timeline for completing this work should be published within six months of this Report. Application of the framework should be tested as part of the pandemic response exercises recommended in the Inquiry’s Module 1 Report (Recommendation 6). Recommendation 8: Systematically recording and publishing healthcare worker deaths The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should work with their respective public health agencies and healthcare employers to develop nation-specific mechanisms to collect, analyse and publish data systematically on the deaths of healthcare workers in the event of a pandemic outbreak. The UK Statistics Authority should work with data providers to ensure that the data are comparable across the four nations of the UK. Recommendation 9: A standardised process for advance care planning across the UK The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, working with trusts and health boards, should establish and promote one standardised process across the UK (such as ReSPECT, the Recommended Summary Plan for Emergency Care and Treatment) for clinicians to ascertain and record their patients’ wishes and preferences for future care and treatment in order to inform individualised decision-making, including Do Not Attempt Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (DNACPR) notices. Recommendation 10: Psychological and emotional support for healthcare workers The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive, working with healthcare employers and professional bodies, should put in place plans to deliver effective support for healthcare workers at scale from the outset of a pandemic. Plans should cover the nature and level of support that will be provided during and after a pandemic. All four governments should develop a programme of peer support visits that can, from the outset of a pandemic, be targeted towards areas of acute hospitals under considerable strain. The purpose of the visits should be to support front-line staff, collect insights on the pressures that healthcare workers are facing and understand what further support they might need. See also: UK Covid-19 Inquiry Module 1: The resilience and preparedness of the United Kingdom Covid-19 Inquiry: Module 2, 2A, 2B, 2C Report – Core decision-making and political governance
  25. News Article
    Health bosses cannot yet confirm whether a deadly meningitis outbreak has been contained, Kent's director of public health has said. An urgent public health alert was issued urging health workers to look out for signs of infection after 20 suspected cases were investigated by the UK Health Security Agency, including two people who had died. A vaccination programme targeting about 5,000 students began at the University of Kent, following an outbreak thought to have originated at a Canterbury nightclub. When asked whether the outbreak had been contained, Dr Anjan Ghosh, of Kent County Council, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme they were "not in a position yet to say that definitively". He added: "If you see the daily reporting that's going on, there are more and more cases being reported, but these cases all relate more or less to that same period of time when the initial exposure happened. "We are looking at what's called secondary transmission, so that's a case that's then transmitted to another couple of people. We need to rule that out before we can say it's definitely contained." Health chiefs have described the "explosive nature" of the outbreak as unprecedented. Read full story Source: BBC News, 18 March 2026

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