Public Health

Current awareness updates

A Women’s Health Agenda: Redressing the Balance.
Public Policy Projects; 2022.
[This report highlights the importance of embracing a culture of change in the design and delivery of women’s health to achieve national systems and local services fit to meet the expectations and needs of the 21st century woman. It sets out recommendations, founded on common sense and rooted in the belief that women should be in control of their own bodies.]

Making self-harm everyone’s business: a consideration of the new national guideline.
Clough I. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2022;28(3):58-60.
[This article discusses the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s consultation and draft guideline on self-harm management, placing the recommendations in the context of ongoing pressures on NHS services and the UK’s growing mental health crisis.]

Guidelines for using online therapeutic interventions.
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR); 2022.
[A team of researchers at the University of Sussex have launched a set of guidelines to help practitioners provide better support to parents and children accessing mental health services online. The guidelines include: Advice on planning, ground rules and strategies for practitioners; Points on support, information governance & policy guidance; What clients need to consider when accessing online services; Guidance on working online with groups of people.]

Covid 19

Current awareness updates

COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing COVID-19.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2022.
[This guideline covers the management of COVID-19 for children, young people and adults in all care settings. In February 2022, NICE added recommendations on molnupiravir and remdesivir for people with COVID-19 who do not need supplemental oxygen.]

A systematic scoping review of research on COVID-19 impacts on eating disorders: A critical appraisal of the evidence and recommendations for the field.[Abstract]
Linardon J. International Journal of Eating Disorders 2022;55(1):3-38.
[Symptom escalation and mental health worsening during-and due to-the pandemic were commonly reported, and those most susceptible included confirmed eating disorder cases, at-risk populations, and individuals highly anxious or fearful of COVID-19. Evidence emerged for increased demand for specialist eating disorder services during the pandemic. The forced transition to online treatment was challenging for many, yet telehealth alternatives seemed feasible and effective.]

Growing problems: What has been the impact of Covid-19 on health care for children and young people in England?
Quality Watch; 2022.
[This analysis from QualityWatch (a Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation programme) shows that the pandemic has led to an unprecedented increase in demand for mental health services for children and young people. Despite children and young people being 10 times less likely to be hospitalised with Covid, the period has had a heavy toll on them. The briefing explains the findings and discusses the potential implications for the younger generation.]

Beyond recovery: the case for transforming UK clinical cancer research.
Cancer Research UK (CRUK); 2022.
[This position paper finds that Covid-19 has worsened pre-existing barriers to clinical cancer research, and recovering to a pre-pandemic ‘normal’ for research won’t be enough to deliver world-class cancer outcomes. Instead, the UK government must choose to go beyond recovery by expanding clinical research capacity, transforming how research is delivered, and supporting innovative cancer research.]

Living with Covid-19.
House of Commons Library; 2022.
[This page provides an overview of the Government’s strategy on Living with Covid-19 and a summary of the relevant policy changes.]

Social care reform: an independent review by Baroness Cavendish.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2022.
[A report looking at how the government can lock in the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic to build a more robust, sustainable and joined-up system of social care.]

The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination programme in England.
National Audit Office (NAO); 2022.
[According to this report, the Covid-19 vaccination programme met stretching and unprecedented targets, helping to save lives and reduce serious illness and hospitalisation. However, it concludes that there are risks to be managed as the programme continues to evolve in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and to new clinical advice and evidence about vaccines. The report concludes that the programme has provided value for money to date.]

Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination uptake in school pupils, England: up to 9 January 2022.
Office for National Statistics (ONS); 2022.
[Figures on vaccine uptake in school pupils aged 12 to 17 attending state funded schools, broken down by demographic and geographic characteristics, using a linked schools and vaccinations dataset, up to 9 January 2022 (experimental statistics).]

The response of the scientific community to a global crisis: a systematic review of COVID-19 research in 2020.
Srivastava PR. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2022;28(2):1-7.
[This article provides a bibliometric analysis of the direction of research relating to COVID-19 during the first year after the virus was first identified as a potential threat to public health.]

Public Health

Current awareness updates

Weight management tier 2 interventions and their effectiveness.
Carried out by Frankie Marcelline from Sussex Health on 2/12/2021
[This evidence search report looks for recent evaluations and reports on the effectiveness of weight management tier 2 interventions for families, adults and children. A starting point might be Public Health England’s 2020 summary: Weight management services during COVID-19: phase 1 insights. Another source is Heggie’s: Tackling reporting issues and variation in behavioural weight management interventions.]

Brain tumours (primary) and brain metastases in adults.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2021.
[This quality standard covers diagnosing, monitoring and managing any type of primary brain tumour or brain metastases in adults (aged 16 or over). It describes high-quality care in priority areas for improvement.]

Urinary incontinence in women.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2021.
[This quality standard covers managing urinary incontinence in women (aged 18 and over). It covers assessment, care and treatment options. It describes high-quality care in priority areas for improvement.
It does not cover urinary incontinence in women with neurological disease. In December 2021, changes were made to align this quality standard with the new NICE guideline on pelvic floor dysfunction.]

Pelvic floor dysfunction: prevention and non-surgical management.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2021.
[This guideline covers the prevention, assessment and non-surgical management of pelvic floor dysfunction in women aged 12 and over. It aims to raise awareness and help women to reduce their risk of pelvic floor dysfunction. For women who have pelvic floor dysfunction, the guideline recommends interventions based on their specific symptoms]

Management of acute respiratory illness in prisons and places of detention.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[This guidance will assist in the management of outbreaks of acute respiratory illness in prisons and places of detention. The guidance covers risk assessment, testing recommendations, antiviral therapies and when an outbreak can be declared over. An associated flow chart gives information for management depending on whether COVID-19 and/or influenza have been detected.]

BCG vaccination and SCID screening: patient pathway.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Flowchart showing the Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccination and SCID screening patient pathway (updated 09 December 2021)]

Optimising chronic wound care: a human and financial necessity.
Penfold J. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2021;27(11):269-271.
[Comment highlights the importance of evidence-based practice in wound care to reduce the burden on patients and healthcare services.]

Active Lives Children and Young People Survey: Academic year 2020-21.
Sport England; 2021.
[This report contains a full year of coronavirus (Covid-19) restrictions, including comparisons back to summer term 2020, when school sites were closed to most pupils for much of the period. The proportion of children and young people in England who are active remains unchanged compared to 12 months ago. However, inequalities have increased and for some groups of children and young people, in particular teenage girls and Black children are the least likely to be physically active.]

What science has shown can help young people with anxiety and depression.
Wellcome; 2021.
[This report summarises what we’ve learned about the evidence for ‘active ingredients’ of effective interventions for youth anxiety and depression – these are the aspects of interventions that make a difference in preventing or managing anxiety and depression.]

Project ADDER.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[Information on Project ADDER (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery), the government’s pathfinder programme combatting drugs misuse.]

Global Drug Survey (GDS) 2021 Global Report.
Global Drug Survey (GDS); 2021.
[The focus is on how COVID-19 changed people’s drug using behaviours especially with regard to alcohol, cannabis and cocaine, how people balance reducing harm and maximizing pleasure when using drugs, and whether microdosing has moved beyond those seeking to improve creativity and work performance to self-treatment for mental health issues.]

Alcohol-specific deaths in the UK: registered in 2020.
Office for National Statistics (ONS); 2021.
[Deaths caused by diseases known to be a direct consequence of alcohol misuse by sex, age, region and deprivation.]

From harm to hope: A 10-year drugs plan to cut crime and save lives.
Home Office, Department of Health and Social Care, Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Education, and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities; 2021.
[This policy paper sets out the government’s 10-year plan to cut crime and save lives by reducing the supply and demand for drugs and delivering a high-quality treatment and recovery system. Commitments are made across the government to break drug supply chains while simultaneously reducing the demand for drugs by getting people suffering from addiction into treatment, and deterring recreational drug use.]

Child of the North: building a fairer future after Covid-19.
NIHR Northern Health Science Alliance; 2021.
[This report paints a stark picture of inequality for children growing up in the north of England post-pandemic compared with those in the rest of the country. It looks at a wide range of factors, from child poverty to children in care, to build up a picture of ‘The Child of the North’. It sets out 18 clear recommendations that can be put in place to tackle the widening gap between the north and the rest of England.]

Children and young people’s mental health: Eighth Report of Session 2021–22.
House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee; 2021.
[Report highlights that the problems identified can only be addressed by government departments, local government and the health system acting together to promote good mental health and prevent new crises emerging. It recommends setting up a Cabinet sub-committee.]

Covid 19

Current awareness updates

COVID-19 lockdowns and school closures: what’s the impact on youth mental health?
The Mental Elf; 2021.
[Douglas Badenoch appraises a recent cross-sectional survey study, which looks at COVID-19 partial school closures and mental health problems.]

Investigation of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern: variant risk assessments.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Risk assessment dated 09 December for Omicron variant added.]

Consensus statements on COVID-19.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Updated 10 December 2021: UKHSA has added the EMRG’s consensus statement for 24 November 2021 to its website.]

Resilience and recovery following COVID-19.
McIntosh B. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2021;27(11):263-264.
[The healthcare sector has a crucial role to play in the wider economic and social recovery of society following COVID-19. Events since March 2020 have highlighted the need to see health and public services as a crucial investment, not an afterthought.]

An evaluation of a virtual COVID-19 ward to accelerate the supported discharge of patients from an acute hospital setting.
Swift J. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2021;27(12):1-9.
[The virtual ward appeared to assist with earlier discharges, had a low rate of clinically necessary re-admissions, and seemed to reduce costs without compromising patient safety. The authors believe that this intervention could be applied across other NHS trusts facing similar capacity issues as a result of COVID-19.]

Nudging healthcare professionals to improve treatment of COVID-19: a narrative review.[Abstract]
Vilhelmsson A. BMJ Open Quality 2021;10(4):doi: 10.1136/bmjoq-2021-001522.
[Conclusion: Evidence suggests that different nudging techniques can be used in clinical settings as simple, cost-effective strategies to fight COVID-19, reduce complications for intubated patients, improve hand hygiene, increase vaccination rates and avoid unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions. These strategies could be important in the continued handling of the pandemic, which will not be over until the whole world reaches herd immunity from vaccination…]

COVID-19 rapid guideline: managing COVID-19 NICE guideline.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2021.
[This guideline covers the management of COVID-19 for children, young people and adults in all care settings. In December, NICE added new recommendations on COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis. NICE revised their statement about the Omicron variant in the recommendation on casirivimab and imdevimab.]

COVID-19 vaccination: resources for schools and parents.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[17 December 2021: Added version 3 of the guidance for schools and guidance for parents.]

COVID-19: guidance for first responders.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Updated advice for first responders (as defined by the Civil Contingencies Act) and others where close contact may be required as part of their normal duties.]

COVID-19: infection prevention and control (IPC).
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[17 December 2021: Added UK IPC Cell consensus statement in response to the emergence of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2. Added paragraph to main IPC guidance on risk assessment and use of RPE in response to Omicron variant.]

Public Health

Current awareness updates

Influenza season 2021–22: what healthcare managers need to know.
Clough I. British Journal of Healthcare Management 2021;27(10):1-4.
[With the influenza season approaching and COVID-19 case numbers remaining high, this article highlights key points for healthcare managers and leaders going into this potentially challenging period.]

The vicious cycle of tobacco use and mental illness – a double burden on health.
World Health Organization (WHO); 2021.
[This new factsheet examines the intricate connections between tobacco use and mental illness. 2 in 3 people with severe mental health conditions are current smokers, which has an enormous impact on health. Reducing smoking among people with mental illness is identified as the single most effective action for reducing the gap in life expectancy.]

British HIV Association guidelines for the management of HIV-2 2021.
British HIV Association (BHIVA); 2021.
[The overall purpose of these guidelines is to provide guidance on best clinical practice in the treatment and management of adults with HIV-2.]

Promoting the sexual health and wellbeing of people from a Black Caribbean background: an evidence-based resource.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[Provides information on developing interventions for improved sexual health and wellbeing in people from a Black Caribbean background.]

Sexually transmitted infections: promoting the sexual health and wellbeing of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[Provides information on developing interventions for improved sexual health and wellbeing among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.]

Sexual and Reproductive Health Services, England (Contraception) 2020/21.
NHS Digital; 2021.
[This publication primarily covers contraceptive activity taking place at dedicated Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) services in England, as recorded in the Sexual and Reproductive Health Activity Dataset (SRHAD), a mandated collection for all providers of NHS SRH services. The main focus of this report is contraception.]

Overlooked: why we should be doing more to support families and friends affected by someone else’s drinking, drug use or gambling.
Adfam; 2021.
[This report examines Adfam’s latest research with YouGov on the prevalence of people currently negatively affected by the drinking, drug use or gambling of a family member or friend in 2021, and the different challenges and impacts these families currently face. The report’s findings highlight the need for more recognition of the impacts on families and friends, and it includes recommendations on how to better support this overlooked group.]

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs): annual data tables.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[Information on STI diagnoses and sexual health services provided in England by demographic characteristics and geographical region.]