Tag: Report

Covid 19

Current awareness updates

Characterisation of in-hospital complications associated with COVID-19 using the ISARIC WHO Clinical Characterisation Protocol UK: a prospective, multicentre cohort study.
Drake TM. The Lancet 2021;:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)00799-6.
[Complications and worse functional outcomes in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19 are high, even in young, previously healthy individuals. Acute complications are associated with reduced ability to self-care at discharge, with neurological complications being associated with the worst functional outcomes. COVID-19 complications are likely to cause a substantial strain on health and social care in the coming years.]

COVID-19 and the digital divide: Supporting digital inclusion and skills during the pandemic and beyond.
Centre for Ageing Better; 2021.
[This report offers examples of good practice and recommendations for organisations that deliver services to users and help digitally excluded people with skills training. The report finds that the key to building digital inclusion isn’t only about getting more people online, but also building skills and confidence.]

Alcohol consumption and harm during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[A report collating data on alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm in England during the COVID-19 pandemic and comparing it to data from previous years. The report improves our understanding of how alcohol consumption and harm changed in England while physical and social restrictions to prevent and control coronavirus were in place. The findings help to understand whether pandemic-related changes have affected rates of alcohol hospital admissions and deaths as well as health inequalities.]

COVID-19 vaccination of children and young people aged 12 to 17 years: JCVI statement.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[Statement from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on COVID-19 vaccination of children and young people aged 12 to 17 years.]

NHS COVID Pass Verifier app.
NHS England; 2021.
[A fast, secure and easy way of allowing people to demonstrate their COVID pass is valid, giving staff confidence in the legitimacy of what is being presented to them. It is a fast, secure way to scan the 2D barcode on an individual’s NHS COVID Pass and verify whether or not they have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, had a negative test, or have recovered from the virus – allowing staff to check the legitimacy of what is being presented to them.]

JCVI issues advice on COVID-19 vaccination of children and young people.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is today advising that children at increased risk of serious coronavirus (COVID-19) disease are offered a vaccine.]

The impact of Brexit and COVID-19 on nursing in the UK. [Comment]
Carvalho F. British Journal of Nursing 2021;30(13):822-823.
[Over the years, many experts have stated that nursing in the UK is in crisis and nurses are struggling owing to the increasing number of older and sicker patients, staff shortages and budget cuts that have affected working conditions (Beech et al, 2019). With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, unprecedented levels of pressure were placed on an already strained nursing workforce.]

A healthy recovery – Acting on findings from the COVID-19 impact inquiry
The Health Foundation; 2021.
[Launched in October 2020, the COVID-19 impact inquiry has been carefully exploring the pandemic’s broad impact on health and what this means for improving health and reducing health inequalities in the UK – now and in the future. The inquiry launched its final report on 6 July 2021. This webinar, held on the same day, discussed key issues raised in the report – the impact of the pandemic and what needs to be done in recovery to create a healthier, fairer society.]

Unequal pandemic, fairer recovery: The COVID-19 impact inquiry report.
The Health Foundation; 2021.
[By mid-March 2021 the pandemic had led to 119,000 excess deaths in the UK and in 2020 caused a 9.9% drop in GDP. Behind these overall figures lie the unequal burdens carried by different population groups and regions. Although the pandemic is still ongoing, this report explores these impacts and the range of different, intersecting factors influencing them. It provides an initial assessment of the effects of the pandemic using evidence available up to May 2021.]


Carers Week

Breaks or breakdown: Carers Week 2021 report

This survey found that carers lost, on average, 25 hours of support a month they previously had from services or family and friends before the pandemic. It also reveals that 72 per cent of carers have not had any breaks from their caring role at all. It calls on the UK government to provide £1.2 billion funding for unpaid carers’ breaks, so that those providing upwards of 50 hours of care are able to take time off for their own health and wellbeing.

Read the report here.

Men’s Health Week

Trying Something New – Improving boys’ and young men’s mental health through sports and creative activities

Boys and young men can face multiple barriers to accessing mental health support, including gender stereotypes which generate stigma around seeking help, concerns around showing vulnerability, and less positive attitudes towards mental health services. The Covid-19 pandemic has had a profound effect on boys’ and young men’s stress and anxiety levels, and this has been particularly marked for young men experiencing racial injustice.

‘Thriving Not Just Surviving’ was a three-year programme funded by Comic Relief to deliver community-based mental health support tailored to the needs of boys and young men. Trying something new is based on Centre for Mental Health’s evaluation of this programme and provides insights into what works when supporting boys and young men.

Read more and download the report here

Covid 19

Current Awareness Updates

Specific COVID-19 messaging targeting ethnic minority communities.
EClinical Medicine, The Lancet; 2021.

(The proportion of ethnic minority groups accepting vaccines remains low. A culturally appropriate COVID-19 information and messaging platform is urgently required (Fig. 1). The messaging should be clear in style and content, conveying simple, easy to understand, visual, consistent, and generic to all communities, ethnic groups, cultures, and faiths. Trust between healthcare staff and communities is essential for the success of any COVID-19 intervention.)

Mental health policy in England.
House of Commons Library; 2021.

(This briefing examines the Coronavirus Act 2020 and the potential impact on human rights. It also looks at the impact of the pandemic on population mental health, including for specific groups such as BAME communities. It briefly sets out resources to support population mental health and wellbeing during the pandemic, including specific mental health support for the health and social care workforce.)

COVID-19 vaccination: accelerating second doses for priority cohorts 1-9
NHS England & NHS Improvement; 2021.

(Letter from Emily Lawson (SRO Vaccine Deployment, NHS England and NHS Improvement), Dr Nikki Kanani (Medical Director for Primary Care) and Eleanor Kelly (LA CEO advisor). In response to advice from the independent JCVI, the Government sets out further action aimed at tackling rising cases of the COVID-19 B1.617.2 variant.)

Communicating with patients about COVID-19 vaccination: evidence-based guidance for effective conversations to promote COVID-19 vaccine uptake (2021).
World Health Organization (WHO); 2021.

(This training module is designed to equip health workers (HWs) with knowledge, skills, confidence and resources to help them in their role to recommend the COVID-19 vaccine. It is tailored to specific patient positions on vaccination and provides a structured approach to assist HWs with interpersonal communication during COVID-19 vaccination consultations.)

Pandemic Pressures: How Greater Manchester equalities organisations have responded to the needs of older people during the Covid-19 crisis.
Ambition for Ageing; 2021.

(This report highlights a number of recommendations for service commissioners, funders and contractors to contribute to future emergency planning and responses. It recognises the expertise of equalities organisations in understanding and meeting the needs of the communities they represent, and to involve them in coproducing emergency planning and responses.)

Characteristics and predictors of acute and chronic post-COVID syndrome: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
EClinical Medicine, The Lancet; 2021.

(A significant proportion of individuals experience lingering and debilitating symptoms following acute COVID-19 infection. NICE have coined the persistent cluster of symptoms as post-COVID syndrome. The aim of this review was to detail the prevalence of clinical features and identify potential predictors for acute and chronic post-COVID syndrome.)

Social Care 360

New report

Source: The King’s Fund Health Management and Policy Alert

This year’s Social Care 360 report uses the latest available data (2019/20) to describe the key trends in adult social care as the Covid-19 pandemic struck and to suggest what the impact of the pandemic might be. It paints quite a bleak picture of adult social care in England, with many key indicators already going in the wrong direction before the pandemic struck.

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Care homes: visiting restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic House of Commons; 2021

(This report calls on the government to make the existing requirements for individualised assessment for visits mandatory by laying its draft regulations, as soon as possible. Government guidance now makes clear that care home providers should not impose blanket bans on visiting but should instead conduct individualised risk assessments for each resident. However, without statutory force, there is no legal recourse for residents to require their providers to implement the guidance.)

Racism and discrimination: the experience of primary care professionals in the Humberside region Humberside LMC: April 2021

(This report highlights discrimination faced by staff and patients from ethnic minority backgrounds in general practice. It finds that respondents reported experiences of discrimination in a wide range of areas such as training, working patterns and complaints, and it calls for a zero-tolerance approach to tackle racism in all its forms. )

Pandemic patient experience II: from lockdown to vaccine roll-out The Patient’s Association; April 2021

(In 2020, patients told the Patients Association about their experiences of living with health and care needs during the Covid-19 pandemic. Their testimony painted a bleak picture in many ways. This follow-up survey (drawing on 453 responses, submitted over February, March and early April 2021) finds that many aspects of their experiences are not much better, and some are worse. Accessing general practice services remains difficult for many, and patients overall do not regard remote consultations as an adequate replacement for in-person appointments.)

Outpatient appointments intended but not booked after inpatient stays Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB); April 2021

(This investigation explores the patient safety risk of outpatient appointments that are intended but not booked following an inpatient stay. It also considers opportunities for building resilience into the process to ensure timely appointments. It concludes with two safety recommendations that are aimed at reducing the chance that patients will be lost after an inpatient stay and supporting the staff within trusts who are responsible for arranging appointments and tracking patients.)

Unemployment and mental health The Health Foundation; April 2021

(This analysis estimates that an increase of 900,000 people in unemployment expected by the end of the year, compared with before the pandemic, will lead to 200,000 more people with poor mental health in the UK. It acknowledges that while government action to reduce a rise in unemployment by extending the furlough scheme to September will support mental health, it suggests that the benefits system and employment support programmes currently fail to properly account for the mental health needs of those who are unemployed. It concludes that there is now an opportunity to ensure that efforts to tackle unemployment in the pandemic recovery are designed to better support mental health.)

Skin cancer awareness month toolkit Skin Cancer Foundation; May 2021

(A social media toolkit giving you downloadable skin cancer images and resources to help you share the facts during Skin Cancer Awareness Month)

Ethnic diversity in fertility treatment 2018

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority Report

Source: The King’s Fund Health Management and Policy Alert

This report looks at how access to, and outcomes of, fertility treatment differed by ethnic group between 2014 and 2018. It finds disparities in the experience of patients from ethnic minority backgrounds and makes recommendations for the HFEA, fertility clinics and commissioners to help better understand the root of these inequalities so that action can be taken to improve access and outcomes for ethnic minority groups.

Out of sight – who cares?

A review of restraint, seclusion and segregation for autistic people, and people with a learning disability and/or mental health condition

Source – Kings Fund Health Management and Policy Alert

This report tells the story of restrictive practices from the perspective of people who have experienced it first-hand and looks at how long-term segregation was used. The review finds that the environment of mental health hospitals was often not therapeutic. It also finds that some people were admitted without proper assessment and did not have an assessment of their needs while in hospital, resulting in the lack of a clear care and treatment plan.

NHS England

Delivering a ‘net zero’ NHS

This report provides an account of the NHS’s modelling and analytics underpinning the latest NHS carbon footprint, trajectories to net zero, and the interventions required to achieve that ambition. It lays out the direction, scale and pace of change. It describes an iterative and adaptive approach, which will periodically review progress and aims to increase the level of ambition over time. A greener NHS is on the way.

Greenhouse Gas Protocol scope for the NHS (NHS England)

To find out more click here.