Current awareness updates

Protecting Nursing Homes and Long-Term Care Facilities From COVID-19: A Rapid Review of International Evidence.
Dykgraaf SH. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association 2021;22(10):1969-1988 .
[High-quality evidence of effectiveness in protecting LTCFs from COVID-19 was limited at the time of this study, though it continues to emerge. Despite widespread COVID-19 vaccination programs in many countries, continuing prevention and mitigation measures may be required to protect vulnerable long-term care residents from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases. This rapid review summarizes current evidence regarding strategies that may be effective.]

Coronavirus: lessons learned to date.
House of Commons Library; 2021.
[This inquiry looked at six key areas of the response to the pandemic in England: the country’s preparedness for a pandemic; the use of non-pharmaceutical interventions such as border controls, social distancing and lockdowns to control the pandemic; the use of test, trace and isolate strategies; the impact of the pandemic on social care; the impact of the pandemic on specific communities; and the procurement and roll-out of covid-19 vaccines.]

The Big Ask: The Big Answer.
The Children’s Commissioner; 2021.
[The Children’s Commissioner’s Big Ask set out to hear the voices of as many children in England as possible, to amplify them, and to deliver improved life chances for this generation and beyond, following recovery from the pandemic.]

The digital divide: Amplifying health inequalities for people with severe mental illness in the time of COVID-19. [Editorial]
Spanakis P. British Journal of Psychiatry 2021;219(4):529-531.
[People with severe mental illness face profound health inequalities (eg. a >20-year mortality gap). Digital exclusion puts this population at risk of heightened or compounded inequalities. This has been referred to as the ‘digital divide’. For new digital means introduced in clinical practice to augment healthcare service provision, issues of accessibility, acceptability and usability should be addressed early in the design phase, and prior to implementation, to prevent digital exclusion.]

Time use and mental health in UK adults during an 11-week COVID-19 lockdown: A panel analysis.
Bu F. British Journal of Psychiatry 2021;219(4):551-556.
[To examine the associations between specific activities (or time use) and mental health and well-being among people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusions: These results are relevant to the formulation of guidance for people obliged to spend extended periods in isolation during health emergencies and may help the public to maintain well-being during future lockdowns and pandemics.]

COVID-19 vaccination: women of childbearing age, currently pregnant or breastfeeding.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Information for all women of childbearing age, those currently pregnant or breastfeeding on coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination. 8 October 2021: Updated ‘COVID-19 vaccination: a guide on pregnancy and breastfeeding’ and links to translated versions of the poster and social media cards.]

Delivering safe, face-to-face adult day care.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE); 2021.
[The latest updates to the guidance include: Isolation and vaccination info; Lifting of restrictions (Step 4); Webinar recording on day care; How to access testing; What to do in case of an outbreak; Free provider PPE until March 2022.]