Tag: Public Health

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

National Child Measurement Programme: childhood obesity.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Research by University College London (UCL) shares learning from local authorities that have a downward trend in childhood obesity, including practice examples. 15 February 2021: Added PHE Centres documents: North of England, Midlands, South of England, East of England and London.)

COVID-19 vaccination: British Sign Language resources.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(British Sign Language (BSL) videos on COVID-19 vaccination.)

County lines exploitation: applying All Our Health.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Guidance to help health professionals prevent child exploitation and protect vulnerable children that have been manipulated and coerced into crime.)

Changes over 15 years in the contribution of adiposity and smoking to deaths in England and Scotland.
BMC Public Health; 2021.

(Adiposity now accounts for more deaths in England and Scotland than smoking among people in middle- and old-age. National strategies to address adiposity should be a public health priority.)

Support for domestic abuse victims.
House of Commons Library; 2021.

(This briefing outlines support for victims of domestic violence and abuse. It considers social services, housing, social security benefits, health services and preventive actions in education settings.)

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Syphilis: Public Health England action plan.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Addressing the increase in syphilis in England.)

The obesity paradigm and the role of health services in obesity prevention: a grounded theory approach.[Abstract]
Pearce C. BMC Health Services Research 2021;21(1):111.

(The aim of this research was to examine whether and how hospital and community-based health services incorporate adult obesity prevention into policy and practice. An alternative systems-level approach is needed to align health service responses with contemporary approaches that address obesity prevention as a complex problem.)

The impact of household energy poverty on the mental health of parents of young children.
Journal of Public Health; 2021.

(Energy poverty increases the likelihood of depression in parents. These findings merit policy attention since a mental health burden is in itself important, and more widely, parental well-being can influence child development and outcomes.)

Raising awareness of funding for vulnerable two-year-old children.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE); 2021.

(SCIE is helping the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years (PACEY) to raise awareness about the 15 hours funded early years provision, particularly to more families who are vulnerable. This programme improves the health, learning and development of disadvantaged two-year-old children as well as being beneficial for the parent.)

‘Do No Harm’: Lived Experiences and Impacts of FGM Safeguarding Policies and Procedures, Bristol study.
FORWARD UK; 2021.

(The research reveals worrying evidence that FGM safeguarding policies are inadvertently causing a great deal of harm to families, communities and young girls, both in Bristol and potentially across the UK. Their targeted and heavy-handed approach have increased scrutiny, suspicion and stigmatisation of families in many areas of their lives, from schools, to healthcare, to overseas travel.)

Still not safe: the public health response to youth violence.
The Children’s Commissioner; 2021.

(This report assesses how effectively existing infrastructure within local authorities is being used to deliver a public health approach to preventing gang involvement and youth violence. The Children’s Commissioner concludes that two years on from her last report into this issue and a year after the Prime Minister promised to ‘cut the head off the snake’ of county lines, thousands of children are still not being kept safe.)

Dementia profile: February 2021 update.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Updated statistics on dementia prevalence, hospital admissions, care and mortality, at the national and subnational geographical areas in England. The dementia profile is designed to improve the availability and accessibility of information on dementia. The data is presented in an interactive tool that allows users to view and analyse it in a user-friendly format.)

Health and Care of People with Learning Disabilities 2019-20.
NHS Digital; 2021.

(The most recent release of the 2019-20 Health and Care of Learning Disability Publication. These are aggregated data on key health issues for people who are recorded by their GP as having a learning disability, and comparative data about a control group who are not recorded by their GP as having a learning disability.)

Statistics on Drug Misuse, England 2020.
NHS Digital; 2021.

[This report presents newly published information on hospital admissions attributable to drug-related mental health and behavioural disorders and on hospital admissions attributable to poisoning by illicit drugs.

The report also provides links to information on drug misuse among both adults and children from a variety of sources, including the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System and the Crime Survey for England and Wales (date range:01 Apr 2019 to 31 Mar 2020)]


Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

How to stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Advice for everyone to help stop the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).)

Shooting Up: infections among people who inject drugs in the UK.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(This Public Health England report describes the extent of infections among people who inject drugs (PWID) in the United Kingdom.
27 January 2021: Added December 2020 update report, data tables and links to the slide set and infographic.)

Young people’s mental and emotional health: Trajectories and drivers in childhood and adolescence.
Education Policy Institute; 2021.

(Based on data from the Millennium Cohort Study, this report reveals insights into the determinants of young people’s wellbeing, including how it is affected by their relationships, background, and use of social media. The research shows that while the wellbeing of all young people declines by the end of their teenage years, there is a strong gender divide within this: girls see far lower levels of wellbeing and self-esteem than boys – driven by a sharp fall of both during mid-adolescence.)

Engaging men earlier: a guide to service design.
Samaritans; 2021.

(This handbook aims to provide a set of principles upon which wellbeing initiatives for men should be based. It is aimed at anyone commissioning, designing, evaluating or delivering initiatives, services or activities aimed at improving the wellbeing of men.)

Child obesity: patterns and trends.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(Slide sets presenting the latest data on child obesity in England and the 9 English regions. These slide sets present the latest data on child obesity from the National Child Measurement Programme. The national slide set also includes data from the Health Survey for England. Trends in child overweight and obesity are shown and patterns are examined by age, sex, ethnic group, and area deprivation.)

Public Health Outcomes Framework: February 2021 data update.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.

(The Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) examines indicators that help health and care professionals and the public to understand trends in public health. The data are presented in an interactive tool that allows users to view them in a user-friendly format. The data tool also provides links to further supporting information.)

Covid

Current Awareness Updates

Covid-19 recovery and resilience: what can health and care learn from other disasters? The King’s Fund

What do communities need to be able to recover from Covid-19 and build resilience? This long read identifies key insights from people involved in disaster recovery around the world.

Covid-19: rapid point of care or near-person testing for service providers Public Health England

(This guidance, aimed at service providers, describes the main types of coronavirus (Covid-19) tests currently available for use in point of care or near-person settings.)

Factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among minority ethnic groups, 17 December 2020.
Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE); 2021.

(Paper by the ethnicity sub-group on factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake among minority ethnic groups. It was considered at SAGE 73 on 17 December 2020. The paper is the assessment of the evidence at the time of writing.)

COVID-19 Clinical management: living guidance.
World Health Organization (WHO); 2021.

(This document is the update of interim guidance published in May 2020. This guideline now also includes Best Practice Statement on caring for COVID-19 patients after their acute illness and 5 new recommendations.)

Prioritising the first COVID-19 vaccine dose: JCVI statement.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.

(Statement from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) about increasing the short-term impact of the COVID-19 vaccination programme. Updated 26 January 2021: Added document ‘Annex B: comparison between 1 and 2 dose prioritisation for a fixed number of doses’.)

COVID-19: Ensuring a quality patient experience with the rise of digitisation in a healthcare setting.
Mobiquity; 2021.

(This report, commissioned by Mobiquity and conducted by Censuswide, reveals that half of UK patients aged over 55 preferred digital tools instead of in-person consultations during COVID-19. The most preferred digital tools used by over 55s included remote monitoring (50%) and video examinations (50%).)


Covid Virtual Ward (secondary care).
Wessex Academic Health Science Network (AHSN); 2021.

(The Covid Virtual Ward model is a secondary care led initiative to support early and safe discharge (step down) for Covid patients and builds on the Covid Oximetry @home model. NHS England and Improvement has now written out to all ICSs and trusts in the country; outlining why this work must be implemented, and how to do it.)

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

The state of children’s mental health services 2020/21 Children’s Commissioner

(This report examines the progress that has been made over the past five years as well as looking at the impact the Covid crisis has had on children’s mental health. It finds that while there has been an expansion of children’s mental health services over the past four years, services are still nowhere near meeting the needs of many hundreds of thousands of children.)

Young people’s mental and emotional health: trajectories and drivers in childhood and adolescence Whitney Crenna-Jennings; January 2021

(Based on data from the Millennium Cohort Study, this report reveals insights into the determinants of young people’s wellbeing, including how it is affected by their relationships, background, and use of social media. The study examines the personal experiences of young people in England, at age 11, 14 and 17. The research shows that while the wellbeing of all young people declines by the end of their teenage years, there is a strong gender divide within this: girls see far lower levels of wellbeing and self-esteem than boys – driven by a sharp fall of both during mid-adolescence.)

SARS-CoV-2 vaccine advice for adults living with HIV.
British HIV Association (BHIVA) & Terrence Higgins Trust (THT); 2021.

(The British HIV Association (BHIVA) & Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) have issued guidance on COVID vaccines for people living with HIV. The COVID-19 vaccines are expected to be protective in people with HIV and are recommended. The Department of Health and Social Care recommends that all adults living with HIV should have the vaccines currently on offer, regardless of their CD4 count.)

Advice for women seeking contraception, abortion and other sexual and reproductive healthcare during the COVID-19 second wave.
Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH); 2020.

(The updated advice includes new information on menopause services as well as updates on contraception, abortion, and emergency removals of long-acting reversible contraception. It also contains useful links for women in all regions of the UK, to help them access further advice and care. The advice can be shared with patients and local communities.)

Building public trust: a response to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy predicament.
Journal of Public Health; 2021.

(This study suggests that a more ‘localized’ public education and role-modelling from public officials and health authorities can help a lot in building public trust. The study aims to contribute to the further development of public health mechanisms in the rolling-out and distribution of vaccines against COVID-19.)

Health charities and the NHS: a vital partnership in peril?
National Garden Scheme; 2021.

(This report highlights the crucial services and leadership that health care charities provide for the NHS, both of which have been shown to be critical throughout the current pandemic. It sets out the pressing need for better recognition of and healthy engagement with health care charities by policy-makers, and the benefits that this would bring.)

Stronger Together: A Co-production Webinar series Ambition for ageing

(Between 9th February – 25th March, Ageing Better programme partners are coming together to showcase their learning through a webinar series on Co-Production, coordinated by Ageing Better Sheffield. The webinars aim to inspire others to use the principles of co-production to work collaboratively to achieve a collective aim.)

Chief Medical Officer’s annual report 2020

Health trends and variation in England

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

After a brief section on the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic in England, the main report consists of a collection of charts that present a broad and high-level overview of the nation’s health across a range of health outcomes and public health indicators. A key theme is the variation in health that exists across different dimensions: over geographies, over time, and between groups of people.

To find out more click here.

Covid 19

Updates

Covid-19: Second wave death rate is doubling fortnightly but is lower and slower than in March | The BMJ

Ongoing support from Government and public vigilance imperative as more regions enter Tier 3 – NHS Confederation

Themed Review: Living with Covid19.
NIHR Evidence; 2020.
(This rapid and dynamic review draws on the lived experience of patients and expert consensus as well as published evidence to better understand the impact of ongoing effects of Covid19 (‘Long Covid’), how health and social care services should respond, and what future research questions might be. 15 October.)

Covid-19: Most trainees have faced disruption to their training, GMC survey shows | The BMJ

(A national survey has found that more than seven in 10 junior doctors have had their training disrupted by the pandemic.)

Workforce flexibility in the NHS: utilising Covid-19 innovations – Kings Fund

(This briefing argues that speed at which workforce innovations and flexibilities have been implemented in the NHS since the outbreak of Covid-19 has been both impressive and encouraging. It explores and makes recommendations on six key areas of change: staff wellbeing; flexibility in staff deployment and roles; cross-organisational working and regulation; technology; making use of new roles; and funding.)

Our Covid Voices – National Voices

(A website, run by National Voices, with collected first-person accounts of living through the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK. It is a place to read about what matters to people for health and care, during COVID19 and beyond.)

Public Health

Current awareness updates

Prime Minister announces new local COVID Alert Levels Press release, Gov.uk, October 2020

(On 12th October, the Prime Minister set out how the government will further simplify and standardise local rules by introducing a three tiered system of local COVID Alert Levels in England.)

So what now? Supporting students through a global pandemic and beyond Health Management and Policy Alert, King’s Fund, October 2020

(This report finds that many student midwives are struggling under the weight of financial concerns, poor mental health and an unpredictable job market. It finds that 96 per cent of student midwives reported having mild or moderate mental health problems since the pandemic began. The survey shows that by the end of July just 36 per cent of students in their final year of midwifery training had been offered a job in the NHS. At the same time, midwifery educator numbers are not keeping pace with the rise in student midwife numbers, potentially leaving students less supported throughout their training.)

Stoptober 2019 Campaign Evaluation Health Management and Policy Alert, King’s Fund, October 2020

(Stoptober is an annual event to encourage smokers to quit for 28 days in October, with the aim of stopping smoking permanently. This report aims to measure the impact of Stoptober during 2019.)

Daily Insight: New wave, new problems.
Health Services Journal (HSJ); 22nd September, 2020.
(The second wave of the Covid pandemic appears to be upon us. While the approach of the second wave has been accompanied by stories of faults and failings in the system delivering vital Covid tests, the first wave in March was accompanied by a crisis in the supply of essential personal protective equipment. The onset of the second wave has also brought a warning from RCEM about English emergency departments reporting “dangerous” overcrowding similar to levels seen pre-covid.)

Use of the NHS COVID-19 app in schools and further education colleges.
Department for Education and Department of Health and Social Care; 2020.
(Actions for schools and further education colleges when using the NHS COVID-19 app in education settings. Published 22 September 2020.)

Childhood in the time of Covid.
The Children’s Commissioner; 2020.
(While for some children there were certain aspects of the pandemic that brought benefits such as spending more time with their families, this report sets out how for many of the most vulnerable children the disruption of the past six months has been damaging and compounded existing inequalities. It calls for a comprehensive recovery package for children and provides a roadmap for what should be done to help children to recover from their experiences of the past six months and the ongoing crisis.)

Financial consequences of the coronavirus pandemic for older people ELSA, September 2020

Older people have been severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, but less focus has been given to the financial impact on older adults. ELSA investigate how adults in their 50s and older have been affected financially by the pandemic.

Covid 19

Leaders warn of “full blown second surge” as hospital admissions rise

Healthcare leaders have warned that the NHS will face a full blown second suge of Covid without immediate action.

Yvonne Doyle, medical director for Public Health England, said, “We’re seeing a definite and sustained increase in cases and admissions to hospital. The trend is clear, and it is very concerning. Numbers of deaths from covid-19 are also rising so we must continue to act to reduce transmission of this virus.”

There are rising concerns that we could soon be back to where we were in April if we do not take action now. To find out more click here.