Tag: UK Health Security Agency

Covid 19

Current awareness updates

Face coverings and COVID-19: statement from an expert panel .
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[An expert panel statement, informed by evidence and expertise, on the role of face coverings in mitigating COVID-19 transmission.]

Impact evaluation of the Coronavirus Community Support Fund: final report.
The National Lottery Community Fund; 2021.
[Ipsos MORI, in partnership with New Philanthropy Capital (NPC) and The Tavistock Institute of Human Relations (TIHR), was commissioned to undertake an evaluation of the Coronavirus Community Support Fund (CCSF). This document summarises the findings from an assessment of the impact the CCSF had on the people and communities that were supported, the organisations that were funded, and the volunteers involved.]

COVID-19: impact on childhood vaccinations: data to August 2021.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA); 2021.
[Final report of the series providing an early assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on delivery of childhood vaccination programmes in England.]

Covid and beyond: confronting the unequal access to type 1 diabetes healthcare.
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation; 2021.
[JDRF surveyed more than 1,000 people living with type 1 diabetes, or caring for a child living with it, to reveal their experiences through the upheavals of the Covid pandemic. The findings of the report reveal the impact of the withdrawal and repurposing of many NHS diabetes services on people with type 1. The report sets out a series of recommendations, anchored in the needs of people living with type 1.]

Assessing the impact of COVID-19 on the clinically extremely vulnerable population.
The Health Foundation; 2021.
[This briefing presents analysis from the Networked Data Lab on the impact the pandemic has had on the clinically extremely vulnerable population; assesses the mental health of people identified as clinically extremely vulnerable; examines the data on access to care for clinically extremely vulnerable;
assess the limitations to the use of an algorithm-driven approach to identifying the clinically extremely vulnerable population which were exacerbated by poor availability of high-quality data.]

Public Health

Current awareness updates

Are we Improving Access to Psychological Treatment for everyone?
The Mental Elf; 2021.
[Bibire Baykeens reviews a general population cohort study which suggests that recent migrants are less likely to use the Improving Access to Psychological Treatment programme.]

Flu in prisons and secure settings.
UK Health Security Agency; 2021.
[This guidance, updated for 2021/22, details how to respond to cases of seasonal flu in prisons and other secure settings (e.g. immigration removal centres; secure training centres), including vaccination, treatment and managing outbreaks.]

Flu in the children and young people’s secure estate.
UK Health Security Agency; 2021.
[This guidance, updated for 2021/22, details how to respond to cases of seasonal flu in the children and young people’s secure estate (e.g. young offender institutions, secure training centres, secure children’s homes), including vaccination, treatment and managing outbreaks.]

Flu vaccination in schools.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[Flu vaccination guidance and resources for schools.]

Cold weather plan: action cards for cold weather alert service.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[These action cards summarise advice on how different organisations need to respond to cold weather alert levels 0 through 4.]

Access to palliative care: the primacy of public health partnerships and community participation.
Mills J. The Lancet Public Health 2021;:doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(21)00213-9.
[This viewpoint highlights that palliative care is a public-health concern and the need to promote equity in access to palliative care through public-health partnerships that prioritise community development and participation in end of life care.]

Forthcoming UK asthma guidelines: an opportunity to improve asthma outcomes.
Bush A. The Lancet 2021;:doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)02244-3.
[Comment proposes the guideline committees set SMART objectives, e.g. reporting of patients who access less than 80% of their inhaled corticosteroid requirements, suggesting adoption of their proposed strategies could help the guidelines group rise to the challenge of improving asthma outcomes.]

A public health approach to estimating the need for long COVID services.
Journal of Public Health; 2021.
[This paper illustrates how a public health approach was used to influence and inform the development of post-COVID services across two Integrated Care Systems (ICSs). The findings have been valuable in informing early service developments, engaging with managers and clinicians, and supporting applications for funding at a local level.]

Self-Care Readiness Index.
Global Self Care Federation; 2021.
[The Self-Care Readiness Index (SCRI) is a research and policy initiative by the Global Self Care Federation and supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO). It explores enablers of self care across the health systems of 10 countries, including the UK.]

Online services in general practice: patterns of use and barriers to uptake.
Public Health England (PHE); 2021.
[This project is in line with the national ambition to support the adoption of a range of technology initiatives in general practice. The aims were to understand the needs of the population relating to the effectiveness of online services to support general practice, and identifying groups and exploring barriers and enablers to the use of GP online services. The report is mainly intended for commissioners and providers of GP services.]

Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Health and Wellbeing Programme: An evaluation.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[An independent evaluation of the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) Health and Wellbeing Programme.]

Best foot forward: exploring the barriers and enablers to active travel among 50–70 year olds.
Centre for Ageing Better; 2021.
[This report finds that too many people in their 50s and 60s will remain physically inactive unless we redesign our neighbourhoods to encourage walking and cycling. The report, which looked at the barriers people in this age group face to walking and cycling, says that action is needed from national and local government, service providers and health systems to get people moving.]

Adult social care in England, monthly statistics: October 2021.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2021.
[Experimental statistics on a range of topics including infection control measures, coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccinations and testing for COVID-19 in adult social care settings.]

Transport initiatives to increase uptake of breast screening programmes.
Carried out by Frankie Marcelline from Brighton and Sussex on 12/10/2021
[The evidence search report covers studies on the links between breast cancer screening uptake and ease of transport to appointments. In Tower Hamlets an initiative for encouraging uptake of breast cancer screening appointments includes transport-related support.]


Covid 19

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.]