Our weekly healthcare news roundup including NHS Confederation chief executive to step down, can thermal cameras help spot coronavirus and take the anonymous Nursing Standard survey, open to all UK nursing staff to share experiences on the front line of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Face coverings to become mandatory on public transport – gov.uk
From 15 June, face coverings will be required while using public transport in England.
NHS Confederation chief executive to step down – nhsconfed.org
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, is to step down from his role in October, having been in post for almost four years.
Recruitment for his replacement is underway and his deputy Danny Mortimer, who is also chief executive of NHS Employers, will take over on an interim basis. Interim arrangements for NHS Employers will be confirmed shortly.
Coronavirus: NHS trust bosses not consulted over new face mask rules – BBC – 6 June
NHS trusts were not consulted before the government announced changes to the use of face coverings and visitor policy in English hospitals, the chief executive of NHS Providers has said.
Chris Hopson said trust leaders felt “completely in the dark” about the “significant and complex” changes.
From 15 June, hospital visitors and outpatients must wear face coverings and staff must use surgical masks.
Coronavirus: Is R number balanced on a knife-edge? – BBC – 6 June
There have been warnings coronavirus may be starting to spread again in the north-west and the south-west of England.
Some scientists say the R number is creeping up across the country and may have surpassed one – the point at which the epidemic takes off again – in these regions.
So, what is going on? How worried should we be? And what does it mean for lifting lockdown?
“Too Little, Too Late, Too Flawed.” – Health Matters Magazine – 6 June
This is the bleak assessment of the UK’s public health response to Covid 19 in the British Medical Journal 23 May 2020 (p269). The editorial documents a series of failures of decision making, on a background of the decimation of public health services and austerity in the last decade.
COVID-19: nurses eligible for support from NHS volunteers – Nursing Standard – 6 June – Article by Kimberley Hackett
Nurses will be able to access support from the NHS Volunteer Responders, the government has announced.
From Monday 8 June, front-line health and social care staff can get help from volunteers who will deliver food and medication to their homes.
What have you experienced as a nurse during the pandemic? – Nursing Standard – 8 June
Being on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic gives nurses a unique point of view and Nursing Standard wants to hear about your experiences.
The anonymous survey is open to all UK nursing staff and takes just a few minutes to complete.
This survey will close at 5pm on Friday 19 June.
Can thermal cameras help spot coronavirus? – BBC –9 June – Article By Philippa Roxby
As lockdowns ease, thermal imaging cameras are popping up in all sorts of public places to assess the state of people’s health, but they are not designed to be medical devices, so how useful are they in the current pandemic?
Coronavirus: Call for UK-wide clap for key workers on NHS anniversary – BBC – 10 June
People are being encouraged to celebrate the NHS’s 72nd birthday and thank key workers for their support during the coronavirus pandemic with a nationwide clap next month.
NHS England boss Sir Simon Stevens and the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby are among the influential figures supporting the initiative.
The initiative would make 5 July an official day to pay tribute. Clap for carers founder Annemarie Plas is also backing the campaign.
Exhausted nurses ‘will need support to restart services’ after pandemic – Nursing Standard – 10 June – Article by Stephanie Jones-Berry
An ‘exhausted’ nursing profession will need support to restart normal services following COVID-19, the RCN said.
The warning comes as NHS leaders call for a review of burnout and wider well-being across the health and social care workforce.
In a new report, the NHS Confederation – which represents acute, community, mental health and primary care providers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland – said a review was necessary, ‘given the unprecedented pressure staff have been under’.
Coronavirus: England test and trace system identifies 31,000 contacts – BBC – 11 June
More than 31,000 close contacts of people with coronavirus were identified during the first week of the test and trace system in England, figures show.
Of those, 85% were reached and asked to self-isolate for 14 days.
This was from 8,000 people testing positive for the virus. Two-thirds of them gave details of close contacts.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it was the public’s “civic duty” to follow instructions given by contact tracers.