Health Management and Policy Alert

Guidance for contacts of people with possible or confirmed coronavirus (Covid-19) infection who do not live with the person

Public Health England - 

This guidance is for people who have been notified by NHS Test and Trace that they are a contact of a person who has had a positive test result for coronavirus (Covid-19).

• Guidance
• More detail

NLGN Leadership Index – edition #9: Covid-19

New Local Government Network (NLGN) - 

NLGN’s Leadership Index is a quarterly survey sent to all chief executives, council leaders/mayors in the UK. IT asks council chiefs about their level of confidence in key service areas as well as wider indicators of community wellbeing. The May 2020 survey also asked local government leaders how they are responding to the Covid-19 outbreak. Key findings include council chiefs calling for more support from government, confidence levels in the economy have dropped significantly, however community cohesion and trust have never been higher.

• Survey
• More detail

Second personal protective equipment (PPE) survey of UK nursing staff report

Royal College of Nursing - 

The RCN has undertaken two surveys of health and care staff to identify their experiences and ongoing issues with the supply of and access to PPE during the Covid-19 pandemic. This report details the findings of the second survey (May 2020). Although there has been some improvement since the April 2020 survey, there are still shortages of essential PPE in all settings, and health and care staff are still reliant on PPE items being donated or home-made in some cases. The findings also highlighted a contrast in the experience and safety of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) respondents.

• Survey
• Press release
• April survey

Preventing and managing the Covid-19 pandemic across long-term care services in the WHO European Region

World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe - 

This technical guidance identifies ten policy objectives for decision-makers, policy-makers and national or regional health authorities as they strive to prevent and manage the COVID-19 pandemic in long-term care settings. The focus is on older people above the age of 65 years who use long-term care services in their homes, day centres or designated facilities (residential homes and nursing homes).

• Guidance
• Press release

NHS Test and Trace: how it works

Department of Health and Social Care -

This guidance gives an overview of the NHS test and trace service, including what happens if you test positive for coronavirus (Covid-19) or have had close contact with someone who has tested positive.

• Guidance
• Press release

NHS Test and Trace: workplace guidance

Department of Health and Social Care - 

This guidance explains how employers and businesses can play their part in the NHS Test and Trace programme, developed to manage the risk of the virus re-emerging as restrictions on everyday life are eased, as far as it is deemed safe to do so.

• Guidance
• Press release

Understanding the provision of occupational health and work-related musculoskeletal services

Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) - 

This report (published by the the DHSC together with the Department for Work and Pensions) maps the current provision of occupational health (OH) in the United Kingdom and reviews work-related musculoskeletal (MSK) services in the NHS. The research aimed to examine the available models of private and NHS service provision; how these are commissioned, resourced and accessed; examine the workforce of private and NHS providers; and investigate the commissioning of MSK and work-related NHS services. The research is intended to inform the ongoing development of policy relating to OH.

• Report
• More detail

Six-country survey on Covid-19

Institute of Labor Economics - 

This paper presents a new data set collected on representative samples across six countries: China, South Korea, Japan, Italy, the UK and the four largest states in the US. The information collected relates to work and living situations, income, behavior (such as social-distancing, hand-washing and wearing a face mask), beliefs about the Covid-19 pandemic and exposure to the virus, socio-demographic characteristics and pre-pandemic health characteristics.

• Discussion paper
• More detail

 

Loneliness, social isolation and Covid-19: practical advice

Local Government Association (LGA) - 

The LGA, together with the Association of Directors of Public Health, have produced this guide for directors of public health and others leading the response to the loneliness and social isolation issues arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Guide
• More detail

Age, death risk, and the design of an exit strategy: a guide for policymakers and for citizens who want to stay alive

Institute of Labor Economics - 

This discussion paper provides information on the strong age-pattern in the risk of death from three countries (China, Italy, the UK). If politicians want an imminent removal of the lockdown, the safest approach in our judgment would be a rolling age-release strategy combined with the current principle of social distancing. But even if that is not the policy adopted, citizens need to be shown graphs of the kind in this paper. Honest guidance ought to be given to those in midlife and beyond. Governments have to allow people to understand their personal risk after any release from lockdown.

• Discussion paper
• More detail

NHS hospital car parking policies in the UK

House of Commons Library - 

This briefing sets out policies on NHS hospital parking charges in the UK. Hospitals may charge for car parking in all NHS hospitals in England and Northern Ireland. Most hospital car parking charges were abolished in Wales in 2008 and Scotland in 2009. 

• Briefing
• More detail

Returning NHS waiting times to 18 weeks for routine treatment: the scale of the challenge pre-Covid-19

Health Foundation  - 

Returning to ‘normal’ levels of activity is expected to take some time and, even before Covid-19, there were substantial challenges with waiting times. As the NHS looks to start to recover services, this long read looks at the context in which planned treatment will recommence. Specifically, it looks at what would have been needed – if the NHS were operating within a ‘business as usual model’ – to return to delivering the standard of 92 per cent of patients being treated within 18 weeks, given the waiting lists and waiting times backlog that had built up by January 2020.

• Long read

The Covid-19 pandemic, financial inequality and mental health

Mental Health Foundation - 

This briefing discusses the mental health effects of financial inequalities in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. It draws evidence from the “Coronavirus: Mental Health in the Pandemic” research – a UK-wide, long-term study of how the pandemic is affecting people’s mental health. The study is led by the Mental Health Foundation, in collaboration with the University of Cambridge, Swansea University, the University of Strathclyde and Queen’s University Belfast.

• Briefing
• Research Study

Coronavirus (Covid-19): antibody tests

Department of Health and Social Care - 

The government has announced the start of a major new national antibody testing programme, with plans to provide antibody tests to NHS and care staff in England from the end of May. This guidance gives information on the programme. An accompanying infographic shows the differences between coronavirus tests.

• Guidance
• More detail

Coronavirus (Covid-19): providing home care

Department of Health and Social Care - 

This document brings together guidance for social care staff, registered providers, local authorities and commissioners who support and deliver care to people in their own homes in England. It covers: personal protective equipment; shielding and care groups; hospital discharge and testing; government support for social care; and information collection and governance.

• Guidance
• More detail