#Variants of #Covid19@ONS latest
Since the end of Jun 2022, the majority of UK Covid_19 infections have been #Omicron variants BA.4 or BA.5. In w/ending 2 Oct 2022:
🦠BA.5 = 87.0%
🦠BA.4 = 8.3% of all sequenced COVID-19 infections... 1/n
The @ONS 'observed a small recent increase in the number of infections with sub-lineage BA.2.75 (4.1% of sequenced infections), but this is not the cause of recent increases in trends'.
However, [the @ONS report states that...] 'there has been a SHARP increase in the number of infections with sub-lineages BQ.1 (a sub-lineage of BA.5) in the week ending 2 October 2022 (6.9% of sequenced infections)'.
'BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 raise concern for their ability to evade immune responses. Both sublineages contain several mutations in their #SARSCoV2. Preliminary data suggests some of these mutations can help the virus dodge antibodies against #SARSCoV2'.@arstechnica arstechnica.com/?post_type=pos…
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With worsening Emergency Department and ambulance waits, NHS England reported 'to have called on trusts to speed up the discharge of patients, with more than 10,000 patients who should be discharged stuck in hospital each day.' @Rebeccasmt@Independent 1/n independent.co.uk/news/health/ho…
'Hospitals across the country have begun using a model in which patients are being moved out of A&E every 2 hours regardless of the amount of space available on trust wards'. @Rebeccasmt@Independent 2/n independent.co.uk/news/health/ho…
'Fears have been raised that this model will result in patients being crowded into wards, or the 'boarding' of patients, which means that patients are not being placed in the correct type of ward'. @Rebeccasmt@Independent 3/n
Analysis @HealthFdn, 'suggests that poor health is the driving factor for increases in inactivity among older age groups since the start of the pandemic, following a pre-pandemic trend'. health.org.uk/news-and-comme…
Recommended background: 'Medical research on #LongCOVID is rapidly growing although the mid-term and long-term effects of 'the illness' are yet to be fully understood. Equally poorly understood is the impact of Long COVID on employment prospects.' @DarjaReuschke & Donald Houston
🚨'The urgent and emergency care system is failing patients, failing in its core function. Patients face long waits for an ambulance to arrive, long waits in A&E departments, long waits for a bed. The NHS crisis demands leadership.' @RCEMpresident@RCollEM theguardian.com/society/2022/o…
Flow of patients
🚑🚑🚑'Ambulance delays - a symptom of a systemic problem.
🏥A&E departments are struggling to get patients admitted to the right hospital wards, because those wards have been struggling to discharge people back into the community.' @CareQualityComm#StateofCare
Report @theRCN Feb 2022: dire shortages in nursing workforce compromising patient care even before the pandemic won’t have improved given increases in demand.
💯@CareQualityComm inpatient survey: only 55% of patients felt there were always enough🏥nurses on duty to care for them.
#Covid Infection Survey @ONS
In w/ending 10 Oct 2022, the % testing positive for Covid19 continued to increase in England & trend was uncertain in N Ireland. In Scotland, % testing positive increased in the 2 weeks up to 10 Oct; % testing positive continued to increase in Wales.
'Uncertain what will happen #SARSCoV2 this winter; there's an evidence-based expectation that respiratory illnesses like Covid spread more when the weather gets worse, and people spend more time in poorly ventilated indoor spaces'. @MartMichaelis@UniKent nationalworld.com/health/covid-w…
Covid isn't following a seasonal pattern - will it in the future? Numbers are falling, and rising, the picture unclear; given we're heading towards winter, it's likely Covid cases, hospitalisations, and deaths will further increase. @MartMichaelis@UniKent nationalworld.com/health/covid-w…
📢Government encourages people to ignore the pandemic: vaccine wanes, indoor mixing, few masks worn, poor ventilation, defences down. #CovidIsNotOver
📈1,675,219 people in the UK with symptomatic COVID [estimated @Join_ZOE 18 Sep 2022]
📈132,287 new daily symptomatic COVID cases.
Since government cut availability of Covid data need to try to correlate reputable sources [e.g., @ONS infection survey @Join_ZOE & coronavirus.data.gov.uk -Thursdays now].
Example: @ONS Scotland positive tests rose from 1 in 55, to 1 in 50, and now 1 in 45, between 23/8 and 5/9.
Meanwhile, 'France's national health body has warned of #COVID19 resurgence in the country, urging people to continue to get vaccinated to protect themselves against the virus'. @JapanToday 'Cases during week Sep 5-Sep 11, up 12% versus the previous week.' japantoday.com/category/featu…
'NHS England data shows @SFHFT [which runs Mansfield Community, Sutton’s King’s Mill and Newark hospitals] – was caring for 74 coronavirus patients in hospital as of 14 Sep 2022. Up from the 59 people in trust hospitals on Wednesday, 7 Sep.' @ChadNews
‘Sherwood Forest Hospitals beds occupied by people who tested positive for Covid-19 has risen by 9% in the last 4 weeks.
Across England, there were 4,540 people in hospital with Covid as of September 14, with 140 of them in mechanical ventilation beds’. chad.co.uk/health/coronav…
Covid infections in England appeared to be falling, but the trend is upwards in Scotland, and uncertain in Wales and Northern Ireland. Meanwhile, @Join_ZOE data raise concerns that trends in the rest of the UK may all already be changing direction.