Issue - meetings

The Director of Public Health (DPH) updated the Board. The last five weeks had been extremely difficult with resources being stretched. However, the number of cases had started to slow and there were signs that they were plateauing.

The DPH praised the integrated care partnership noting that all parts of health care, such as Primary Care, NELFT, the police and fire brigade, had stepped up and had gone above and beyond what was required of them.

The Chair expressed her thanks to staff who have had to deal with the pandemic noting that Board members would find it difficult to appreciate the sheer scale of the pandemic’s effect on the healthcare system. 

The Senior Intelligence and Analytics Officer (SIAO) gave a presentation providing the Board with the following Covid-19 indicators:

·  B&D had the highest number of infections per 100,000 for the previous two weeks.

·  Overall, there was a reduction in infections in Greater London from 16% two weeks earlier to 1% last week.  Two vaccination sites would be opening in the borough at the following locations.

a.  London East in Dagenham

b.  Broadway Theatre in Barking

·  Testing rates had improved and there had been an increase in home testing kits being sent out. Barking and Dagenham had the second highest test rate, from 30^th December to 5^th January in the country.

·  Infection rates were higher among children of secondary school age, though now in decline, whilst primary school age children remained stable.

·  There were 35 Covid-19 related deaths in the week ending 1^st January 2021.

·  The average figure in relation to excess deaths was 18.4 over the same period, based on a five-year average.

The Deputy Chair, who is also Chair of BHR CCGs, noted that most care home residents in the borough had received their first dose of the vaccination. There had been delays in vaccinations owing to care home residents being reluctant to have the vaccination at the appointed times. The Chair said that his would be followed up offline.

The Deputy Chair noted that, only when vaccinations are extended to lower cohorts, will Covid-19 be brought under control. The Board were concerned that some members of the public were refusing to accept the vaccine noting that fake claims were circulating online. The Chair said that the Council would arrange for communications to be issued challenging these claims and urging the public to be vaccinated when it is offered, not to contact their GP asking for the vaccination and instead wait to be contacted.

The Board noted the update.