Coventry & Warwickshire COVID-19 Portal

Sent on behalf of the COVID-19 Primary Care Incident Management Team for Coventry and Rugby, South Warwickshire and Warwickshire North CCGs

**Please find below the latest primary care coronavirus briefing.**

Information provided by NHS Coventry and Rugby CCG, NHS South Warwickshire CCG and NHS Warwickshire North CCG in line with Public Health England guidance.

This information may change rapidly as the situation develops. For the latest information for primary care, visit: https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/primary-care

In today's briefing we include the latest news stories falling into the following categories:

• Latest Local Picture

• Local Updates

• Latest National Picture

• Communications from NHS England

• Actions For Primary Care

Please click on the relevant section to view specific information.  

Latest local picture

Please remember: we are issuing the briefing twice a week (Tuesday and Thursday) communications via: warnoccg.covid19primarycarecommunications@nhs.net. We would also ask that if you have questions or concerns relating to the current situation around coronavirus and COVID-19 you use the same address: warnoccg.covid19primarycarecommunications@nhs.net. Please keep us updated with any issues that you may be having so we can try to address them.

Coventry and Warwickshire COVID position up to 03.06.2020

• 2,285 cases now confirmed in Coventry and Warwickshire (+29 / +1.3% from Tuesday)

• 68 of these are currently admitted (-5 / -6.8% from Tuesday)

• 579 beds still available (-34 / -5.5% from Tuesday)

• 4 ITU beds occupied by Covid patients (-1 / -20.0% from Tuesday)

• 481 reported deaths in a hospital setting (+7 / +1.5% from Tuesday)

 Care Home current position as at 03.06.2020

• 250 Covid related deaths in care homes (+24 / +10.6% from Tuesday, note some of these deaths may have occurred outside of the home and so may be counted in the figure above)

• 604 Care home deaths in total (+57 / +10.4% from Tuesday)

• 750 confirmed cases (+49 / +7.0% from Tuesday)

o Confirmed care home cases broken down by CCG:

o Coventry & Rugby: 396

o South Warwickshire: 236

o Warwickshire North: 118

Local Updates

1. Antibody testing

You will be aware from national communications, that antibody testing is now becoming available; we are currently working through the local processes for accessing this testing for primary care staff and will communicate this as soon as it has been finalised. Testing is not yet available for patients as soon as the situation changes we will update via the bulletin. 

2. Update to guidance for people who are clinically extremely vulnerable (shielding)

You will have seen that the Government has updated the guidance for people who are clinically extremely vulnerable to Covid 19 and have been advised to shield. The update from Government comes into effect from today. In summary the changes are:

• The advice for people identified as clinically extremely vulnerable is that they should continue to shield until at least the 30 June but from 1 June, they can spend a short period of time outdoors each day with members of their household, still maintaining 2m distance from others.

• If the shielded person lives alone, the Government is advising they can meet one other person from a different household, maintaining strict social distancing. The advice is that this be the same person each time.

• Important aspects of Government’s policy and guidance remain the same. Apart from going outside once per day, a shielded person should continue to avoid all non-essential face to face contact. This means they should still not go shopping or to pharmacies.

• The support for shielded people remains in place and unchanged.

The Government has also confirmed that it will be reviewing shielding guidance alongside wider changes to social distancing, including plans to write to those on the shielding patients list with information about next steps on shielding after the next review on 15 June. 

3. Return of Original MCCD's

In an update to our previous note, please see details about where to post the original MCCDs (medical certification of cause of death). Any that have been sent directly to the registrar will be forwarded. For clarificaiton the certificates should be sent to the same office as the MCCD was scanned to originally:

 

Nuneaton and North Warwickshire - The Registration Office, Riversley Park, Coton Road, Nuneaton CV11 5HA

Rugby - The Registration Office, 5 Bloxam Place Rugby CV21 3DS

Warwick, Leamington, Stratford, Shipston, Alcester, Kenilworth - The Register Office, Shire Hall, Market Place, Warwick CV34 4RL

4. EMIS update: URGENT: Guidance on shielding patients defined as extremely vulnerable from COVID-19 (Update Weds 3rd June)

Despite changes announced by the government this weekend, the weekly Shielded Patient List (SPL) process continues, and as such we will be processing the latest cohort of SPL additions and subtractions later today. This latest SPL cohort is collectively referred to as SPL9.

As with previous updates, new additions have been identified centrally by NHS Digital and NHS England, and these patients will be contacted by NHS England; practices do not need to contact these patients unless clinical review indicates that they should be considered as either moderate- or low-risk instead. Visit the EMIS website for the full update.

5. NHS Test and Trace: Workplace Guidance

The NHS test and trace service forms a central part of the government’s coronavirus (COVID-19) recovery strategy, which seeks to help the nation return to normal as soon as possible for as many people as possible, in a way that is safe and protects the NHS and social care sector.

The recently issued government guidance explains how employers and businesses can play their part in the NHS test and trace programme to slow the spread of the virus, protect the health and care system and save lives.

Test and Trace: Campaign Resources Available

Along with the Government's launch of the NHS Test and Trace service, a number of materials have been produced to help support the key messages. There are now a range of materials available on the Campaign Resource Centre from Public Health England.

 

UPDATES FOR Coventry and Rugby – 4 June 2020

No updates this issue.

UPDATES FOR South Warwickshire – 4 June 2020 

6. Urgent / Emergency Ophthalmology Services

Please download an updated roadmap for patients needing urgent or emergency ophthalmology treatment in south Warwickshire.

For low risk/routine patients please continue to refer to Community Health and Eye Care (CHEC) as normal for triage, virual assessments and the option of referral to a community optometrist where clinically necessary.

For urgent patients needing assessment quickly please call SWFT during the hours 9-5 Monday to Thursday on 01926 495321 ext 5804 where the patient will be triaged and either booked in for an urgent appointment in Warwick or Stratford, stepped up or down appropriately to CHEC or UHCW, or treated virtually as per clinical need.

For emergency patients please refer to UHCW as usual on 02476 964800 or 02476 964802 or 02476 964806 (Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm) (Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holidays 9am to 12pm) 07823 535 863 (Out of hours) Or email uhcw.eyecasualty@nhs.net Or for Advice and Guidance/ Consultant Connect.

Advice of which conditions are deemed urgent or emergency are detailed in the download.

If you have any queries or questions on this pathway please email megan.isaac@southwarwickshireccg.nhs.uk

This process will be fully audited and assessed over coming weeks and any necessary amendments will be made and communicated as promptly as possible.

7. CCG supporting the Warwickshire Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH)

South Warwickshire CCG is supporting the Warwickshire Multi Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH) under mutual aid arrangements. The safeguarding named nurses (Bernie Bell and Fran Walsh) are assisting with the lateral checks that are required, by calling GP surgeries and asking for health information about children where a safeguarding concern has been reported to the MASH. The information is required in a timely fashion (within 4 hours), to ascertain whether a strategy meeting is required to look at protecting any children who are referred.

Bernie and Fran are working virtually but can be identified by their mobile numbers below- they are also able to confirm their legitimacy by their CCG email address, although they will only request identifiable information by nhs.net accounts. Your cooperation to assist the MASH, as lockdown restrictions are eased and referrals increase, is greatly appreciated.

Bernie Bell 07585 401 140, email: Bernadette.Bell@southwarwickshireccg.nhs.uk, secure email: bernadette.bell@nhs.net

Fran Walsh 07585 401 146, email: frances.walsh@southwarwickshireccg.nhs.uk, secure email: frances.walsh@nhs.net

UPDATES FOR Warwickshire North – 4 June 2020

No updates this issue.

Latest National Picture

• As of 9am on 3 June, there have been 4,786,219 tests, with 171,829 tests on 2 June.

• 279,856 people have tested positive.

• As of 5pm on 2 June, of those tested positive for coronavirus in the UK, across all settings, 39,728 have died.

• Press conference slides and datasets used by The Rt Hon Matt Hancock MP and Professor John Newton on 2 June are here.

• Latest advice is here.

• Public Health measures come into force next week,

• PM statement at the coronavirus press conference: 3 June 2020.

• Slides and datasets to accompany coronavirus press conference: 3 June.

• Latest local figures published by GOV.uk and PHE are as of Wednesday 3 June 2020 at 4:01pm, there are a total of 16,296 cases in the West Midlands.

Communications from NHS England

8. NHS England Primary Care Bulletin – new edition – 2 June

COVID-19: latest guidance for general practice is issued in the NHS England Primary Care Bulletin (2 June) and in this edition has details of the GP Standard Operating Procedure recently published, principles of safe video consulting in general practice during COVID-19 and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) portal access. This regular COVID-19 Primary Care Bulletin is from Dr Nikki Kanani and Ed Waller and you are encouraged to sign up here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/email-bulletins/general-practice-bulletin/. 

9. Media enquiries 

Our communications team is here to support you if needed. If you are approached by the media, please forward on to your local communications team: agem.communications@nhs.net. Outside of working hours the communications team can be reached via 01522 537887.   

Actions for Primary Care

None this issue 

 

 

 

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