LATEST CORONA VIRUS UPDATE

Due to the COVID 19 Virus, it has been recommended by the Government that changes will be required to be made to services across the country.

Public Health Nursing 4 Slough have decided to cancel all drop-in clinics, weaning sessions and well-baby groups until further notice.Therefore, we will no longer carry out any routine visits from this week (Exceptions might be made in some cases). A telephone health screening assessment will determine whether a visit is required.

The Public Health Nursing 4 Slough team can still be reached on the duty line on: 01753 373464 for support and advice.

We will keep you updated here and via our social media pages.

Public Health England disparities review finds Black and Asian groups more likely to die of COVID-19

Public Health England has published its review of COVID-19 disparities, looking at how the impact of the disease varies according to ethnicity and other factors, such as age, sex, deprivation, occupation, and geography. A link to the full report can be found here.

The review found that:

• People of Bangladeshi ethnicity have around twice the risk of death as White British people.
• People of Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Other Asian, Caribbean, and Other Black ethnicity had between 10 and 50% higher risk of death.
• Death rates in the most deprived areas are more than double those in the least deprived areas.
• People over 80 were seventy times more likely to die than those under 40.
• There was a strong regional pattern, with London showing the highest diagnoses and death rates.

The analysis was not able to account for other factors, such as comorbidities, occupation, and household composition. These are important, as there are high proportions of BAME workers in key occupations, and many from BAME groups tend to live in larger and multi-generational households, both of which can lead to higher risk of exposure to the virus.

It appears from the PHE analysis that the impact of COVID-19 follows a similar pattern to so many of the deeply ingrained public health challenges that we face – from morbid obesity to deaths from smoking. It is always the most vulnerable that are impacted by public health challenges, and that has a good deal to do with the environments and social determinants of health which people face.

Here at Solutions 4 Health we will continue to both provide and develop innovative, sustainable lifestyle and clinical services that improve healthcare for all, especially those who experience inequitable health outcomes.

USEFUL CONTACTS

These are unprecedented times and we want you to know that there is still lots of support available should you need it.

The government’s measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are already in place and will undoubtedly affect everyone’s daily lives as we adapt to a new way of living. This may be a particularly challenging time for families with a new baby, young children or teenagers as they struggle to balance work, childcare and their own self-care.

With social distancing restrictions in place the activities that may support and help families cope are not currently accessible and mean families cannot participate in support groups, children/baby groups, social engagements, sports and celebrations as they normally would. This may leave many people feeling isolated and unsure of where to go for support.

During this time, it is important to take care of yours and your children’s physical and emotional wellbeing. There are lots of things you can do, and support is available should you need it either through Public Health Nursing 4 Slough or on some of the useful contacts below.

We hope you and your families keep well and we ask that you continue to stay at home until government restrictions are lifted.