Agenda item

Dr Rupert Suckling provided an update to the Board with regard to how Doncaster was currently faring in the face of Covid-19, and the direct impacts it was having on the Borough.

It was reported that currently in Doncaster, whilst they had risen to around 350 per 100,000 since the Christmas period when at that time, figures had hovered around the 200 mark, they were still positive when looked at comparatively with the rest of the country. They were much lower than in many areas and were currently considerably lower than in October and November when Doncaster’s levels reached their peak. However, despite this, the numbers were still higher now than in the first peak in Spring 2020.

The pandemic was continuing to have a massive effect on the Borough, its residents and those working to assist the issues it presented. 

The third national lockdown was considerably stricter than the one experienced in November, as this time around, Schools had closed to all children again for the second time aside from the children of critical workers or those who were vulnerable. The majority of people where possible were continuing to work from home, and all non-essential retail, leisure and social businesses had closed again aside from click and collect, and a range of grants and support were granted to those in need.

In terms of the health care system, symptomatic testing was now much more readily available with additional testing sites established. Additionally, asymptomatic testing was being carried out in the workplace for those working in the NHS, Police, School staff and certain areas of Local Government and other areas of the public sector.

Dr Suckling reported that it was expected that rates across the country and also across the Borough would start to stabilise over the next couple of weeks, but despite the steadying numbers there would still be a great amount of pressure on the NHS for a number of weeks as the effects started to show.

Richard Parker, agreed with the information provided by Rupert Suckling and reported that there had been high pressure placed on the hospitals in October and November, with many more acute beds taken with Covid patients than in the first wave, and whilst rates stabilised and discharges were now improving, these were considerably slower than in April. It was hoped that the national measures currently in place would work well to reduce numbers and there was optimism that Communities would again pull together to get past this time, but it was crucial that people adhered to the restrictions or other added pressure would be placed on the hospitals. There had been an increased demand for oxygen, which was proving challenging as well as the pressure on staffing levels with rising sickness.

It was reported that there was an enhanced infection control scheme in hospital in order to present unnecessary transmissions. This had resulted in a loss of beds across the hospital, which also had a knock on effect on the non-Covid activity undertaken. Focus was still being placed on Priority 1 and Priority 2 patients to ensure that those needing urgent care were receiving it. This did however mean that many people waiting for planned, non-urgent procedures were now waiting much longer.

The Vaccination programme was now well underway in Doncaster and all the partnership bodies were working well alongside each other to roll them out to the people in the top groups identified by the Government. It was a challenging programme, and they were currently in as good as a position as could be hoped for with between 500 and 600 people a day being vaccinated. The Board were assured that no vaccines were wasted and in the event that people were unable to make their appointments, there was a list of NHS staff who could be contacted at short notice to attend.

Dr David Crichton added to the updates provided by Dr Suckling and Richard Parker and the information given with regard to the roll out of vaccines across Doncaster. Members noted that the main issue that would be faced locally was the availability of vaccines as there was a finite supply. The Primary Care Network (PCN) was in charge of the vaccination programme and they were managing it centrally, not from the GP Surgeries, with a number of hubs set up across the borough.  In Phase 1 of the programme, the Pfizer Vaccine was initially the only vaccine available and had been administered from one of the main hubs at Rutland House, where it could be stored at the correct temperatures, but this brought added pressure in that it also had to be used within 3 days. However in relation to the concerns raised by Councillor Cole, assurance was again given that no vaccines were wasted and every single drop was used up. However, due to the storage requirements of the Pfizer Vaccine, this would not be moved into the wider community and be administered in Chemists or similar. However, now the ‘Oxford’ Vaccine was being rolled out, this would be a positive move and would help with the programme.

It was reported that many volunteers had come forward to assist with the drive, and Dr Crichton paid tribute to all of those involved, including the provision of venues, people to marshal and many other volunteers assisting with various processes, and those helping the elderly and vulnerable to access the services. It was a huge effort with thanks extended to everyone and it was hoped that by the 22nd January 2021, all of the over 80s who could make it to a vaccination hub would have received the first dose of the vaccination.

Overall, it was accepted that the programme was doing well, and Doncaster was on course to ensure all its vulnerable residents, which was approximately half the population of the Borough would be vaccinated by the middle of February 2021.

The updates given by Dr Suckling, Richard Parker and Dr Crichton covered the questions raised by Councillor Cole at the earlier point on the agenda, and he thanked Officers for their time. He was pleased to see things were progressing well and commented that the issue of availability and supply appeared to be the biggest issue faced, which hopefully would be overcome in the coming weeks.

The Board was updated on a number of other issues relating to the wider impact as a result of Covid-19, which included the following points:-

·         The mental health of many individuals was becoming more of a problem as a result of ongoing restrictions which was putting pressure on mental health services;

·         Added pressure on community nursing services with more patients requiring support in the community

·         Demand for support from drug and alcohol services was rising which was a knock on effect of mental health problems;

·         Schools were open to those requiring support, with careful management of numbers to ensure that transmission was managed as much as possible;

·         Home visits for families and children in need of support were continuing and support to communities was ongoing.

The Chair thanked everyone for their input into the update and the wealth of information provided. It was an extremely difficult period for everyone across the borough regardless of their situations, and the Board paid tribute to the hard work, resilience and strength of everyone.

RESOLVED that the Board noted the update given in relation to the Direct Impacts of Covid-19.