Agenda item

To receive a presentation from Liz Morgan, Director of Public Health, and Rachel Mitcheson, Northumberland CCG.

Members received a presentation from Liz Morgan, Director of Public Health, and Rachel Mitcheson, Service Director: Transformation & Integrated Care Northumberland CCG, (Presentation attached to the signed minutes.)

Members were informed of the following:-

•        The trend in positive cases as a 7 day rate per 100,000 was rising across the LA7 and numbers in Northumberland, Newcastle and North Tyneside had been highlighted nationally

•        Northumberland was showing a five times increase in cases which was a concern but not a need to panic.

•        The Delta (Indian) variant which was now the dominant variant was more transmissible and there was evidence of an increase in the severity of the disease and a higher risk of admission to hospital.

•        ONS Surveillance showed an increase in prevalence from 1:1,120 (week ending 22 May 2021) to 1:560 (week ending 5 June 2021).

•        60% of cases were in the under 25 years ag group.  Cases in over 60s was showing a slight increase.

•        National tests for roadmap progression.

•        Real time data demonstrated that particularly after two doses vaccines were very effective at reducing symptoms and mortality.  Most of those in hospital with COVID had either not been vaccinated or just had one dose.

•        Hospital admissions were much lower and patients were generally younger but with less need for critical care.  However, Primary Care and the Trusts were very busy.

•        Key messages were to proceed with caution.

Rachel Mitcheson updated Members on the Vaccination Programme and raised a number of points including:-

•        Details of the numbers of doses delivered and vaccination sites delivered in Northumberland.

•        Details of the two phases of the vaccination programme.

•        Graphs showed the uptake of first doses by cohorts 1-12 and second doses for cohorts 1-9.

•        Northumberland had the highest % uptake of first doses (83.4%) of any Upper Tier Local Authority area in England.

•        Figures shown for vaccination of residents and staff in care homes and social care staff.

•        Northumbria Healthcare Foundation Trust had delivered vaccinations for frontline health and social care staff from Wansbeck General and North Tyneside General Hospitals.

•        There had been fantastic multiagency collaboration to identify and book staff into these vaccination slots.

•        Vaccines being used in the UK were Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca, and small amounts of Moderna vaccine.  Further vaccines, Janssen, Valneva and Novavax products were likely to be used later in the year.

•        Northumberland Vaccine Equity Board aimed to identify and address potential areas of inequity and prioritised BAME groups, GRT communities, LD/SMI registered patients and areas of economic deprivation.

•        Northumberland’s Roving Vaccination Unit launched at Bellingham in early April and had visited homeless shelters, some residential settings, piloted workplace vaccinations and assisted with North Tyneside’s surge vaccinations.

•        The vaccination programme had been successful due to system leadership, coordination and collaboration and excellent public engagement.

•        Future challenges included preparing for phase 3 alongside the flu vaccination programme and bringing forward second doses for all those over 40.

The following comments were made in response to queries by Members:-      

•        A vaccine hesitancy campaign had just launched which aimed to deal with common questions and issues raised.  There would always be some who would refuse the vaccine and currently 11,000 over 50’s had not had their first dose.  It would never be possible to vaccinate everyone.  

•        Vaccine supplies were nationally controlled and it was an ever changing picture.

•        The order of vaccination was controlled by age group and the system of cohorts. 

•        Stage 4 of the roadmap had been pushed back in view of the emergence of the new variants, to allow more people to be vaccinated and to stop the new variants from transmitting.  There had been no suggestion of moving back into more stringent restrictions.

•        Some people who had been vaccinated could still catch COVID as no vaccine was 100% effective.

•        Northumberland was not yet in the same position as North Tyneside and outbreaks were being managed and extra testing put in place.  There was currently no need for surge testing.

•        The vaccination programme had now reached the ages of 23-24 years

RESOLVED that the presentation and comments be noted.