The Board and Head of Communications and Media to consider any key messages to be communicated.
Minutes:
The Board and Head of Communications and Media considered the key messages coming from the meeting.
These included:
• Case numbers continued to fall in all age groups and Devon continued to have one of the lowest rates in the country;
• Numbers were now the same as late September last year;
• There was low and falling numbers of patients in local hospitals and fewer deaths;
• The Vaccination programme was going well and generally proving highly successful with the number of new cases and severity of illness much reduced;
• Covid was still in the community however, with continued sporadic outbreaks related to workplaces, care homes and other settings – caution was needed;
• Schools had now re-opened for all pupils and the impact would be closely monitored;
• Regular testing, using the rapid lateral flow tests, of secondary school pupils, college students and all teachers;
• Community (asymptomatic) testing continued to be rolled out across the county for other key workers who could not work from home and parents of school-aged children to access regularly; and,
• Launch of the NHS home delivery rapid lateral flow test which could be ordered online.
Key Public health messages
No vaccination could be 100% effective and people needed to continue to follow the guidelines:
· Stay at home as much as possible;
· If you really need to go out, stay local and wherever possible and avoid contact with others; and,
· Follow the rules around hands, face and space.
Hospitals and health service
• Hospital admissions continued to reduce and were now very low;
• The Nightingale hospital was on standby but set to close for Covid patients by April in line with national plans; and,
• 111 First service was being promoted to help manage non-urgent cases and ensure people get access to care at the right time in the right place.
Mass vaccination
• Vaccinations were on track and going well to have all JVEI groups 1-9 vaccinated by end March;
• Over 490,000 people in Devon had now received the first dose of the vaccine;
• All vaccination centres were moving through the JCVI priority groups as quickly and safely as possible in priority order;
• Around 95% of over-65s in Devon had been vaccinated;
• 80% of health and social care staff had received the vaccine; and,
• There was a campaign to reach out to underrepresented groups including BAME communities and people in rural areas.
Key public messages
• Being vaccinated reduced your risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID. But you could still catch it and pass it on so everyone must continue to adhere to restrictions and public health guidance;
• People needed to book an appointment before turning up at a vaccine centre and let them know if they could not attend to reduce wastage;
• The over 65s, clinically extremely vulnerable and unpaid carers could now book an appointment. This could be done online and you didn’t need to have received a letter or have your NHS number. You could also call 119 between 7am – 11pm (seven days a week). The online system allowed people to choose a suitable time slot and location.
• Otherwise, the NHS would get in touch with you when it was your turn;
• You would not be offered a choice of which vaccination you receive – both approved vaccines were rigorously tested, safe and effective; and,
• Individuals should not call their local hospital or GP practice about getting the vaccine – the NHS would contact them directly when it’s their turn.
Care Homes and vulnerable people
• Significant outbreaks in care homes continued to fall and the severity of illness and deaths were much reduced;
• Nearly all (93%) of care home residents (93%) and 83% of staff had received the first dose vaccination and were now moving onto to second doses;
• Nominated family members could now visit their relatives in care homes;
• There remained a small number of significant outbreaks of concern which were being monitored closely;
• The Vaccination programme continued to reach out to housebound and other vulnerable groups; and,
• The campaign to boost uptake by health and social care staff was ongoing.
Schools and education
• All schools in Devon were now open to all pupils, with secondary schools returning on a staggered basis;
• Early indication was that attendance was high (98% in primary schools);
• Secondary schools were conducting rapid lateral flow testing of pupils;
• There was a high consent rate for testing (90-95%); and,
• Children and parents were being actively encouraged to take up the offer of rapid testing including home testing.
Local Rapid Testing and Contact Tracing
• A community rapid testing programme for key workers who couldn’t work from home, parents of pupils and those supporting vulnerable people continued to be rolled out across the county;
• These tests were to help stop the spread of infection by identifying asymptomatic people and getting them to isolate and/or seek an NHS PCR test;
• Several sites across the county were now operational plus a number of mobile units;
• This testing was picking up positive cases; and,
• A local contact tracing service continued to pick up people missed by the national Test and Trace programme.
Key public message on rapid Lateral Flow Testing
• These were tests to find cases and NOT a test to release. A lateral flow test was useful for picking up asymptomatic positive cases so that people could isolate and not spread to others. A negative test did not give people a green light and they must continue to adhere to national restrictions and public health guidance at all times
Policing and enforcement
• There had been a slight increase in reporting of non-compliance;
• Planning was ongoing to help manage the safest possible opening up from lockdown, increased recreation and travel/tourism post Easter – including Covid-safe compliance, traffic issues, anti-social behaviour, etc; and,
• Working on co-ordinated public messaging campaigns and engagement through the LRF.
Business and economy
• There had been a huge impact on tourism/hospitality sector which was a large part of Devon’s economy;
• £1.8bn cumulative loss to Devon tourism and leisure economy over the past 12 months;
• Working together with the sector on active support programmes;
• Significant visitor bookings had been reported for this year; and,
• Some friction with host communities was anticipated.