Covid-19 update: Allerdale has highest rate of new cases in Cumbria - but infections falling

Allerdale has highest rate of new Covid-19 cases in Cumbria

Allerdale has overtaken Carlisle in having the greatest number of new Covid-19 cases (+265 new cases), according to the latest figures from Cumbria County Council. the figures also show that Allerdale also overtook Carlisle in having the highest rate of new cases (271 new cases per 100k population).

However, new COVID-19 infections continued to fall in Cumbria in week ending 5 February, down 35% from the week before. Despite the positive news the number of new infections continue to be high in the context of the pandemic so far.

While new hospital admissions also fell, the number of patients being cared for in hospital remained high at around the levels seen during the first wave in April last year. The high numbers in hospital reflect the length of time that it takes for the virus to run its course, and the fact that in this latest wave patients tend to be sicker. Intensive care units are still exceptionally busy.

This continues to impact on hospitals’ ability to deliver routine care. It will take some time for the reduction in community cases to reduce the pressure in hospitals.
Positively, data now also indicates that Cumbria has passed the peak for COVID-19 deaths in this latest wave.

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Infections fall, but we must stay the course

Colin Cox, Cumbria’s Director of Public Health, said: “The continued drop is good news and reflects the efforts people have been making to stick to the lockdown rules. But we need to put the numbers in context, last year Leicester went into full lockdown when there were 50 cases per 100 thousand; our infection rate is still 3 to 4 times that. “So, any notions that we can start to take it easy are really wide of the mark, now is the time we need stay the course and drive infections right down. Only then can we be confident about getting back to normal. At the current rate of decline that isn’t too far away, but we’ll only get there if people keep going and stick to the rules.”

Roll-out of Lateral Flow Device COVID-19 testing

The battle to stop the spread on COVID-19 in Cumbria is being boosted by the roll-out of asymptomatic Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing around the county.

LFD tests provide a result within 30 minutes, with no need for tests to be sent away to a laboratory for analysis. Regular LFD testing of people without COVID-19 symptoms is a key part of the Government’s strategy to control the spread of the virus. LFD testing helps spot asymptomatic carriers, people who do have COVID-19 and are infectious but are not ill. These people can then self-isolate to protect others.

The Government plan has two delivery strands, one led nationally by the Department of Health and Social Care and one led locally by Directors of Public Health. The national strand is focused on NHS staff, social care staff, schools and colleges and larger businesses.

Work being led locally in Cumbria is currently focussing on other frontline employee groups where LFD testing is planned to support the continued provision of key services. These include:

• Police
• Fire and rescue
• Mountain rescue and RNLI
• County and District council frontline teams
• Lake District National Park Authority
• Early years nursery providers and childminders
• Private sector businesses where employees cannot work from home.

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Latest on vaccines

Local GP and NHS services put out an update this week on the vaccine roll-out, providing advice to those over-70s who haven't received an invite for a vaccine direct from their local GP. It reads: "Our primary care teams are working very hard to reach all of those in the eligible cohorts.   "It would help our GPs if people over the age of 70 who don’t yet have an appointment wait to call their practice until after the 15th of February.  "This is the date our teams are working towards to offer the first vaccination to their patients.  "If you are over 70 and have had a letter from the national booking service and can travel to Kendal, Ulverston, Lancaster or the north east, you may want to follow the guidance to make a booking.  "We are asking our over 70s to support their GP Practice by waiting until the 15th to be contacted before calling their practices.  "Patients calling for medical advice and treatment need to be able to get through and by waiting a few days you are helping them to get the help they need." Learn more

Hospitals remain busy

The latest update from the local NHS hospital trust is that they remain busy with coronavirus patients, however NHS care is available to you if you need it. It reads:

"North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust remains busy caring for coronavirus patients despite the number of infections falling in the community. Dr Rod Harpin, Medical Director at the Trust said, “We are still caring for large numbers of patients in our hospitals with coronavirus, similar to the numbers we saw in the peak of the first wave. This is largely due to the length of time that it takes for the virus to run its course, and the fact that in this wave patients that do require hospital care tend to be sicker. Our intensive care units are still exceptionally busy.  

“We have continued to run urgent and emergency services and we are starting to make plans for some routine services to resume next month. However our ability to do this depends on how quickly the number of patients with covid reduces. We all have a part to play in that reduction of community spread by following the advice during lockdown.”

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust is reminding the local community that routine services are still suspended.

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Help is here

You should have received a leaflet this week produced by Cumbria County Council with advice and guidance on where to get help. This was delivered to all residents. All the information is also available on the County Council website at: https://www.cumbria.gov.uk/welfare/ and you can also find links to it on our website.