Coronavirus (COVID-19): Members Update
Your weekly round up of the latest coronavirus response updates in Cumbria.
In this briefing:
The number of COVID-19 cases in Barrow-in-Furness have increased rapidly over the past 10 days.
Local leaders are now taking action to slow the spread of infection, with the aim of avoiding national Government intervention and more restrictive local lockdown measures.
There is already a legal limit of 6 on the number of people that can meet in groups indoors or outdoors. In addition, in the Barrow Borough Council area people are now being strongly advised that groups of 6 should be limited to people from no more than 2 households at any one time.
This is to reduce the level of social contact between different people and reduce the risk of infection spreading, as well as helping improve the effectiveness of local contact tracing efforts.
Public Health leaders are clear that similar measures could be implemented in other parts of the county if the rate of infection continues to increase in these areas.
Further to this public advice, additional measures are being advised in hospitals, care homes and schools. These are:
- Visitor restrictions at Furness General Hospital (already in place)
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Visitor restrictions in care homes (from Monday) to minimise risk to vulnerable adults and people living with physical and/ or learning disabilities
- Restrictions on all non-esstenial visitors to schools (from Monday)
The new measures have been put in place following publication of data from week ending 11 September which showed Barrow had the highest number of new positive cases in Cumbria (29) for the second week running, up from zero cases just a few weeks ago. Considering initial data from the current week as well, the infection rate is now at nearly double the national average, at around 60 per 100,000. Furness General Hospital has also seen an increase in COVID-19 patients with 15 currently receiving treatment. In tandem with local contact tracing information which shows many of the positive cases are unconnected to one another, this data has prompted today’s decision.
Full data is available on cumbria.gov.uk/stopthespread.
Colin Cox, Cumbria’s Director of Public Health, said:
“The number cases in Barrow has risen rapidly in the last 10 days, and in combination with the way we are seeing infection spreading, this is very concerning. Barrow is not yet seeing the level of infection in places like Oldham, but without action this is clearly where we are heading.
“The new local action we are taking today is aimed at protecting local people and stopping Barrow having local lockdown measures imposed upon it by Government.
“I strongly encourage people to follow this new advice. The advice will be in place for the next two weeks, after which it will be reviewed. My hope is that it will not be necessary to keep it in place for longer.”
The new guidance was this morning agreed by local political leaders at a meeting of the Local Area Outbreak Board, following recommendations from the multi-agency Health Protection Board.
Councillor Stewart Young, Leader of Cumbria County Council and Chair of the Area Outbreak Board, said:
“The threat from this virus has not gone away and if we have learnt anything from the last six months it is how quickly infection can spread once it gets hold in an area. The signs in the Barrow area are all pointing in the wrong direction. It may not look right now that huge numbers of people are being infected, but without action we know where this will end up. No one wants to restrict people going about their business if it can be helped, but if people don’t take notice now and follow this new advice I fear that farmore restrictive measures will be imposed as has happened elsewhere in the country. I urge people to take note and help keep the community safe.”
Simon Fell, MP for Barrow-in-Furness, said:
“This action is designed to limit the spread of the virus and protect the most vulnerable people in our community. Working together we can limit the spread of this virus, protecting each other by being sensible, careful and cautious.
“The last thing we want is a full local lockdown in Barrow, so I would urge everyone to follow this advice for the good of your friends, family, neighbours and the local community.”
Councillor Ann Thomson, the leader of Barrow Borough Council, said:
"The rapid increase in the number of cases here in our borough in such a short amount of time is a serious concern. These new measures are absolutely necessary if we are to avoid the level of infections seen in other parts of the country where local lockdo wns have been introduced.
"Every single one of us has a part to play in this. Please follow the advice and make sure you are meeting up in groups of six from no more than two households to keep our communities as safe as possible."
When is a cough a 'COVID-cough'?
With common coughs, colds and sneezes around it's tricky to know when and if you should get a COVID-19 test.
The current guidance is, whether or not you have common cold symptoms first, if you develop a high temperature or a cough it must be treated as a possible COVID-19 symptom, and you must isolate and get tested.
The NHS provides more detailed definitions for each of the three COVID-19 symptoms:
- a high temperature – measured as 37.8°C or above. If you don’t have a thermometer, feeling hot to the touch on your chest or back is a good indicator of a high temperature.
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual).
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you've noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal
Most people with coronavirus have at least one of these symptoms.
Quick guide for parents or carers - Does your child have symptoms?
If parents or carers are not sure about school and what to do if their child has coronavirus symptoms, they can download and check this quick guide which has been shared widely with local schools this week.
As of Wednesday 16 September 2020, 378,219 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK (pillar 1 and 2) and there has been 41,684 deaths.
Further information on the data is available at https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/.
Announcements
- September:
- October:
- The furlough scheme will end on 31 October 2020.
- The government intends to bring back audiences in stadia and to allow conferences and other business events to recommence in covid-secure way, subject to the successful outcome of pilots.
- November – The government’s ambition is to scale back remaining social distancing measures, but this is contingent on a number of factors, including consideration of the specific challenges as we move into winter.
 If you are eligible for the flu vaccine this year – get ready to get it - that is the advice from family doctors and Cumbria’s director of public health.
Cumbria’s flu vaccination programme is a vital part of keeping people in our communities safe this winter.
Having a flu jab doesn’t just protect you, it also protects those around you.
It is more important than ever to make sure those who are most vulnerable are protected from the flu.
This year there is likely to be a change to the way people receive their flu vaccine as health teams have to factor in social distancing and infection prevention measures to keep people safe.
Practices are now contacting eligible patients and calling them for their flu vaccine - this could be by letter, text or phone. Doctors are urging patients who usually get called for the flu jab to be ready and to be clear about how and when they will get it this year.
Some surgeries will be offering drive through options, using local community centres or calling people for time specific appointments, rather than the traditional drop-in clinics.
Find out more and see who is eligible.
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