Sharing these newsletters
To share this newsletter on social media sites such as Facebook, please visit our COVID-19 Community Champions website www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/covid-champions where you will find links to this update and previous ones at the bottom of the page. Just copy and paste the link.
Read the MK COVID-19 Champions code of conduct here.
COVID-19 snapshot
Click here to see and print the full COVID-19 snapshot As of 17 February 2021 (data reported up to 14 February 2021).
Help for people shielding
This week around 3,600 more MK residents will be asked to shield for the first time (adding to around 14,000 already doing so) after new research has shown personal factors such as age, ethnicity and BMI puts them at higher risk from COVID-19.
They’ll receive a letter or email from NHS England in the coming days asking them to shield until 31 March. They’ll also be prioritised to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
Some of these residents won’t have friends, family tor neighbours able to help them while they’re shielding. They can contact Milton Keynes Council during usual office hours on 01908 252398 if they need help collecting essential medicine or groceries. Please pass this information on to anyone you think would need it.
Vaccine update
East of England - 18 February
Region of Residence
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1st dose
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2nd dose
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Cumulative Total Doses to Date
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Total - England
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13,817,914
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500,201
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14,318,115
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East of England
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1,655,435
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61,436
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1,716,871
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Two vaccines - developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca - are being used to protect against serious illness and death from Covid-19. A third, from Moderna, has been approved and will be used when stocks become available in the spring.
Who is being vaccinated now?
If you're 70 or over in England and haven't yet been vaccinated, you are now being asked to contact the NHS to book an appointment online or by calling 119 free of charge.
Most NHS frontline staff, care home residents and workers, and over 70s have been vaccinated. Some areas are now inviting over 60s, as well as some over 16s with certain health conditions, adult carers of disabled people with these conditions and younger adults in care homes.
When might priority groups receive their first vaccine dose?
When will over-50s, police and teachers be vaccinated?
The aim is to vaccinate over-50s by the start of May. Police officers and teachers will be vaccinated after the most vulnerable groups - probably from late spring. Any change to priorities will be decided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).
Vaccination rates differ
Black and mixed heritage people in their 70s are being vaccinated against Covid-19 at much lower rates than white people, GP records suggest.
Also fewer Bangladeshi and Pakistani people had received the vaccine by 11 February.
This follows data from earlier in the vaccination programme showing similar gaps among the over-80s. The findings come from a study called OpenSafely, run by the University of Oxford and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The team has access to completely anonymised medical records covering 40% of GP practices in England.
It comes as a star-filled video urging people from ethnic minority communities to get the COVID-19 vaccine is set to be shown across the UK's main commercial TV channels.
Vaccine reassurance
Can you help? We are looking for people who can help us to inform and reassure Milton Keynes residents who are worried about the vaccine. If you can help please email COVIDChampions@Milton-Keynes.gov.uk.
Are you an unpaid carer who does not live with the person you care for?
You can now receive free PPE from Milton Keynes Council.
To place an order please email ppe@milton-keynes.gov.uk. You shall receive an automated email with an attached form and instructions on how to place an order.
If you would like to make an enquiry then you can email or call 07917 473993. If you know anyone who is an unpaid carer then please pass this information on to them. If they do not have an email address they can phone to place an order.
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Strategic health priorities
Bedfordshire, Luton and Milton Keynes (BLMK) share what’s called an integrated health system (ICS), which is NHS organisations and other partners who are responsible for local health standards.
Work is underway to review the BLMK ICS strategic priorities. The ICS Partnership Board want to ensure local people also have the opportunity to consider this and share their views.
They’re bringing together a small group of volunteers from across the area for discussions during February and March 2021.
They want to:
- Have a conversation with local people around future strategic priorities for BLMK ICS
- Provide an opportunity for them to meet new leaders and hear current thinking
- Show how local feedback has been listened to and acted on
If you would like to be involved in one of these sessions please email COVIDChampions@MIlton-Keynes.gov.uk
New Futures
Would you like to help young people and adults whose employment has been affected by COVID-19?
MK College, in a project funded by MK Council, are looking for enthusiastic and positive people who have experience in their own career, and who are willing to give up their time to support and encourage people as they return to the workplace.
Full training is given with a Level 2 qualification.
Interested? Please use this form to express interest: Mentor Expression of Interest.
You can view the full leaflet here.
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Free wellbeing webinars from MIND MK
MIND MK is offering free wellbeing webinars via Zoom for people who feel lonely and want to learn some tools and techniques to support their own wellbeing.
By attending a one of these sessions you will be able to:
- Recognise common factors and symptoms of loneliness, and the link between stress and loneliness
- Identify coping mechanisms and develop skills including maintaining emotional balance and mindfulness
Dates:
Monday 22 February 2.00pm – 3.30pm
Wednesday 17 March 10.00am – 11.30am
Monday 22 March 10.00am – 11.30am
MIND MK are also offering sessions on other topics:
Anger Awareness - Monday 22 February 11.00am – 12.30pm
Five ways to wellbeing - Wednesday 3 March 9.00am – 11.30am
Support for sleep Tuesday - March 3.00pm – 4.30pm
Mindfulness relaxation - Tuesday 23 March 6.00pm – 7.30pm
If you would like to attend one of these free webinars please email your contact details and selected date to training@mind-blmk.org.uk or call 0788 1248 780.
Other useful mental health contacts
- Milton Keynes Talking Therapies 01908 725099
- Mind BLMK 0300 330 0648
- YiS Young People’s Mental Health (for young people aged 11-21) 01908 604700
- Samaritans 116 123 (for emergency support)
Reporting concerns
One of the ways you can help is by reporting serious concerns about workplaces and other facilities where social distancing and other measures aren’t being followed. Intelligence like this can help us to track and control virus transmission.
Please tell us when the breach of restrictions took place, and a full address of the site if known. Your details will not be shared with the person or place you are telling us about.
You can write to us at COVIDconcern@milton-keynes.gov.uk.
We may not reply to all messages but we will read them all, and they’ll be used to gather intelligence so we can take action where needed.
Useful links
See the latest Government guidance here gov.uk/coronavirus.
Find COVID-19 Information from the NHS: www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
To print and share this, please click "view it as a web page" at the top of this bulletin. This will take you to a web page with the option to print this off at the top.
To share this newsletter on social media sites such as Facebook, please visit our COVID-19 Community Champions website www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/covid-champions where you will find links to this update and previous ones at the bottom of the page. Just copy and paste the link.
Your Feedback
Have you found this email useful?
Let us know how we can improve: COVIDChampions@Milton-Keynes.gov.uk
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