Agenda item

i.          Epidemiology and outlook – PH Intelligence Team. Gayan Perera, PH Intelligence Team Manager

ii.         Care home status, visiting support, and vaccination status – Des O’Donoghue, Brokerage and Market Development Manager, LB Enfield

iii.        Vaccination update (COVID and Influenza) – Dudu Sher-Arami, Director of Public Health, and Riyad Karim

i.             Epidemiology and Outlook

RECEIVED the presentation, Enfield Covid-19 Dashboard, providing an update and analysis of Covid-19 related data in Enfield from LBE Public Health Intelligence.

NOTED

1.    Introduction by Gayan Perera, LBE Public Health Intelligence Team, on the latest infection rates in Enfield.

2.    Concern remained focussed around new variants. The most common variant at the moment Enfield was Omicron, but the numbers in respect of subvariant BA.2 were up recently.

3.    Hospitalisation numbers had gone down significantly.

4.    Most recent information set out on deaths, hospitalisations, testing, cases in schools, and vaccination numbers. Emerging themes included re-infections.

ii.            Care home status, visiting support, and vaccination status

RECEIVED an update on care home vaccination status.

NOTED

5.    The update by Des O’Donoghue, LBE Service Manager – Community Services, of numbers of care home residents and staff vaccinated, and numbers who had received the booster.

iii.          Vaccination Update

RECEIVED the vaccination updates (flu and Covid) presented by Dudu Sher-Arami, Director of Public Health, LBE and Dr Emdadur Rahman, GP.

NOTED

6.    Targets were focussed on lower vaccination uptake groups and on young people. Offer of Covid vaccination continued for first, second and third doses, with good availability and accessibility in Enfield. Social media and communications activity continued, and funding had been sought for innovative projects and interventions to increase uptake.

7.    The next step in the Covid vaccination programme was vaccination of 5 – 11 year olds, from primary care sites, and offering the Spring booster to those eligible.

8.    GPs and pharmacies continued to offer flu jabs, and these could be administered at the same time as Covid vaccination.

9.    2021/22 performance for over-65s’ flu vaccine uptake was close to the best ever. There had also been an improvement in uptake by pregnant women.

10. Next season, the 50 – 64 year-old cohort and primary school children would not be included in flu vaccine plans.

IN RESPONSE

11. In response to the Chair’s queries, it was confirmed that the planned exclusion of the 50 – 64 year-old cohort for flu vaccination 2022/23 was a national directive and a return to the pre-pandemic offer. It was not expected to have a significant impact.

12. It was confirmed that comparable groups showed low uptake of all vaccines, and other healthcare testing and cancer screening. Work with those groups would be taken forward.

13. It was advised that the date for the Spring boosters would be directed by national protocol. Also, planning had begun for Autumn / Winter and preparation for vaccinations.

14. The Council was producing a review report on the impact of Covid-19 on Enfield, to include facts around care homes, testing, communications, logistical support etc, and lessons learned. The report would be submitted to a Scrutiny Panel and would be circulated to Board Members.

ACTION: Governance & Scrutiny

Post Meeting Note: The report ‘Managing the Covid-19 Pandemic: Interim Summary Report’ was submitted to Overview and Scrutiny Committee 21/03/22 (Item 4) and the link is Overview & Scrutiny Committee | Enfield Council