Agenda item

TheChairmaninvited the following to the table:

·         Dr Tamara Djuretic - Director of Public Health, LondonBorough of Barnet

·         Deborah Sanders - Chief Executive, Barnet Hospital

·         Colette Wood - Director of Integration, North Central London Clinical Commissioning Group (NCL CCG) (Joined virtually).

Dr Djuretic provided an update on the Coronavirus cases and Vaccination Programme in Barnet. Similar rates of infection levels had been recorded over the last 10 to11 weeks, which suggested there was now a baseline of case rates within the Borough.

Dr Djuretic said that 40% of children had been infected with Coronavirus, which equated to around a quarter of all infections and this demonstrated why it was important for the vaccine to be rolled out to young people. She also commented that the booster programme was underway and would increase the immunity of those vaccinated at the start of the pandemic. A decrease in hospital admittances had been recorded over the past few weeks, however a slight increase had been seen during the week commencing 4 October, but the increase was not significant.

She explained that the Country was now moving into Phase 4 of the pandemic, which included learning to live with the virus, vaccinating as many people as possible and building back the economy. The Government’s containment framework advised that there were no plans for any future national lockdowns but management plans needed to be in place to respond to any significant increase in rates locally that were above the national or London average. She explained that management plans could include measures such as the requirement to wear masks in schools and the acceleration of vaccination rollouts to help contain the transmission of the virus.

Dr Djuretic informed the Committee that there had been a good reception from schools in relation to the vaccines for 16 to 17 year olds, with vaccinations having been offered in ten schools with an uptake of around 30%. This figure was above the national average, but still not at the ideal level. The reasons for lower uptakes were due to practical issues around getting the vaccine, capacity to administer the vaccinations and the reluctance of some parents who wished to see how things progressed further before having their child vaccinated. Only one dose of Pfizer was being offered to 16 to 17 years olds and it would be delivered in schools with the support of Primary Care if required. Evidence would be used to decide whether a second dose of Pfizer was appropriate in the future.

Members enquired as to whether the data on the number of people vaccinated in Barnet equated to the number of Barnet residents vaccinated, or if this included people from outside the Borough who had been vaccinated at Barnet vaccination centres. Dr Djuretic confirmed that 250,000 people had been registered as having been vaccinated in Barnet and, of those, 200,000 were residents.

A Member raised a concern about side effects, including heart palpitations, that had been reported after receiving the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Dr Djuretic said there was currently no evidence to suggest a link between palpitations and the vaccine, however anyone experiencing side effects should report these and any trends would then be investigated.

Members enquired as to what vaccine was being offered as a booster. Dr Djuretic explained that individuals were not given a choice around which booster they received and that it would either be one dose of Pfizer or half a dose of Moderna. She also said that 30% of those who had received the booster had also had the flu vaccine at the same time.

Members asked what the death rates related to hospital admissions were. Deborah Sanders advised that the death rate remained low but there had been a slight increase in the number of hospital admissions of younger adults, most of whom had been un-vaccinated. However, admissions and death rates were not as high as had been seen in the first phases. She confirmed that not all patients with Covid had been admitted because of Covid as some were asymptomatic but tested positive on arrival. The Chairman asked what reasons those who had been admitted to hospital unvaccinated had given for not wanting the vaccine. Deborah Sanders explained that the reasons were varied but that some had been influenced by misinformation and it was often hard to persuade people otherwise.

A Member queried whether death rates for cancer had increased since 2019. She replied that hospitals were working very hard to catch up on all cancer referrals that had taken place pre-covid and that cancer leads were working extremely hard but that there were no specific figures available at the moment on the number of deaths. She further explained that diagnostic hubs were being set up within the community and that the Royal Free and Finchley Memorial Hospital had increased capacity for MRI scans, cancer pathways and other pathways, creating increased capacity at a local level. There were also proposals to provide a diagnostic hub within the Wood Green Shopping Centre to enable people to attend in more convenient settings.

Members enquired as to the update of vaccinations for Care Home staff and whether unvaccinated staff would be able to continue working in Care Homes. Dr Djuretic advised that around 92% of Care Home staff had now received the first dose and 75% the second dose. Colette Wood advised that work in collaboration with the Council had taken place to deliver the Care Home Vaccination Programme and that only a small number of staff remained unvaccinated. She explained that, where possible, these individuals would be re-deployed as they would be unable to continue to work in Care Homes in they remained unvaccinated.

Members asked whether an increase in the uptake of the flu vaccination had been evident in Health Care workers. Dr Djuretic said that there was no data to suggest any significant increase in flu vaccination uptakes compared to previous years. However, this data could be looked at and circulated to Members. Deborah Sanders advised that there was a concern around the reluctance of staff to take up the flu vaccine but the hospital was doing all it could to encourage staff to be vaccinated.

Members asked for more information on the booster programme, including how people would be invited to receive it, how it would be administered and what the possible side effects might be. Dr Djuretic said she could circulate further information to Members. Colette Wood advised that people would be contacted via their GP Practice when their booster vaccine was due and that cohorts of people would be contacted in the same order as before.

The Chairman asked the Governance Officer to request a briefing paper from Dawn Wakeling, Executive Director of Adults London Borough of Barnet, on the plans for Care Home staff redeployment for those not wanting to have the vaccine and business continuity plans for Care Homes.

RESOLVED that the Committee noted the written and verbal updates on Coronavirus and Vaccination Update.