COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 30th August 2024

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 30th August 2024

Children in England and Wales will be going back to school any time now, and parents are being reminded that we have a measles outbreak in the UK.

It has slowed down over Summer, but there were still 153 cases in the 4 weeks to 5th August (mostly in London), and 2,278 cases across England since the start of the year.

Measles is nasty and almost entirely preventable by vaccination. Babies, infants and people with less robust immune systems are most at risk of serious illness, permanent damage and death. By taking your child for their MMR, or catching up with your own, you aren't only protecting one person, you are protecting all of those they come into contact with. The MMR has been considered safe and used around the world since 1971 (1988 in the UK). 

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 16th August 2024

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 16th August 2024

"Today, the Emergency Committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC). I have accepted that advice."

Dr Tedros, Head of WHO, with the unfortunate job that no head of WHO ever wants. It's his 3rd time announcinga PHEIC, and the 2nd for Mpox (aka Monkeypox)... 

"Mpox has been reported in DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo) for more than a decade, and the number of cases reported each year has increased steadily over that period.

Last year, reported cases increased significantly, and already the number of cases reported so far this year has exceeded last year’s total, with more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths.

As many of you who tune into our regular press conferences know, WHO has been working on the mpox outbreak in Africa and raising the alarm that this is something that should concern us all."

10 Years. 120 Months. 3652 Days.

10 years without Elspeth. She is missed today just as much as she's been missed every single other day. She is always present with her absence. 

I wish I could show her our new house. I wish she could come and stay over and see the view in the evening, or the morning, and tell us how perfect it is for us, with it's bizarre 2 toilet bathroom and hidden staircase.

I wish she could visit her siblings in their own homes, and go out for food and drinks. I wish she could be planning gigs and festivals with them, and sharing in their adult lives. Living her own adult life.

I wish she could know her little brothers as the young men they've become.

I wish she had realised how amazing she was going to be once she was an adult. She had so much to offer the world, and with a sarcasm that would make my Grandma chuckle.

I wish she had appreciated that the worst times, just like the best times, are fleeting, and to fear them gives them an importance they don't deserve. 

I wish she had understood it would be so much better to stay.

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 2nd August 2024

 COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 2nd August 2024

The UK's JCVI (Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation) have announced who will get COVID boosters this Autumn. They haven't expanded the list to include all children, nor do they include people who live or work with vulnerable people, but they have expanded the age range for older people. Folk in the following categories will be sent an invitation to book later in the year:

- Adults aged 65 or over

- Residents in a care home for older adults

- Individuals aged 6 months to 64 years in a clinical risk group (huge list, available online). 

The UK currently has high levels of COVID, and we aren't alone. Earlier Greece was warning tourists about a surge which has seen masks return to some hospitals, and travel advisories from neighbouring countries.

The FLIRT variants are being blamed. They actually appear to hospitalise slightly less people, but they can creep around some of our immunity, so more people are catching them, with a knock on effect that hospitals are still seeing more COVID patients. 

Latest hospital figures for England show a peak in COVID admissions almost as high as last Winter or Autumn's peaks, and Scotland's wastewater monitoring shows the highest levels since early 2022.

Prof Christina Pagel of indieSAGE reminds us one negative test doesn't mean you don’t have COVID, test again over consecutive days to confirm:

"Basically, there is a LOT of Covid around and not a lot of other respiratory viruses.

If you have cold or flu symptoms, it's probably Covid."