Disease Detectives – Finding the UK’s dominant COVID-19 variant and the race to understand its impact
An expert interview on finding the UK’s dominant COVID-19 variant and the race to understand its impact.
Coronavirus (COVID-19)
How London is reaching diverse communities with vital COVID-19 information
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to communicate information to the general public clearly and through trusted sources has been paramount to saving lives. This blog looks at the Keep London Safe campaign and what
Life expectancy in England in 2020
Posted by:
Allan Baker and Charlotte Fellows, Posted on:
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Categories:
Coronavirus (COVID-19), Data blog
Public Health England has released provisional estimates of life expectancy at birth for 2020. Find out how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted on levels of mortality and inequality in England in 2020.
COVID-19: Reintroducing confirmatory PCR testing
As the prevalence of COVID-19 reduces to low levels in the population, the chance of a false positive result increases – though still remains unlikely. We can mitigate against the risk of false positives by confirming a positive lateral flow test with another test – such as a PCR test. Find out more about the reintroduction of confirmatory PCR testing.
Protecting ourselves and each other as we move out of lockdown
On 22 February 2021, the Government published its ‘Roadmap out of Lockdown’ which set out how national coronavirus restrictions would be eased in stages, with reviews taking place on set dates. This blog looks at how easing of restrictions will work and why we must keep following the rules to keep each other safe.
Behind the scenes: Expanding the COVID-19 dashboard
When the PHE COVID-19 Dashboard first started back in March 2020, it was just a map and a few charts reporting four metrics on cases and deaths. One year on, read how the dashboard has evolved into the most important and reliable daily statistical publication in the UK.
Preventing COVID-19 infections in care homes
Care home residents can now be visited indoors by a single, named individual. This blog sets out how visiting in care homes is being enabled through use of testing, the right use of PPE and other infection prevention and control (IPC) measures.
The SIREN study: answering the big questions
The SIREN study looks for answers to the most important questions about reinfection and COVID-19. Find out how PHE has led the national effort to develop the science that help decision-makers control the disease.
Time to talk about smoking and mental health in a pandemic: No Smoking Day 2021
Posted by:
Martin Dockrell, Posted on:
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Categories:
Coronavirus (COVID-19), Mental health, Reducing preventable deaths
Many smokers believe that smoking helps to relieve stress, anxiety and low mood, when in fact the opposite is true. This year, for the first time, the national No Smoking Day campaign will focus on the significant benefits of quitting for mental health and wellbeing.
Uncovering the origins of COVID-19
Last month, a team from the World Health Organization (WHO) returned home from a trip to Wuhan to uncover the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. Professor John Watson was part of the team and in this blog he gives his account of what the trip was like and what they uncovered.