The Cheshire and Merseyside (C&M) Directors of Public Health (DsPH) currently meet weekly. The key messages from the 11th February meeting are as follows:
- DHSC pilot update – Terry Whalley updated the DsPH on the pilot and shared recent areas of success.
- The vaccine tracing pilot in Liverpool has seen 1 in 10 people go on to have the vaccine. The learning from these calls is also providing understanding as to why people have been hesitant in taking the vaccine, with this knowledge then being used to inform future conversations and improve results.
- The self-isolation pilot is now live in Warrington and Halton, along with the development of a tool to offer support to those who are self-isolating.
- The next phase of health protection training has been launched with high numbers of people registering for the March and June cohorts.
- DsPH will be having a further specific discussion, with UKHSA colleagues, on the way forward for outbreak management, following the national announcements around self-isolation this week.
- DsPH are documenting their concerns regarding Covid in a formal letter to the regional team and ADPH.
- UKHSA Covid update – Case numbers appear to be plateauing, although still at high levels, with the majority of cases in the younger age groups and those who are unvaccinated.
- Alcohol programme update – Ravi Menghani in the Champs support team gave DsPH a detailed update of the 10 active workstreams in the “reducing harm from alcohol” programme. A wide range of activity on this programme has been delivered including education sessions to Alcohol Care Teams, expanding the current dashboard and integrating it with CIPHA and the Lower my drinking app campaign which has seen over 1000 downloads since launch. The Citizen’s Inquiry on Alcohol report is now being finalised and the Community Engagement in Licensing project is developing well with a refreshed website and communications campaign being worked on for the pilot areas of Cheshire West and Chester and Liverpool. Training for blue light services in helping dependent drinkers access support is planned for May/June.
- Good News and Gratitude
- The DHSC Pilots are progressing well and the next phase of health protection training has launched.
- An agency has now been appointed to work with the Champs Support Team on the internal and external communications and engagement work as part of the DHSC integrated contact tracing pilot.
- The DsPH expressed their gratitude to Ravi Menghani (Champs Support Team) and Dr Paul Richardson (Royal Liverpool Hospital) and partners for the excellent progress on the C&M ‘Reduction of Harm from Alcohol’ work programme.
