On 31 December 2019, WHO was informed of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause in Wuhan City, China. A novel coronavirus was identified as the cause by Chinese authorities on 7 January 2020 and was temporarily named “2019-nCoV”.

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. The new virus was subsequently named the “COVID-19 virus”.

On 11 March 2020, the rapid increase in the number of cases outside China led WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to announce that the outbreak could be characterized as a pandemic. By then more than 118 000 cases had been reported in 114 countries, and 4291 deaths had been recorded.

By mid-March 2020, the WHO European Region had become the epicentre of the epidemic, reporting over 40% of globally confirmed cases. As of 28 April 2020, 63% of global mortality from the virus was from the Region.

Since the first cases were reported, WHO has worked around the clock to support countries to prepare and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the words of Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, “Through transparent knowledge-sharing, tailored support on the ground, and steadfast solidarity, we will beat COVID-19.”

-WHO

On 12 October the government introduced a system of local COVID alert levels meaning that measures will be put in effect depending on the local level of infections. These levels are being reviewed every two weeks.

Local COVID alert levels set out information for local authorities, residents and workers about what to do and how to manage the outbreak in their area. Local COVID alert levels are sometimes called ‘tiers’ or known as a ‘local lockdown’.

Check the local COVID alert level of your local area to see which level applies to you.

Within 16PlusCare, the Management along with supervising members of staff is closely monitoring the situation and its implications to the company, staff members and service users. 

There are important actions that children and young people, their parents and carers, and those who work with them, can take during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak to help prevent the spread of the virus.

In all education, childcare and children’s social care settings, preventing the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) involves preventing:

• direct transmission, for instance, when in close contact with those sneezing and coughing

• indirect transmission, for instance, touching contaminated surfaces

These measures are:

1. Minimise contact with individuals who are unwell

2. Clean your hands thoroughly more often than usual

3. Ensure good respiratory hygiene by promoting the ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach

4. Introduce enhanced cleaning, including cleaning frequently touched surfaces often using standard products, such as detergents and bleach

5. Minimise contact between individuals and maintain distancing wherever possible

6. Where necessary, wear Personal Protective Equipment

7. Where recommended, use of face coverings

8. Engage with the NHS test and trace process and respond rapidly to confirmed cases

For more details click here.

Health authorities are advising the public that there are three simple actions we must all do to keep on protecting each other. These are:

• Wash hands

keep washing your hands regularly

• Cover face

wear a face covering in enclosed spaces

• Make space

stay at least 2 metres apart - or 1 metre with a face covering or other precautions

Effective handwashing is one of the best ways to stay protected from the virus —and handwashing is more complicated than you’d think — with 12 key steps recently highlighted as follows:

According to NHS advice, it is important to wash your hands regularly and for around 20 seconds and take note of the following:

• Wet your hands with water.

• Apply enough soap to cover your hands.

• Rub your hands together.

• Use one hand to rub the back of the other hand and clean in between the fingers. Do the same with the other hand.

• Rub your hands together and clean in between your fingers.

• Rub the back of your fingers against your palms.

• Rub your thumb using your other hand. Do the same with the other thumb.

• Rub the tips of your fingers on the palm of your other hand. Do the same with other hand.

• Rinse your hands with water.

• Dry your hands completely with a disposable towel.

• Use the disposable towel to turn off the tap.

• If you do not have immediate access to soap and water, then use alcohol-based hand-rub if available.

Please watch the Video showing how and why to wash our hands. This exclusive new hand hygiene video, which takes you through all the reasons proper hand-washing technique is so important and gives you a step-by-step technique for best-practice hand hygiene. Check it out this video. 

For all our colleagues and visitors, we would ask you to follow this essential advice to protect your own health and that of others:

1. If you have symptoms of coronavirus infection (COVID-19), however mild, stay at home and do not leave your house for 7 days from when your symptoms started. You do not need to call NHS111 to go into self-isolation. If your symptoms worsen during home isolation or are no better after 7 days contact NHS 111 online.

2. If you have been in contact with someone with Coronavirus or have returned from an affected area identified by the Chief Medical Officer as high risk, stay at home and use the NHS 111 Coronavirus service or call NHS 111 for advice.

3. Everyone should wash their hands more often than usual, for 20 seconds using soap and hot water, particularly after coughing, sneezing and blowing your nose, or after being in public areas where other people are doing so. Use hand sanitiser if that’s all you have access to.

4. To reduce the spread of germs when you cough or sneeze, cover your mouth and nose with a tissue, or your sleeve (not your hands) if you don’t have a tissue, and throw the tissue away immediately. Then wash your hands or use a hand sanitising gel.

5. Clean and disinfect regularly touched objects and surfaces using your regular cleaning products to reduce the risk of passing the infection on to other people.

Please read “PPE guide for community and social care settings” by clicking here.

If you are caring for someone involving aerosol generating procedures

(AGPs), you will need the enhanced PPE guidance found here:

Closure of the social care offices or residential settings if someone with confirmed COVID-19 has recently been on the premises is not recommended by PHE at present. They advise that managers should call their local health protection team in any such case. The team will provide advice on the matter.

Adult social care managers should regularly check for updates to any information provided by public health authorities. General NHS guidance on coronavirus can be found at www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

Should a colleague present in the premises with diagnosed coronavirus (COVID-19) or suspected coronavirus (COVID-19), ensure they are isolated as quickly as possible and advise to get further details from the 111 website. 

Employees that suspect they may be at risk of coronavirus should not attend work until they have gained advice from the 111 website and spoken to their manager. 

They should not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital without instruction from the 111 website.

Information on who may be at risk can be found on the government’s and NHS’s website which is updated daily.

Should a colleague present with diagnosed coronavirus (COVID-19) or suspected coronavirus (COVID-19) a meeting of the following will be arranged as quickly as possible: 

• MD / Board members 

• Director or delegate of the department the colleague is from 

• Internal HR colleague