Health leaders urge review of UK’s readiness for Covid-19 second wave
This is serious stuff and gives pause for thought. My gut reaction is in favour of local lockdowns if a second wave arises. In my county we have one coronavirus infection for closer to 1000 than 500 people and could potentially have stayed far more economically robust with more local determination (through local government of course) on how we managed our approach. This story tells us:
The UK’s top health leaders have written to all political parties asking them to work together to ensure the country is ready to contain a second phase of coronavirus as Brexit approaches.
The experts – who include presidents of the Royal College of Physicians, Surgeons, GPs and Nursing, and the chair of the British Medical Association – ask for a review of the first stage of the pandemic to learn lessons including why black, Asian, and minority ethnic communities have borne a “disproportionate burden”.
They also ask for better parliamentary scrutiny and involvement of regional and local leaders and more international collaboration, “especially to mitigate any new difficulties in pandemic management due to Brexit”.
In an open letter published on the British Medical Journal website, the leaders warn that “local flareups are increasingly likely and a second wave a real risk”. They say “substantial challenges remain” despite many elements of the infrastructure needed to contain the virus “beginning” to be put in place.
The job now is not only to deal urgently with the wide ranging impacts of the first phase of the pandemic, but to ensure the country is adequately prepared to contain a second phase, they suggest.