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The Independent
24-07-2025
- Health
- The Independent
NI chief medical officer rejects claim of ‘air of unreality' at pandemic's start
Northern Ireland's chief medical officer has rejected a claim that there was an 'air of unreality' at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Sir Michael McBride said he 'failed to understand' the comments made by Eddie Lynch, the former commissioner for older people for Northern Ireland. The exchange came during Sir Michael's final appearance at the UK Covid-19 Inquiry on Thursday. The long-running inquiry is currently looking at adult and residential care as part of its scrutiny of the response to the pandemic. It was put to Sir Michael that during a meeting in March 2020, Mr Lynch felt there was an 'an air of unreality', that scenes from Italy of old people dying, 'won't happen here'. Sir Michael said: 'I fail to understand those comments if I'm really honest.' He said it related to a meeting on March 13, which he described as 'part of a series of meetings which reflected the seriousness of the impending situation'. 'So in that series of meetings that day, I met with all the trade unions, I met with primary care representatives and secondary care representatives. 'I met with the Department of Communities and Local Government, and explained the evolving situation and the seriousness of this. 'This was about communicating to the system in Northern Ireland, not just health and social care, but right across other government departments as well, what we were about to face into. 'So I really don't understand any sense of unreality or lack of urgency.' He said he met Health and Social Care on February 11 and asked them to draw up plans for a surge, which he said he was 'fully anticipating', and had been attending meetings of Cobra, with the UK Government and Sage (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies). 'There was no sense of unreality in terms of what we were facing into at all,' he said. 'Within days, we had introduced, on March 16, social distancing, working from home, advising people not to go to pubs and restaurants. 'So I really don't understand that reflection.' Sir Michael also spoke about a shortage of Covid tests. It was put to him that in the first interim protocol for testing, which came out on March 19, frontline clinical workers were included in the priority for being tested, but not care home workers. He said: 'Frankly, we didn't have enough tests. It was simply that. 'We had just moved from the contain to the delay phase on March 12. 'We had stopped contact tracing because we didn't have enough tests to continue that, and we had to prioritise what tests we had for those people who were in hospital, either requiring ventilation like pneumonia. 'The management tried to protect individuals who may have been in contact with them in hospital, and to ensure that we were able to support those staff who were providing care for them, so it wasn't anything other than the fact we simply did not have the tests that we needed.' Inquiry chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett thanked Sir Michael for his evidence. 'Whatever findings I make, I don't think anybody disputes how much pressure you and your colleagues were under and the efforts you went to to try and protect as many people as possible. 'So thank you very much for what you did, and thank you very much for your help with the inquiry.'
The Independent
02-07-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Digital ‘one stop shop' for NHS will speed up care for patients, Government says
A new 'one stop shop' will showcase cutting-edge technologies to NHS hospitals while also slashing red tape, the Government has announced. The digital platform – MedTech Compass – aims to bring together technologies that are good for patients with an 'innovator passport' to cut the time firms spend on making repetitive data submissions to NHS trusts. The aim, set out in this week's 10-year plan for the NHS, is to get technology into the hands of NHS staff and patients quicker than before. Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'For too long, Britain's leading scientific minds have been held back by needless admin that means suppliers are repeatedly asked for the same data in different formats by different trusts – this is bad for the NHS, patients and bad for business. 'These innovator passports will save time and reduce duplication, meaning our life sciences sector – a central part of our 10-Year Health Plan – can work hand-in-hand with the health service and make Britain a powerhouse for medical technology. 'Frustrated patients will no longer have to face a postcode lottery for life-saving products to be introduced in their area and companies will be able to get their technology used across the NHS more easily, creating a health service fit for the future under the Plan for Change.' Writing in The Independent, Mr Streeting said the plan would put nursing at the heart of transforming the NHS, including training them on the latest technology and help 'shift our NHS from analogue to digital'. He said plans would cut red tape to enable nurses to start working on wards quickly after finishing training, faster payment of expenses and training in communities. The passport will be introduced over the next two years and will mean technology that has been robustly assessed by one NHS organisation can easily be rolled out to others. The Department of Health said this would remove 'needless bureaucracy' and create a 'dynamic best buyer's guide', while also helping boost economic growth. In on example, special wound dressings which are already cutting infections after surgery by 38% at Barking, Havering & Redbridge University Hospitals could be adopted across the country, the Department said. Meanwhile, at Barts Health Trust in London, the use of antimicrobial protective coverings for cardiac devices have cut infections and saved more than £103,000 per year. The Department of Health also said rapid flu testing at University Hospitals Dorset has cut the time patients spend in hospital alongside antibiotic use – something that could benefit other hospitals. MedTech Compass aims to make these innovations, and the evidence underpinning them, clearer to buyers within the NHS. Dr Vin Diwakar, clinical transformation director at NHS England, said: 'We're seeing the impact improvements to technology are having on our everyday lives on everything from smartwatches to fitness trackers – and we want to make sure NHS patients can benefit from the latest medical technology and innovations as well. 'The new innovator passports will speed up the rollout of new health technology in the NHS which has been proven to be effective, so that patients can benefit from new treatments much sooner.' Chief executive of NHS Providers, Daniel Elkeles, said: 'We welcome any measures which cut red tape and help trusts get proven and effective technology onto the frontline faster to boost patient care and free staff from time-consuming admin.' Professor Peter Bannister, medtech expert and fellow at the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), said: 'This centralisation and simplification of adoption across the NHS will be welcomed by industry – including both large corporates and innovative UK small businesses – as well as by patients and clinicians. 'However, there must be clear evidence standards for manufacturers that recognise the diversity and health inequalities of the UK population, while the variation in digital readiness and workforce skills between different healthcare providers must also be factored in.'
