-
Covid cases in England 'must fall faster to ease NHS pressure'

Imperial College study notes decline in week to 22 January but fall is slower than in first national lockdown
Cases of coronavirus have started to decline in England but must fall faster to relieve pressure on the NHS, scientists behind a Covid infection survey have warned.
Researchers at Imperial College London analysed more than 160,000 swabs taken between 6 and 22 January and found that while cases fell nationally in the past week the rate was not dropping swiftly enough to reduce strain on the health service.
“We are definitely heartened that we are now seeing what looks like a decline in the last week of our survey,” said Paul Elliott, professor of epidemiology and public health medicine at Imperial. “But we really need to get prevalence down more quickly because the pressure on the NHS is very extreme right now.”
An interim report from Imperial’s React-1 study, published last week, showed that coronavirus cases in England were stable and potentially even rising between 6 and 15 January.
But an updated report released on Thursday added swabs for the week until 22 January and showed cases finally starting to decline.
The findings will come as a relief to public health authorities, which are desperate to see firm evidence that the lockdown is driving down infection rates despite the emergence of more infectious variants of the virus.
The Imperial study supports the similar slight downward trend seen in the latest Covid infection survey from the Office for National Statistics.
The Imperial survey found that in England 1.57%, or 1 in 64, people had coronavirus in the period studied, with rates ranging from 2.83% or 1 in 40 in London, to 0.8% or 1 in 115 in Yorkshire and the Humber. In London infections are most common among 13 to 24-year-olds, with more than 4% testing positive.
Researchers on the survey estimated the R number, the average number of people an infected person infects, to be 0.98. For the epidemic to shrink the R number needs to be below 1.
The shallow decline in cases nationwide is due to falls in London, the south and the north-west, which counteract rising numbers of infections in the east Midlands and other regions such as the north-east and eastern England where cases remain fairly flat.
Elliott said it was crucial to monitor new cases because the fall in infections was so tentative. “Even though we are seeing this suggestion of a downtick now, which is really good news, it is by no means as fast as we saw in lockdown one when there was a rapid decline in prevalence,” he said.
He added: “Without getting a more rapid decline from these very high prevalence levels there will continue to be pressure on health services, because at this level this is feeding into hospitalisations, ITU admissions and sadly mortality.”
source: Ian Sample
Levant
You May Also Like
Popular Posts
Caricature
BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
opinion
Report
ads
Newsletter
Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!