On 8 September 2020, Health Protection Scotland (HPS), part of Public Health Scotland (PHS), updated their immunisation web pages to reflect the latest quarterly data on:

• Haemophilus influenzae
• human papillomavirus 
• invasive pneumococcal disease 
• measles 
• meningococcal disease 
• mumps 
• rotavirus 
• rubella 
• shingles 
• whooping cough

The coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak continues to evolve. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) currently advise British nationals against all but essential travel, exempting some countries that no longer pose an unacceptably high risk for British travellers. This advice is being kept under constant review and may change at short notice, further information can be found on the FCDO website.

The fitfortravel (for the general public) and TRAVAX (for health professionals) country pages have been updated to include a COVID-19 country specific risk-rating, with every country being identified as high, moderate or low risk and each rating accompanied by appropriate travel advice. This information will be listed in the ‘Alerts’ section on each country page of fitfortravel and the 'Emerging Health Risks' section of every TRAVAX country page. The risk-rating is based on a robust public health assessment of the COVID-19 risks for travellers to each country, and will be regularly reviewed. However, as the global spread of COVID-19 can change at any time, travellers are advised to consider the advice below before planning international travel.

It should be noted that the risk ratings for Aruba, Austria, France, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, Spain, Belgium, Andorra, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, Iceland, Sint Maarten, Turks and Caicos Islands, Cyprus, Denmark, Faroe islands, Germany, Japan, the Bahamas, Italy, French Polynesia, Croatia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, Czech Republic and Switzerland have recently been upgraded, reflecting an increase of cases in these countries.

Advice for travellers

Before planning and/or booking international travel, please check: 

• the UK Border Control website, in order to check current rules regarding self-isolation (quarantine) before your planned return to the UK 
• the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) website, for country specific Travel Advisory Notices regarding travel and entry restrictions, and review the local medical care available at your destination 
• the COVID-19 risk-rating at your destination, which will be listed in the ‘Alerts’ section of all fitfortravel country pages and the ‘Emerging Health Risks’ section of all TRAVAX country pages 
• the TRAVAX travel insurance page, as such insurance should be considered essential 
• the fitfortravel COVID-19 health considerations for travel page 
• physical distancing and hygiene measures in the country you are visiting

Information relating to travel and COVID-19 is available on the TRAVAX (for healthcare practitioners) and fitfortravel (for the general public) websites.

Information on COVID-19 for the general public is available on the NHS Inform (Scotland) and the NHS.UK (rest of the UK) websites. 

Information and resources on COVID-19 for health professionals is available on the Health Protection Scotland (HPS) (Scotland) and Public Health England (PHE) (rest of the UK) websites.

Source: TRAVAX, 28 August 2020        

The country pages on the fitfortravel (for the general public) and TRAVAX (for health professionals) websites have been updated, reflecting recent changes made by the World Health Organization (WHO) to the yellow fever vaccine requirements and recommendations for 2020. The requirements and recommendations are updated annually following consultation between the WHO and state parties, who are asked to confirm or update their requirements for international travellers. The changes include:

• the removal of a country requirement for an International Certificate of Vaccine Prophylaxis (ICVP)
• the addition of a country requirement for an ICVP where a requirement did not previously exist
• changes relating to transit through a yellow fever endemic country
• changes to the minimum age at which an ICVP is required

Travellers are asked to refer to individual country pages for full details of their yellow fever vaccine and certificate requirements.

Source: TRAVAX, 28 August 2020

World Sepsis Day is an initiative organised by the Global Sepsis Alliance (GSA) and takes place annually on 13 September. Sepsis arises when the body’s response to an infection injures its own tissues and organs. This potentially life-threatening condition follows a unique and time-critical clinical course, which in the early stages is highly amenable to treatment through early diagnosis and timely and appropriate clinical management.

The GSA are hoping World Sepsis Day 2020 will be an opportunity to educate more people on the condition, highlighting its role as the most common pathway to death from most infectious diseases worldwide, including SARS-CoV-2, malaria, Ebola, and others. Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, many events this year are taking place online.

On 2 September 2020, Public Health England (PHE) published a report confirming that the number of annual gonorrhoea diagnoses in England rose 26% between 2018 and 2019, from 56,232 to 70,936. The rise is explained in part by an increase in testing, using more accurate diagnostic tests, and more comprehensive data on sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnoses.

The rise in diagnoses of gonorrhoea contributed to an overall increase of 5% in new STI diagnoses in England in 2019, from 447,522 in 2018 to 468,342. Cases of syphilis have increased by 10% from 2018, with 7,982 cases being reported in 2019. Chlamydia remains the most commonly diagnosed STI with 229,411 cases diagnosed in 2019, an increase of 5% since 2018.

Source: PHE, 2 September 2020

The World Health Organization (WHO) has published a survey on the impact of COVID-19 on health systems, based on reports from 105 countries. Data collected from five WHO regions over the period March to June 2020, illustrates that almost every country (90%) has experienced disruption to its health services, with low- and middle-income countries reporting the greatest difficulties.

The WHO found that the most frequently disrupted areas reported included:

• routine immunization outreach services (70%) and facility-based services (61%)
• non-communicable diseases diagnosis and treatment (69%)
• family planning and contraception (68%)
• treatment for mental health disorders (61%)
• cancer diagnosis and treatment (55%)

Countries also reported disruptions in:

• malaria diagnosis and treatment (46%)
• tuberculosis case detection and treatment (42%)
• antiretroviral treatment (32%)

While some areas of health care, such as dental care and rehabilitation, may have been deliberately suspended in-line with government protocols, the WHO predicts that the disruption to many of the other services may have harmful effects on population health in the short, medium and long-term.

Source: WHO, 31 August 2020

On 31 August 2020, the UK Government confirmed that the plastic carrier bag charge in England will be extended to all retailers from April 2021. This will coincide with an increase in the minimum mandatory charge to ten pence.

The latest statistics show the current levy, which stands at five pence and applies to any retailer employing 250 or more people, has led to a 95 percent cut in plastic bag sales in major supermarkets since 2015.

Source: UK Government, 31 August 2020