Agenda item

The Director of Public Health informed the Committee that the report covered October to December 2021, which was before the changes caused by OMICRON in December. This meant the relevance of some of the measures had changed. It was highlighted to the Committee that there was a large and complex cohort of people with drug and alcohol misuse issues, and they had consciously been kept in services during Covid-19 which had supressed the performance data; the Sexual Health Service had stepped up during Covid-19 and had performed well, particularly regarding the choice of contraception offered to women and the offering of long acting reversable contraception; The stop smoking services were also delivering above target and were geared towards helping the most vulnerable residents.

The Chair asked about the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccinations. The Director of Public Health explained the scope for opportunistic immunisation during Covid-19 was lower due to less contact with general practices. The take-up of the booster vaccination of children aged five was not different to pre Covid-19 levels and was considered low. There had been an NHS campaign to improve take-up of the vaccine and it was a recognised issue that the NHS was working on. The Chair recommended the Committee keep an eye on the issue.

Councillor Clarke highlighted the positive work of the stop smoking service, particularly the smoking statistics for pregnant women. She enquired about the outreach efforts regarding drugs and alcohol misuse and stopping smoking. The Director of Public Health explained they were working with the NHS on improving pathways and investment into stop smoking activities in hospitals generally but with a focus on maternity. Outreach took place at a range of locations, and they were helping mental health services build-up their ability to help people stop smoking. There were a lot of self-referrals for drugs and alcohol misuse and having a telephone service had been popular with residents during Covid-19, so a telephone service would be promoted and continued.

Councillor Zammit asked whether a breakdown of the statistics for drug users in treatment was available. The Director of Public Health said there had been an extensive briefing to the previous Committee, that included which groups were accessing help for what needs. This could be circulated to members.

Councillor Hamdache asked whether there were other Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) on sexual health, particularly in regard to the 2030 target of no new HIV infections. The Director of Public Health explained the current KPI’s were headlines and there would be a review of the KPI’s to refresh them. Additionally, the Committee could decide to do a deep dive into sexual health to get a sense of what trends to monitor.

The Chair asked whether diabetes could be considered as a KPI. The Director of Public Health said a report could be provided on an annual basis as this would tie in with data that was received from national and would allow for comparison with other areas. The Committee agreed. Councillor Gilgunn asked whether research had been carried out on loneliness and its impact on mental health. The Director of Public Health explained that the shared Public Health service  had  recently carried out a needs analysis on social isolation, but it may only relate to the London Borough of Camden.  He advised he would look into this.