Mansfield rates still ‘highest’ as health bosses launch over 50s boosters and jabs for teens

Although Covid rates were falling Mansfield, it currently has the highest rate across Nottinghamshire’s districts and boroughs.

At a county coronavirus briefing yesterday, Friday, reported county rates were 344 cases per 100,000 people, down on the previous seven days and representing more than 2,800 people who had tested positive for Covid over the past seven days.

The council’s Covid dashboard, up to and including September 12, showed Mansfield had 425.4 cases per 100,000 people, while in Ashfield it was 325.2.

Louise Lester, Nottinghamshire Council public health consultant said they were ‘working closely’ with partners in Mansfield to ‘do everything’ to reduce the rates, with the help of the voluntary and community sector and Mansfield Council.

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Their efforts comes as the new booster jabs campaign, initially for the over 50s, frontline health and care workers, and the clinically vulnerable, launches next week.

Those eligible will get an invitation.

The vaccination of young people aged 12-15 will also roll out next week, via the school immunisation service.

The county’s ‘positivity rate’ was ‘encouraging and falling’, the briefing was told, although with some variation across county.

Ms Lester said rates had mainly stayed ‘stable or decreased’ in the last week, similar to the national picture, ‘fairly flat with a slow downward drift, although they are still higher than we would like them to be’.

She encouraged Mansfield residents to also keep up with the Covid safety measures, which included vaccination, testing, face-coverings, washing hands and socialising in well ventilated or outdoor areas.

According to Lucy Hubber, public health director for Nottingham, the city saw ‘very sustained high rates’ over the summer, in the high 300s, but was now at 263 case per 100,000, slightly below the England average of 297 per 100,000.

Amanda Sullivan, chief accountable officer for the NHS integrated care system, said there were still ‘significant numbers’ in the region’s hospitals with coronavirus.

September 14 saw 198 people in hospital with the virus, including 28 in intensive care.

She said: “Unvaccinated people, or those not fully vaccinated are much more likely to need hospital care.

“It’s clear people who are fully vaccinated can still catch coronavirus, but much less likely to be seriously ill or die.

“The vaccine programme continues to be our key weapon.”

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