Public health professional urges people to remain cautious with Covid-19 and flu season

People have been urged to remain cautious as the NHS is due to face a ‘tricky winter’ with covid and flu.

In South Kesteven, 479 confirmed Covid-19 cases have been recorded since Wednesday last week (August 25), bringing the total of people who have tested positive in the district to 11,523 - eight per cent of people.

In recent months Stamford has had a high number of cases, some weeks having had the most in the district and one of the highest infection rates in the county.

According to data from Public Health England, in the seven days up to Friday last week (August 27) 82 people had covid in Stamford, 57 in Bourne and 37 in Market Deeping.

However, Andy Fox, assistant director of public health for Lincolnshire, has said that a number of covid cases in care homes could be the reason for the rising infection rate in Stamford.

“Stamford’s population, it’s where a lot of people live in the district,” said Mr Fox.

“The rate for overall in the district is comparable to Lincolnshire and the national position at the moment.”

“What happens when you are drilling down to small areas, the small outbreaks in a care home cause the case rate to jump up.

“Cases in care homes over the last days and weeks caused a higher rate than previous days or weeks in older adults.

“It sounds worrying but if we do see cases in care homes we do whole care home testing, all residents and staff whether or not they have symptoms but a lot of the time are picking up cases.”

Mr Fox says that looking at the district on the whole gives a better picture of the case rate, rather than specific towns, as it is made up of both urban and rural populations.

Four further deaths from coronavirus were recorded in South Kesteven in the past week bringing the total of people who died from the virus in the district during August to eight, a sharp increase after no deaths were recorded in June and July.

He has assured people that overall deaths aren’t increasing and compared to the numbers last year, it is much lower.

As pupils return to school, people can expect to see an increase in cases, both locally and nationally, which Mr Fox believes is even more of a reason to get double jabbed as there will be more covid circulating.

“We know there’s lots of covid out there, we are not out of the woods,” said Mr Fox.

“Covid-19 is here to stay so if people haven’t had two jabs they are far more likely to get it.”

l Coronavirus cases in Rutland are continuing to rise as 132 positive tests have been recorded in the past week.

Since Wednesday last week, the county’s infection rate has risen slightly from 297 per every 100,000 people to 311.

The number of people who have died within 28 days of a positive test remains at 66, with no new deaths in just over a month.