Syndromic surveillance summary: 30 December 2022 week 51
Updated 5 January 2023
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Reporting week 51: 19 December to 27 December 2022
During week 51, emergency department (ED) attendances and GP consultations for scarlet fever and NHS 111 calls for sore throat all decreased but remain above expected levels. ED attendances for influenza-like illness continued to increase in adults during week 51. Overall, activity of other acute respiratory syndromic indicators increased in adults aged 45 to 64 and aged 65 and over but decreased in children.
Remote health advice syndromic surveillance system
During week 51, NHS 111 total calls and online assessments increased sharply in line with expectations for an extended bank holiday weekend. NHS 111 calls and online assessments increased across a range of respiratory indicators including cough, difficulty breathing and ‘potential COVID-19’, particularly in adults aged 45 years and older, with decreases observed in children aged less than 15 years. Calls and online assessments for sore throat decreased overall and in children, while increases were noted in adults.
Access the remote health advice syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
GP in hours syndromic surveillance system
During week 51, GP in-hours consultation rates for upper and lower respiratory tract infections and influenza-like illness remained above seasonally expected levels with increases generally observed among adults aged over 45 years and decreases in children aged less than 15 years. GP in-hours consultation rates for ‘pharyngitis or scarlet fever’ and scarlet fever decreased during week 51 but remain above expected levels.
Access the GP in hours syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
GP out of hours syndromic surveillance system
Daily GP out-of-hours contact data from 4 August 2022 onwards has not been received due to a widely publicised disruption faced by one of the GP out-of-hours clinical software system providers. We have since been informed that this disruption was as a result of a cybersecurity incident caused by ransomware. We are working closely with our data provider to restore the daily syndromic feed.
Access the GP out-of-hours syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
Emergency department syndromic surveillance system
During week 51, there were further overall increases in ED attendances for influenza-like illness, predominantly in those aged 1 to 4 years, 45 to 64 years, and 65 and over. Attendances for acute respiratory infections, pneumonia, asthma and ‘COVID-19-like’ also increased among adults aged 45 to 64 and 65 and over. ED attendances for scarlet fever continued to decrease during week 51, but remain above seasonally expected levels.
Access the emergency department syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
Ambulance syndromic surveillance system
During week 51, ambulance calls for difficulty breathing increased over the bank holiday weekend, however overall they remained within seasonally expected levels. Calls for ‘overdose or ingestion or poisoning’ also increased over the bank holiday weekend while again remaining within seasonally expected levels.
Access the ambulance syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.