PublicHealthMatters

Coronaviruses can be spread when people with the virus have close, sustained contact with people who are not infected. This typically means spending more than 15 minutes within two metres of an infected person, such as talking to someone for instance. The more you come into contact with the droplets from coughs and sneezes of … Read more

In recent weeks cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) have been seen in an increasing number of countries across the world and we expect to see more cases here in the UK over the coming days and weeks. The UK has well-established plans to deal with outbreaks of infectious disease and everyone can play an important role … Read more

Dear everyone COVID-19 An essential part of managing any outbreak of infection is to ensure that the public is confident in our science and that we communicate clearly how that science underpins the actions that we take to control the spread of disease. This is especially so with Covid-19 as new viruses inevitably cause greater concern. … Read more

The latest edition of Health Matters, PHE’s professional resource, focuses on smoking among the population of people living with a broad range of mental health conditions, ranging from low mood and common conditions such as depression and anxiety, to more severe conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. This blog provides a summary of the … Read more

A new decade brings fresh opportunities to look at how, as a nation, we can tackle inequalities in health. Ten years on from his original report, Michael Marmot and the Institute of Health Equity have produced a new and important contribution to this debate. The report highlights areas of continuing concern and calls for further … Read more

Dear everyone COVID-19 There have been no new positive cases this week in the UK, which is testament to the robust infection control measures in place, as well as the diagnostic and testing work that is happening in laboratories across the country. But this is early days and we do expect more new cases and … Read more

We recently blogged about contact tracing, an important technique we use to stop diseases like COVID-19 from spreading. Part of the contact tracing process may involve asking someone who has had close contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19 to self-isolate at home. In this blog, we will explain what self-isolation is, why it is … Read more

As the largest and most trusted professional workforce, nurses and midwives are in a unique position to lead improvements for the nation’s health. We are in all parts of the community, including schools, people’s homes, the workplace, national and local government, as well as traditional clinical settings such as hospitals, nursing homes and health centres. … Read more

Dear everyone COVID-19 This week, we have seen the novel coronavirus outbreak continue to escalate and the World Health Organization has officially named the disease COVID-19. Five further patients in England tested positive for the infection this week, bringing the total number of cases in the UK to nine. Two of these five were healthcare … Read more

Rough map of Great Britain One of the ways we protect the public from infectious diseases like novel coronavirus (COVID-19) is contact tracing. In this blog Nick Phin, Deputy Director at PHE’s National Infections Service answers some questions about how this works. For more information about novel coronavirus see our regularly updated Q&A blog. What … Read more