Syndromic surveillance summary: 26 January 2023 week 3
Updated 4 January 2024
© Crown copyright 2024
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/syndromic-surveillance-weekly-summaries-for-2023/syndromic-surveillance-summary-26-january-2023-week-3
Reporting week 3: 16 January to 22 January 2023
During week 3, emergency department (ED) attendances and GP consultation rates for influenza-like illness decreased further nationally across all age groups. There were also further decreases in coronavirus (COVID-19)-like indicators. Overall, across all syndromic systems, there were small increases observed in respiratory indicators in children aged 1 to 4 years, in line with seasonal expectations. ED attendances and GP consultation rates for scarlet fever remained stable during week 3 but activity remains above seasonally expected levels.
Remote health advice syndromic surveillance system
During week 3, most respiratory indicators including cold and flu, cough and ‘potential COVID-19’ decreased and are at or below seasonally expected levels. However, there were some small increases noted in respiratory calls in children aged 1 to 4 years and aged 5 to 14 years. Sore throat calls continued to decrease during week 3, however they remain above seasonally expected levels.
Access the remote health advice syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
GP in-hours syndromic surveillance system
During week 3, GP in-hours consultation rates for respiratory infection indicators decreased overall nationally. However, there were small increases observed in children aged 1 to 4 years for upper and lower respiratory tract infections. Scarlet fever consultations remained stable overall during week 3 but are still above seasonally expected levels, with a small increase noted in children aged 1 to 4 years.
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 3, ED attendances for acute respiratory infections (ARI) and influenza-like illness continued to decrease, remaining just above seasonally expected levels. There were small increases observed in the group of those aged 1 to 4 years for total ED attendances, ARI and acute bronchiolitis in line with seasonal expectations. There were further decreases in COVID-19-like attendances across all age groups. ED attendances for scarlet fever remained stable during week 3 but at levels above those expected for the time of year.
Access the emergency department syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.
Ambulance syndromic surveillance system
During week 3, there were small increases in ambulance calls for ‘impact of heat or cold’ and ‘injuries’ coinciding with a Level 3 - Cold Weather Action alert that is currently in place across England.
Access the ambulance syndromic surveillance bulletins on GOV.UK.