I thought about the official line that was presented to me in the previous post and sent the following to a few of the local councillors thus:" Thank you for your considered and informative response. I do wish that the group including Dr Huq that I encountered today had had the foresight to realise that the top topic on their walkabout would likely be Covid-19 and what was being done about it in the Borough of Ealing and prepared for this, what happened did not inspire confidence.I still do not think that Ealing is doing what it could be doing. In particular, with the "Hand hygiene for all" many establishments (some amazingly enough with five stars for hygiene) lack one or more of hot running water, soap, towels, or working hand-driers in their wash rooms). If Ealing Council really wanted the "Hand hygiene for all" to work it would inspect and ensure that all premises such as cafes, pubs, bars, restaurants, cinemas, places of worship and public locations had working wash room facilities. Also some kind of campaign at the local level to get people to wash their hands in these places and generally in public would be useful. Also, the provision of hand sanitisation stations at places like bus stops, train stations, tube stations, shopping centres and the like would also be very beneficial. It would also be possible to regularly sanitise fixtures that are touched by many people including rails in tube stations, Oyster card machines, touch screen cashpoints and even park benches and waste bins There is a lot that can be done and some very small steps now would make a difference.Ealing Council could make this sort of thing happen and make a difference without just waiting for the inevitable.Thank for responding sensibly and informatively to me,Yours sincerely,Mark Raymond(-Laskowski)"This was in response to:"The council’s response to Covid-19 is set below:Ealing Council’s response to COVID-19 is informed by and supports the London-wide and national response. The council has robust procedures in place on how to respond to emergencies, including flu pandemic situations.For services that have been defined as core and critical, it is the council’s policy that all core and critical services have plans in place to respond to loss of premises, loss of process and loss of staff. These plans would be used by those services to ensure those that require those services continue to receive the support they need.The situation on coronavirus (COVID-19) is constantly evolving. The council’s website and intranet are updated almost daily with appropriate links and advice.Specific activities taking place include:• A COVID-19 preparedness directors’ group, chaired by Kerry Stevens director for adult services, meets weekly to ensure the identified core and critical services are prepared to continue delivery for the needs of our residents• The Health Protection Forum, a multi-agency partners group, chaired by myself as the Ealing director of public health, is meeting regularly and focuses on information sharing and partner updates, considering the pandemic flu plan and the London Coronavirus Framework. These plans form the basis for our local multi-agency response to COVID-19 and can be tailored as more specific information emerges about the virus.• The council has robust flu pandemic plans in place which are regularly updated and tested, and which describe the mechanisms for how the council will respond• Business continuity plans are in place for core and critical services to respond to loss of premises, loss of process and staff shortages and to ensure continued service delivery.The key public health advice is all about Hand hygiene for all: The advice to keep yourself and others well is very simple: catch coughs or sneezes in a tissue, immediately bin the tissue, wash your hands or use a sanitising gel as soon as possible. PHE also advise that when you use public transport to wash your hands or use a sanitising gel on arriving at your destination.If you have any concerns or questions, you can check the latest NHS advice, government advice or go to PHE's FAQs on the virus. You can also see the UK government plan to respond to COVID-19."
Mark Julian Raymond ● 2067d