COVID pandemic created immunisation gaps in Africa. Over half a million children are at risk: Routine immunisation has resulted in diseases like measles being drastically reduced. Laszlo Mates/shutterstock The COVID pandemic exposed the fault lines in health systems and national routine immunisation programmes around the world. A recent World Health Organization (WHO) report showed that …
How to disagree without making enemies in the age of the pandemic – tips from a psychologist: Jacob Lund/Shutterstock Have you ever been mocked or abused for your views on COVID? If so, you’re not alone. Anyone wishing to engage in an open dialogue surrounding the pandemic can often encounter a hostile climate, especially online. …
Boris Johnson’s pandemic legacy – where he went wrong managing COVID (and some things he got right): The UK sees a change of leadership on September 6 2022, with Liz Truss selected by Conservative Party members to replace Boris Johnson as the UK prime minister. Johnson’s term of course coincided with the emergence of the …
How the pandemic lockdown in South Africa affected mental health: shutterstock When SARS-CoV-2 emerged in South Africa, the country took measures to restrict people’s movements and activities, to slow the spread of infections. There were various levels of restrictions, the most severe being in place in March and April 2020. During this “hard lockdown”, many …
Living with COVID: how treating masks like umbrellas could help us weather future pandemic threats: When cases rise, we can make small changes to our behaviour. Jaromir Chalabala/Shutterstock Thankfully, the UK now looks to be past the peak of both the recent heatwave and the latest COVID wave. But there will be more of both …
Four major challenges facing Britain’s education system after the pandemic: The UK goverment’s Department for Education has some new ministers in charge following the political turmoil surrounding Boris Johnson’s resignation. After resigning only two days into the job of education secretary, Michelle Donelan has been replaced by James Cleverly, MP for Braintree. Donelan’s former role …
Methane emissions reach new highs despite pandemic – they are four times more sensitive to climate change than first thought: Wildfires may be slowing the rate at which the atmosphere removes methane. Gonzalo Keogan/Shutterstock Eliminating emissions of CO? is high up the environmental agenda – but the world should not lose sight of the threat …
Five actions to prepare African countries better for the next pandemic: COVID restrictions measures caused major disruptions to people's lives. Shutterstock Globally, cases of COVID-19 and related deaths are lower in June 2022 than they were at the beginning of the year. But the infection numbers are rising. Africa is no exception. The past two …
The tide of the COVID pandemic is going out – but that doesn’t mean big waves still can’t catch us: Ian Davidson/Alamy In February, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the public would have to get used to “living with COVID”, and announced the phasing out of all COVID-related restrictions over the following months. For many …
Girls’ mental health has been affected more than boys’ during the pandemic – new research: Mental health issues in children are linked to poorer educational outcomes. Alena Ozerova/Shutterstock Evidence has shown that the COVID pandemic has impacted women’s mental health more significantly than men’s mental health. For example, lockdowns and the stress of home schooling …
Five ways the pandemic has affected routine medical care: Jacob Lund/Shutterstock Since the beginning of the pandemic, COVID has infected at least a third of the UK population and is estimated to have factored in the deaths of almost 200,000 people in the UK. But critically, COVID has also had a devastating impact on our …
Here’s how much learning South African children lost in the pandemic: Even learners in affluent schools lost around two-thirds of a school year. shutterstock When a state of disaster was declared in South Africa in 2020 in response to the COVID pandemic, a hard lockdown was instituted and schools were shut. This was followed by …
South Africa has entered a new phase of the COVID pandemic: what that means: Xabiso Mkhabela/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 have been increasing in South Africa in recent weeks. This has been largely driven by two offspring – known as the BA.4 and BA.5 sub-lineages – of the Omicron variant first …
Measles: global increase in cases likely driven by COVID pandemic: In the first two months of 2022, 17,000 cases were already reported worldwide. fotohay/ Shutterstock A report by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Unicef warns that there could be a significant increase in the number of measles cases around the world. More than 17,000 …
Endometriosis: pandemic backlog risks making it even harder for women to get help: One in 20 UK women will now wait more than a year for an appointment. Elizaveta Galitckaia/ Shutterstock The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate and devastating impact on women’s health, according to a report from the Royal College of Obstetricians and …
Half of British people are seeing friends and leaving home less since the pandemic – new study: Shutterstock Two years on from the first pandemic lockdown in the UK, a new study by King’s College London and Ipsos MORI shows just how damaging COVID and the measures to control it have been. In a representative …
Five lessons the pandemic taught us about ending homelessness permanently: Srdjan Randjelovic / Shutterstock One surprising success story to come out of the pandemic was how many countries and cities were able to significantly reduce street homelessness. Lockdowns enabled governments to treat homelessness as a public health emergency and act swiftly to accommodate and support …
COVID: five things the UK must prioritise in its pandemic recovery plan: On the second anniversary of Britain first going into lockdown, and with the country now opening up, this is a good opportunity to make sense of what happened in the pandemic, what it meant, and what needs to be done next. Some of …