Kent meningitis outbreak may have peaked as UKHSA reports slowdown in cases

The Kent meningitis outbreak may have reached its peak after only two new cases were reported by officials on Friday.The UK Health and Security Agency said that as of 12.30pm on Thursday, there were 18 confirmed and 11 probable cases of meningitis linked to the Kent outbreak, taking the total number of people with the disease to 29. Of the confirmed cases, 13 were meningitis B.While the growth in cases may have slowed, the situation remains serious, with all cases requiring hospital admission

The Kent meningitis outbreak: what is happening and why?

The deadly outbreak of meningitis in Kent has fuelled concerns about how far the disease will spread and seen the return of people wearing masks and queueing for vaccines. The scenes are reminiscent of the Covid crisis, but meningitis is very different. Here we look at how the outbreak has unfolded.Meningitis is a potentially lethal but uncommon disease caused by viruses and bacteria that trigger inflammation of the meninges, the protective linings that cover the brain. The Kent outbreak is driven by meningococcal bacteria which are found in the nose and throat of about 10% of the population

Tessa Richards obituary

My friend Tessa Richards, who has died of cancer aged 75, was a doctor and medical editor who campaigned indomitably for patients to be partners equal with doctors in healthcare. In addition, she transformed the relationship that the BMJ (formerly the British Medical Journal), where she worked for 40 years, had with patients.When Tessa graduated in medicine from Guy’s hospital medical school in London in 1973, doctors dominated patients, and did what they thought best for them. There was no culture of patients being equal partners, and doctors discussing options with them. As Tessa wrote in 1990: “Even the briefest spell on the other side of the desk or in a hospital bed gives blinding insight into patients’ vulnerability and of their need to be listened to, treated with respect, and given full, unhurried, jargon-free explanations

George Nicholson obituary

Borough Market in London is today a thriving market and popular place to eat – George Nicholson, who has died aged 79, was chair of its board of trustees for 10 years until 2006, and, as such, contributed much to that success. He loved the place; he and I ate there together, as friends, on his last birthday.George was proud of being a Londoner and his sense of civic pride and commitment to London continued all his life. In 1981 he was elected as the Labour member for Bermondsey of the Greater London council. He became chair of the GLC planning committee, advocating for Thames beaches, social housing, the best of urbanism and celebration of the possible

Father of meningitis victim, 18, tells of family’s ‘immeasurable’ devastation

The father of an 18-year-old school pupil who died after the meningitis outbreak in Kent said his family’s devastation is “immeasurable” as he called for better protection for young people.Juliette Kenny died last Saturday, one day after first showing symptoms of vomiting and discoloration in her cheeks, her father, Michael Kenny, said.He said his daughter had been “fit, healthy and strong” and had completed the practical assessment for her PE A-level two days prior to her death.Juliette Kenny, a sixth-form pupil at Queen Elizabeth’s grammar school in Faversham, is one of two students to have died after the outbreak of meningitis B in the county.Kenny said “no family should experience this pain and tragedy” and that “this can be avoided”, adding that he wanted his daughter’s legacy to be “lasting change”

Tens of thousands of prisoners in England and Wales at risk of cell fires

The government has reneged on a pledge to make all prison cells fire-safe or take them out of use by the end of next year, meaning tens of thousands of prisoners in England and Wales will remain at risk.The Ministry of Justice has admitted it has known for almost two decades that about a quarter of prison places are unsafe, putting the people housed in affected cells at risk.Successive governments had pledged to remedy the situation by the end of 2027, but that commitment has now been dropped and the government has not set a new date.Earlier this week, the Guardian reported on the inquest of Clare Dupree, a woman with severe mental illness who died in a fire in her cell at HMP Eastwood.The inquest jury found there had been “missed opportunities” to prevent Dupree’s death, and that a “lack of automatic in-cell fire detection caused a delay in detecting the fire”