Bradford health leader says public need to remain vigilant as new infections in city remain high

A health leader in Bradford has warned people need to remain vigilant due to the city's high number of new Covid-19 cases.

Professor Mahendra Patel, from the University of Bradford, said it's not surprising that Bradford is second behind Leicester for the number of cases per 100,000 people, due to the existing health inequality in the region.

Professor Patel, who is a member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s English Pharmacy Board, has worked extensively with different BAME communities around health inequalities.

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He said the city should "learn from Leicester" - which has spent its first weekend in local lockdown - as the rest of the nation saw some of the restrictions that have been in place since March 23, lifted.

A health leader in Bradford has warned people need to remain vigilant due to the city's high new Covid-19 cases in England.A health leader in Bradford has warned people need to remain vigilant due to the city's high new Covid-19 cases in England.
A health leader in Bradford has warned people need to remain vigilant due to the city's high new Covid-19 cases in England.

Non-essential shops in Leicester have shut and schools will close to most pupils from Thursday, July 9, as part of restrictions imposed after a rise in coronavirus cases.

He said: "We have got a similar spread. The situation lies in our own hands - so the more care and the more understanding and commitment to government guidelines we pay, the safer we are going to be.

"We have to also understand the impact it can have on a whole family, it could be living in two or three generations. It has an impact on the whole household in that respect."

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Since the start of the coronavirus crisis, the academic, from the department of life sciences from the University of Bradford, has led outreach work to highlight important health messages to BAME communities in Yorkshire and beyond, in languages other than English, including Gujarati, Hindi/Urdu.

Professor Mahendra Patel, from the University of Bradford. Photo credit: otherProfessor Mahendra Patel, from the University of Bradford. Photo credit: other
Professor Mahendra Patel, from the University of Bradford. Photo credit: other

His call to action follows on from figures published last week by Public Health England which showed the number of cases per 100,000 population, after tests carried out in laboratories and the community.

Bradford in West Yorkshire was at 69.4, one behind Leicester - where certain lockdown restrictions have resumed - at 140.2. While in Barnsley in South Yorkshire was third on the list at 54.7, Rotherham seventh at 33.6 and Kirklees, West Yorkshire, at 30.3.

Prof Patel said in Bradford health inequalities faced by BAME communities have been "known for decades" but they have been laid bare by the current crisis.

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He said: "In terms of the North South divide we have already seen that Bradford is really creeping up. We need to learn from Leicester.

"It’s understanding that lock down and the easing of that doesn’t mean everything is hunky dory.

"That is a key message because of communication and understanding and accepting the message we need to drill this message more to these people in an understandable fashion."

He added it would help to have "champions in the community" to provide clear messaging at a local level to the most vulnerable groups, including those from the older generation.

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Prof Patel said: "It’s not just reaching out to the younger people, it’s also about how are we going to reach out to the older people who are still set back in their traditional ways."

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