The Reading Covid-19 Outbreak Engagement Board meets at 2pm on Friday, 2nd July 2021. There will be reports on the state of the pandemic, surge testing and surge vaccination and lessons learned. For access please email : nicky.simpson@reading.gov.uk See attached file for agenda and minutes of previous meeting. To join the meeting click on: this link .

The Government has published a data strategy for the NHS and has opened it to consultation until 23rd July. Please find here the link to the draft strategy .

South Reading Patient Voice will be meeting in person at 3pm in Palmer Park on Wednesday, 16th June. Directions are included with the agenda attached.

South Reading Patient Voice will be meeting in person at 3pm in Palmer Park on Wednesday, 16th June. Directions are included with the agenda attached.

South Reading Patient Voice will be meeting in person at 3pm in Palmer Park on Wednesday, 16th June. Directions are included with the agenda attached.

The Penta Hotel in central Reading which is being used as a Government hotel quarantine facility has been the source of several cases of Covid-19 in the community as members of staff have caught the disease. Now Reading Council is asking the Department of Health and Social Care urgently to close the facility. Please click here for a more detailed account . Latest: 17 June 2021: The quarantine facility at the Penta Hotel in Reading will close on 30 June, according to the BBC. The hotel will then be deep cleaned and returned to its usual function.

With the wide spread of the extra transmissible Delta variant of Covid-19 certain areas of Reading are asked to take part in "SURGE TESTING". Every resident in the postcode areas RG1 3**, RG1 5**, RG1 6**, RG1 7** is asked to attend one of several centres to take a PCR test for Covid-19 (if they have no symptoms) or order a test for home use (applicable whether or not one has symptoms). This should take place over 2 weeks starting from Monday 7th June. For details of how to do this please see this web page . At the same time Reading has introduced additional discretionary isolation support grants for those on low incomes who have to stay at home, cannot work from home and would thereby lose income. Also for buisinesses not covered by other existing schemes. For details, see the file attachment below. "

Berkshire West CCG Governing Body, together with the governing bodies of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire CCGs will meet in public (we believe) on Thursday, 10 June at 1.30pm. - 3.30 See this page for the meeting link. Although the 3 CCGs in the BOB Integrated Care System have not merged, they have a common Accountable Officer in Dr James Kent, and have agreed to hold their governing body meetings together.

Berkshire West CCG has been revising the pathways for patients with Musculoskeletal conditions over the past several years, with the new approach recently having been introduced for people with knee problems, as the changes move forward. People who have musculoskeletal conditions are being invited to take part in upcoming online events to help shape future NHS services. The feedback sessions will be held on Tuesday 22 June 2021, 4pm-6pm and Thursday 24 June 2021, 10am-12pm. People with MSK conditions, or voluntary sector organisations that support them, are invited to the sessions. People should confirm their attendance by Friday 18 June by emailing karen.grannum@nhs.net . Carl Davies, director of MSK/Ortho at Berkshire West Integrated Care Partnership, said: Musculoskeletal conditions (MSK) is an umbrella term that includes over 200 different conditions affecting the human frame, for example joints, bones, muscles, soft tissue problems, rheumatic conditions, chronic pain and orthopaedics to name just a few. A large number of GP appointments are MSK related and we are committed to providing our local people with a wide range of services that deliver the right care, at the right time, in the right place. He added: Conscious of the need to consider the wider, social factors of health, we are keen to ensure we build something that reaches patients who may traditionally fall between clinical services and who may need additional help i.e. receive social support, require further education regarding their condition or information and signposting to existing services. What this looks like is down to the service users, and those who may currently support them outside of traditional clinical services. The Berkshire West Integrated Partnership is made of NHS funding bodies and providers of care for people in Reading, Wokingham and West Berkshire

Berkshire West CCG has proposed to re-organise NHS hearing services for all adults in a new unified pathway. A consultation meeting was held on 20th May 2021. You can see the slide presentation from the event . There is a chance to comment on the proposals up to 4th June 2021 by email to bwccg.enquiries@nhs.net .