NHS Grampian has published its plans for managing a COVID-19 outbreak in Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Moray. The plans were in development prior to the outbreak linked to the hospitality trade in Aberdeen. They have been informed by initial lessons learned in the management of that. The plans have been developed jointly with our local authority partners in Grampian.

 

Susan Webb, Director of Public Health for NHS Grampian, said: "The Public Health Team in NHS Grampian has tried and tested approaches for dealing with outbreaks - thankfully not usually on the scale of COVID-19. Many individuals have asked us about our processes and so we have produced these plans to provide information to our partners and the public on how we can all prevent the spread of the virus and what we will do in collaboration with our partners if we do get a case. We know that for some this is a concerning time and hope these documents provide reassurance that we are working hard with our partners to keep our population safe.

 

"While there is much in common between the three plans, there are also subtle differences which reflect the potential challenges of managing outbreaks in both urban and rural settings. A significant amount of work has gone into the development of the plan and I want to thank everyone who participated in that."

 

The outbreak in Aberdeen provided an opportunity to test the various parts of the plans. The response to the cluster of cases has highlighted the very strong working relationship between Public Health and local authority Environmental Health teams. It has also demonstrated the strength of the Test & Protect programme in Grampian. The contact tracing team rapidly interviewed all detected cases, identified their close contacts, and provided guidance on self-isolation. At the peak of the outbreak, the majority of cases were assigned, interviewed and completed between 24-48 hours.

 

Chris Littlejohn, Deputy Director of Public Health said: "The performance of our teams during the outbreak has been simply phenomenal. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to them for their efforts. The best way we can all repay this, is to play our part in preventing another outbreak, in Aberdeen or indeed anywhere else in Grampian. These cases demonstrated that COVID-19 is still out there and can spread very quickly if given the opportunity.

 

"Our message is clear: keep your distance. Observing a 2 metre distance from people you do not share a home with will help stop this virus in its tracks. This has to apply at work, when meeting other households, at the supermarket - everywhere. If you do develop symptoms of COVID-19, however mild, isolate at home and arrange a test."

 

The plan is available at this link.