Managing any city outbreaks
have now published our Control Plan setting out the ways and means of how we contain and prevent Covid from spreading if we have outbreaks. The health, safety and well-being of our residents is always the key priority for this city council.
“Throughoutthispandemic andlockdown,wehavecontinued to run front-line services, support our NHS and an army of public sector staff and volunteers have done everything they can to support our communities.
"As we come out of lockdown,theriskofasecondwave is very real. We must all work together on prevention and, if it happens, we will all work together on containing it."
If there is an outbreak, the plan has a five Es approach to:
Engage–bycontactingresidents where the outbreak occured.
Explain – advice and guidance on prevention and/or control.
Encourage – control measures such as isolation for care homeresidents,supportforinfection control activities and, if necessary, reviewing safety measures.
Escalate – work with more regional and national authorities, such as if workplace or school closures are being contemplated and where the incident or outbreak has the potential to impact on the widercommunityoreconomy.
Enforce – consider and use enforcement powers where the setting is unable or unwillingtobeginpreventionand/or control measures.
Gillian Gibson, Sunderland’s Director of Public Health, said: "There are already strong health partnerships across Sunderland between the city council, Public Health England, the NHS, our education sector and with businesses.
"Now, our plan builds on those links and strengthens them. A local plan allows us to be more targeted and tailored in our local response to containing COVID-19."
Sunderland City Council's Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care, Councillor Dr Geoff Walker said: "We can already all help prevent further outbreaks by following the simple advice of good hand and face hygiene, face coverings when at the shops or on publictransport,andbysocial distancing.
"We all have a role to play in protecting ourselves, our familes and friends, and our city."