Agenda item

The Committee received a report of the Director of Public Health which provided members with an update on the health protection assurance arrangements in County Durham and health protection activities over the course of the year (for copy see file of Minutes).

Councillor Crute thanked the Director of Public Health for the comprehensive report and commented that it was positive to see the recovery of screening programmes following the COVID-19 pandemic. He had heard that new screenings for lung cancer were going to be introduced and asked if this would be included in future annual reports and if this screening would be rolled out in County Durham. The Joint Head of Integrated Strategic Commissioning advised that a pilot for lung cancer screenings had taken place in the Bishop Auckland area and was to expand to the whole of the North East and Cumbria, she offered to provide a briefing note to the Committee to keep members updated.

Councillor Quinn believed that further education highlighting the benefits of vaccines was necessary to ensure that people did not become complacent. The Director of Public Health stated that it was important to understand why some people were complacent and make the vaccination process simple. 

Resolved

That the content of the report be noted.