Health leaders in Sandwell 'proud' after Covid infection rates fall dramatically
Health chiefs have said they are proud of residents in Sandwell after Covid-19 infection rates dropped by two thirds within a month.
The current weekly infection rate now stands at 852.8 per 100,000 – around one third of what it was during the first week of January.
It means the area has one of the lowest rates in the West Midlands as leaders praised a "great response" to help curb high infection rates.
Dr Lisa McNally, Sandwell Council's director of public health, said: "Our contact tracing and outbreak response helped fight back against a very virulent strain of the virus. But none of that works without a great response from the local community.
"This isn’t the first time in the pandemic that Sandwell residents have responded positively to a surge in case rates. They listened to the advice and took the actions that they needed to take to keep themselves and their families safe.
"This battle isn’t over and the virus hasn’t gone away. But the people of Sandwell community should once again feel proud of how they rose to the challenge of the pandemic."
As the Omicron variant of Covid surged in December last year, the Sandwell Public Health Team redesigned its local contact tracing service to use ‘s-gene’ data that helped them pick up cases of the new variant early – breaking the chain of infection earlier and with greater effect.
Councillor Suzanne Hartwell, Sandwell Council’s cabinet member for adults, social care and health, said: “The direct impact of the virus has affected Sandwell people profoundly and disproportionately. During the pandemic, Sandwell Council has been bringing partners together and collaborating with residents to understand the needs of our communities and to respond rapidly.
“I want to thank our residents for their continued contributions in fighting this virus – their efforts have seen the numbers fall dramatically. But we must remain vigilant, follow the Covid guidelines and continue to protect our families, friends and colleagues.”
Peak rates from the Covid-19 dashboard show that Sandwell’s infection rate was 2,451, compared to the Black Country average of 2,594.
