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Seven days in medicine: 30 Sep to 6 Oct 2020

BMJ 2020; 371 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m3874 (Published 08 October 2020) Cite this as: BMJ 2020;371:m3874

Covid-19

Antiviral combination does not help severe illness

The drug combination lopinavir-ritonavir is not an effective treatment for patients admitted to hospital with covid-19, showed results from the Randomised Evaluation of Covid-19 Therapy (Recovery) trial, under way at 176 UK hospitals. Many clinical care guidelines that have recommended lopinavir-ritonavir for patients admitted with covid-19 should now be updated, researchers wrote in the Lancet.1

GPs need extra support for second wave

General practices in England will struggle to cope with a second wave of covid-19 without urgent measures to support them, the BMA warned. In a report published on 30 September its General Practitioners Committee called for occupational health services to be made available to all practice staff, alongside free supplies of personal protective equipment, suspension of routine inspections by the Care Quality Commission, and suspension of the Quality and Outcomes Framework, as part of efforts to reduce bureaucracy. (Full story doi:10.1136/bmj.m3806)

Politicians must be honest about NHS delivery

NHS leaders called for an honest assessment of what the health service can deliver as it grapples with a “triple whammy” of rising covid-19 infections, a major backlog of treatment, and reduced capacity due to infection control measures. In a report the NHS Confederation said that the service was at “a critical crossroads” as winter approached. Niall Dickson, the confederation’s outgoing chief executive, said that, while the NHS …

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