WALK THE LINE

This year will go down in the history as one that saw a deadly pandemic grip the planet. Britain could be heading for second lockdown as across the country cases of coronavirus continue to spiral upwards.

But what could this mean for our economy? Is our only choice between health and wealth? MC Magazine speaks to three experts.

Joe Rafferty, Chief Executive of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust - One of the country's leading mental and community health NHS Trusts

COVID-19 is not just a hazard to our health it’s also divisive. Despite a concerning increase in cases, around the country people have demonstrated against restrictions which they see as impositions on freedom.

Many of us are clear that this is a serious disease. Most of us get the need to take precautions, wear masks, wash hands and safe distance. Do things that would have been unthinkably awkward less than a year ago. But apparently for some the concern is that the “cure” of lockdown is worse than the disease. And there appears to be an increasingly vocal group who don’t believe COVID-19 exists at all. Looking at recent news reports you could be forgiven for thinking that perhaps the only thing that unites this country at the moment is the desire for this terrible virus to go away.

The truth is COVID-19 is a real and present danger so we must give priority to staying safe. Mask wearing, hand hygiene, flu vaccination and careful distancing

are not impositions on freedom but are part of the armoury of simple tools to help us keep the NHS open while maintaining our economy. Far from being impositions they are the real stuff of social cohesion. Without our concerted efforts we do run the risk of falling into that binary, ‘one thing or the other’ trap; of thinking that our only choice is ‘health or wealth’.

But health and wealth are not separate they’re linked – there is a strong relationship between income and wellbeing. Studies show that job insecurity and unemployment have a negative impact on health; particularly on mental health and the hardest hit are usually the poorest, people with long term, chronic conditions and those who care for them.

So it goes without saying that NHS services must be safely accessible; but as we work to bring this virus under control we need to ensure that we don’t do so at the cost of a health enhancing economy.

Professor Matt Ashton , Director of Public Health for Liverpool

Coronavirus spreads quickly and easily. One person with COVID-19 can unwittingly infect many others. So it’s clear to me that we need to take a whole population approach to preventing the spread of Covid further.

We can’t do this just by protecting the most vulnerable members of our society. You can’t segment whole populations that easily. And whilst it’s true that COVID-19 affects some people worse than others it can and does affect everybody and some are living with the after effects of Covid (Long Covid) for months afterwards.

People don’t just exist in their own bubble.

People don’t just exist in their own bubble, we all have friends, family, loved ones and work responsibilities that very easily cross into vulnerable groups.

This is why health and the economy go hand in hand. If people are fit and healthy, the economy can be fit and healthy. I would say they are not really different things, just two sides of the same coin. And if we are to truly make a difference, we must take a wellbeing economics approach, putting wellbeing at the heart of our decision making, in order that we end up with a fair, inclusive economy that looks after everybody and results in improved health and wealth for everyone. We must work together to truly make a difference, to protect individuals, communities and the economy.

Colin Burke, Senior Insolvency Consultant

The pandemic is putting huge money pressures on many parts of business and I’ve seen the damaging effects that can follow in the wake of financial distress. Some industries have ceased operations altogether and others will only be able to emerge very slowly from this emergency. As Government support measures wind down it’s becoming clear that many companies will have difficult decisions to make.

The impact here will be more than fiscal. In my experience companies can be much more than just places of work – some are like families and when that company, that family, goes out of business there can be a tangible sense of bereavement. Not just for the loss of a livelihood, as vital as that is, but for workers

For some the concern is that the ‘cure’ of lockdown is worse than the disease.

who suddenly find themselves redundant it can be traumatic. There can be a real loss of identity – self-worth even. You don’t have to be a medic to see how that can impact on a person’s health. That’s why we need to act now. To find different ways of working to ensure that staff and customers see businesses as being safe places to be.

Communications is key. The public and private sectors must talk to each other; to understand the science better and agree what they should be doing to stay safe and thrive. My call to colleagues in health is work with the private sector now and not wait until companies are on the brink of collapse. I understand that there’s a fine line to walk between health and wealth but we are going to have to walk it together if we want to keep a viable and healthy economy for the benefit of us all.

Companies can be much more than just places of work – some are like families.