More than 70 staff at Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London have tested positive for coronavirus. AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS
More than 70 staff at Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London have tested positive for coronavirus. AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS
More than 70 staff at Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London have tested positive for coronavirus. AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS
More than 70 staff at Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London have tested positive for coronavirus. AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS

More than 70 staff at UK's Great Ormond Street hospital test positive for coronavirus


Nicky Harley
  • English
  • Arabic

Eight patients and more than 70 medics at the world's leading Great Ormond Street hospital have tested positive for coronavirus.

A further 318 staff at the London children's hospital are self-isolating after they or their relatives showed symptoms, according to former World Health Organisation director Anthony Costello.

In a tweet he said: "I received this circular to all staff from Great Ormond St Hospital today. 73 out of 181 staff have tested positive and 318 staff members off sick."

On Thursday, a further 569 people in the UK died overnight from coronavirus.

Earlier this week Muslim schoolboy Ismail Abdulwahab became the youngest person in the UK to die from the virus at the age of 13.

Mr Costello said his contact also raised concerns that protective masks were not being worn in non-clinical areas of the hospital.

He added: "An informant tells me "social distancing in the hospital is a fiction. Whatever the inadequacies of PPE for patient contact my concern is about the use of masks in non-clinical hospital areas. Many team members do handovers in a small office space without the use of masks.”

The British government has come under fire over the lack of protective equipment for frontline staff.

On Thursday 57-year-old nurse, Thomas Harvey, was named as the fifth NHS medic to die of coronavirus.

He had previously raised concern about the lack of equipment.

Late on Thursday, the UK government issued new guidance on equipment use.

Dr Katherine Henderson President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine said: "We are pleased our concerns have been listened to and the inherent risk to the frontline recognised.

"It is essential that healthcare workers are protected so we can treat patients with confidence – this guidance helps us to do that."

In the past two weeks the NHS Supply Chain has delivered 397 million pieces of PPE equipment, including masks, to NHS trusts and 58,000 healthcare providers.

BANGLADESH SQUAD

Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim (wicketkeeper), Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan (vice captain), Mohammad Mithun, Sabbir Rahaman, Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Abu Jayed (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru Editing by Amlan Chakraborty)

French business

France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.

Coffee: black death or elixir of life?

It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?

Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.

The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.

Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver. 

The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.

But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.

Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.

It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.

So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.

Rory Reynolds

PROFILE OF HALAN

Started: November 2017

Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport and logistics

Size: 150 employees

Investment: approximately $8 million

Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar

DMZ facts
  • The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
  • It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
  • The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
  • It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
  • Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
  • Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
  • Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012. 
  • Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
WEST ASIA RUGBY 2017/18 SEASON ROLL OF HONOUR

Western Clubs Champions League
Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Runners up: Bahrain

Dubai Rugby Sevens
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons

West Asia Premiership
Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons
Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins

UAE Premiership Cup
Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
Runners up: Dubai Exiles

UAE Premiership
Winners: Dubai Exiles
Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins

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Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

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Racecard
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Voy!%20Voy!%20Voy!
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The%20specs
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ONCE UPON A TIME IN GAZA

Starring: Nader Abd Alhay, Majd Eid, Ramzi Maqdisi

Directors: Tarzan and Arab Nasser

Rating: 4.5/5

How%20champions%20are%20made
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Honeymoonish
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