health workers were off sick or isolating every day. the rapid spread of the omicron variant is underlined by the latest estimates from the office for national statistics, which suggest thati in 30 people in the uk tested positive for covid in the period before christmas. our health correspondent katherine da costa reports. most nhs staff will be glad to see the back of 2021. nearly two years into this pandemic, many are exhausted. a spike in covid cases is driving a rise in staff sickness. in england, london is worst affected with about 4% of staff in acute trusts absent for covid related reasons in the week before christmas, up nearly 60% on the week before. many feel it s impacting on patient care. the staff that are at work will be caring for more patients, trying to do more to cover for their missing colleagues, working extra hours, starting early, finishing late. the pressure will be immense.
right the way up to increases now in the over 70s, although they remain the lowest group to be infected. there s more encouraging news on boosters. new uk data suggests a booster shot is 88% effective at preventing people ending up in hospital due to omicron. after a huge push, all uk nations say they ve hit the target of offering all adults a third dose by the end of the year. i would just say to people again, there s 1.5 million slots out there over the next few days. there s plenty of opportunities. there is mobile vaccination units, there s gps vaccinating, there s all sorts of ways to get vaccinated. just please come forward and help yourself. but also, help reduce that burden on the nhs. and now, this. a second antiviral pill has been approved by the uk regulator. in trials, pfizer s paxlovid drug offered nearly 90% protection from severe illness and death among vulnerable adults. there s a glimmer of hope for the new year.
in the latest infection survey from the ons, infections increased across the uk to their highest level on record in the week to christmas eve. in england, one in 25 had the virus. in scotland, wales and northern ireland it was one in a0. infections doubled in a week in london. one in 15 tested positive. but there were big rises too in the north west, yorkshire and the humber and west midlands. other regions weren t far behind. statisticians say infections are twice the level they were this time last winter in england because they re being fuelled by the more infectious omicron variant. across all age groups we are seeing increases but particularly driven by those young age groups, we ve seen increases among school age children fairly recently, particularly from nursery through to primary. but we are now seeing infections among older age groups as well, so young adults from the mid 20s to the mid 30s, but spreading
this is bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. i m lukwesa burak. the headlines. countries around the world are seeing in the new year, with scaled back celebrations, as the omicron variant continues to drive up covid infections. entire neighbourhoods in the us state of colorado have been engulfed by flames as wildfires force tens of thousands to leave their homes. the nhs warns of significant pressure in the coming weeks, as covid infections in the uk reach a new high. the staff that are at work will be caring for more patients, trying to do more to cover for their missing colleagues, working extra hours,
you said it s been very dry. how unusual is that? it s becoming more and more common as the years go by. but this one was extraordinary. in our area in the lewisville, boulder county area, we ve only had about one and a half inches moisture in the past six months. so, everything that has been growing through may and june, it has dried out completely since then and it s a tinder box, without a doubt. the pressure on the nhs in the uk has been brought into sharp focus by the latest official figures on staff absences related to covid. those absences in acute nhs trusts in england increased up by more than 40% during christmas week. an average of more than 25,000