Covid - Plan B & Omicron

[Northern_Brewer]

Madness.

How can we have so many different rules on such a small island

You get that kind of madness when you introduce borders between people. Borders distort everything, but some people like them because they represent "sovereignty" regardless of practical considerations.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I know chippy, its almost as if there are different countries on that small island. Incredible to think that different countries have different laws and cultures.

Thanks for pointing that out as obviously i forgot we are separate countries with separate rules.

What i meant was if we had all stuck together and had the same set of rules from the start maybe we wouldn't be in the ******* mess we are in now.

 

[Brianbrewed]

Good point,
England should have really followed Scotland's lead here tbh.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Here we go again -
The government resisted calls to impose new regulations in England in the run-up to the new year, diverging from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, where tighter rules are now in place for pubs, bars and restaurants.



Further Covid restrictions in England must be an "absolute last resort", Health Secretary Sajid Javid has said, despite rising case numbers in the UK.
Writing in the Daily Mail, Mr Javid said the UK must look to "live alongside" coronavirus in 2022.
The number of people in intensive care was not following the same trajectory as this time last year, he said.
But he warned there would be a big increase in the number of people needing NHS care in the next month.
This is "likely to test the limits" of NHS capacity more than a typical winter, he said.
On Friday UK daily Covid cases reached another record high of 189,846.

New Year's Eve celebrations were scaled back across much of the UK as the more infectious Omicron variant continues to drive up cases.
England is currently under the government's Plan B restrictions which mean face coverings are compulsory in most indoor venues and on public transport, while people should work from home if they can.
The government resisted calls to impose new regulations in England in the run-up to the new year, diverging from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, where tighter rules are now in place for pubs, bars and restaurants.
Mr Javid said England had "welcomed in 2022 with some of the least restrictive measures in Europe".
He said: "Curbs on our freedom must be an absolute last resort and the British people rightly expect us to do everything in our power to avert them.
"Since I came into this role six months ago, I've also been acutely conscious of the enormous health, social and economic costs of lockdowns.
"So I've been determined that we must give ourselves the best chance of living alongside the virus and avoiding strict measures in the future."

Full article - Covid: More restrictions a last resort, Sajid Javid says

 

[dad_of_jon]

You get that kind of madness when you introduce borders between people. Borders distort everything, but some people like them because they represent "sovereignty" regardless of practical considerations.

Physical land borders can make sense when it comes to rabies control and Australia's invasive species control (cane toads excepted) etc, where the border is one land mass. Although its been impossible to keep covid out. Sometimes Borders are used to keep governance of the population more local. EU - Brussels, UK - Westminster, Wales - Cardiff. But it can go too far.... E.g. Gowerton community council - power to put up hanging baskets on lamposts, I can't think of anything more useful than that.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

We are already struggling with absence due to covid if many more go off we will not be able to cover all our routes.


Workplaces told to plan for absences of up to 25%

Ministers have been tasked with developing "robust contingency plans" for workplace absences, as the government warned rising cases could see up to a quarter of staff off work.
Public sector leaders have been asked to prepare for "worst case scenarios" of 10%, 20% and 25% absence rates, the Cabinet Office said.
The UK has seen record numbers of daily cases over the festive period.
Transport, the NHS and schools have already seen the effect of absences.
Rising case numbers have led to large numbers self-isolating and being unable to go to work. This has particularly affected industries where staff are unable to work from home.

Cabinet Office Minister Steve Barclay is chairing regular meetings with ministers to assess how the spread of the Omicron variant is affecting workforces and supply chains, the Cabinet Office said.
The prime minister had asked ministers working with their respective sectors to test preparations and contingency plans to limit disruption, it explained.
Mr Barclay said the highly transmissible Omicron variant meant businesses and public services "will face disruption in the coming weeks, particularly from higher than normal staff absence".
However, his department said that so far disruption caused by Omicron has been controlled in "most parts of the public sector".

Full article - Covid: Workplaces told to plan for absences of up to 25%

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Public sector leaders have been asked to prepare for "worst case scenarios" of 10%, 20% and 25% absence rates, the Cabinet Office said.

Already at "Worst Case 1" in the NHS :
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nhs-struggles-as-sickness-takes-out-1-in-10-staff-x29mwv5rwMore than 110,000 NHS staff — nearly one in 10 — were absent on New Year’s Eve, according to figures showing that Covid is hitting healthcare far harder than previously thought.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

That is a worry NB.

As the article is behind a paywall i have posted the only part you can read here -



More than 110,000 NHS staff — nearly one in 10 — were absent on New Year’s Eve, according to figures showing that Covid is hitting healthcare far harder than previously thought.

Of them, almost 50,000 were at home sick or self-isolating because of Covid-19 while patients faced 40-hour waits at A&E, late operations, closed wards and long ambulance delays.

Boris Johnson has told ministers to test emergency contingency plans to minimise the disruption to services such as hospitals, schools and social care. Public sector leaders have been told to prepare for a worst-case scenario of workforce absences of 25 per cent.

The 110,000 figure refers to all NHS staff. On Friday NHS England released sickness data relating to acute hospitals up to December 26, which

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nhs-struggles-as-sickness-takes-out-1-in-10-staff-x29mwv5rw

 

[Flat Foot]

I'm sure as a subscriber when I share the link the whole article is visible (possibly only viewable a certain number of times)

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/...3?shareToken=d3335ac172082611b4dcc1191046c1d7

 

[Hop_it]

Interesting article. I could read all of it.

I noticed the mention of the possibility of reducing isolation time to 5 days (subject to test results), and it was also mentioned on the TV news earlier today. I have serious doubts that if this were to be implemented, it would improve the availability of NHS staff or other key workers by very much - if at all. My son tested positive a few days before Christmas. He tested from day 7 onwards (according to the current guidelines), but it was not until day 10 that he got a negative LFT result. He was not seriously ill, so this implies that the vaccine was doing its job, but he still carried the virus, and presumably could have infected someone else. . . . . . I'm beginning to think that this idea smacks of desperation.

 

[Leon103]

The quicker we treat this like normal flu the better.

How many nhs are off on a normal NYE?

 

[Flat Foot]

I had a huge rant in my wife's direction (not directly at her, but because she works in a school) that they're reintroducing face masks. We've had so long to get proper ventilation sorted, but no funds have been made available.

From my understanding of the science, masks work well when the people you're brushing up against are changing regularly - shops, healthcare settings etc, not necessarily sitting within a classroom with the same classmates all day. Then frequently changing the air is much more important. As it stands though, we're moving into proper winter with "open a window" as the best advice

 

[Flat Foot]

The quicker we treat this like normal flu the better.
How many nhs are off on a normal NYE?

Even with a bad seasonal flu, I'm pretty sure you wouldn't get the numbers of infections we're seeing now. And even if you had around 200,000 infections a day it would still take the best part of a year to go around the whole population.

 

[Northern_Brewer]

NHS boss Chris Hopson has done some nuanced explainers of where the NHS is at the moment, well worth a read :

1 January :


27 Dec :


And specifically on whether to reduce isolation to 5 days, the short version is that he was fine with reducing to 7 days and is open to further reductions, but doesn't think the science is strong enough to reduce to 5 at the moment :

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Public sector leaders have been asked to prepare for "worst case scenarios" of 10%, 20% and 25% absence rates, the Cabinet Office said.

New York paramedics have 30% absences :
https://gothamist.com/news/nyc-ems-faces-record-staffing-shortage-911-calls-covid-symptoms-surge

 

[Chippy_Tea]

A mum-of-three who admits she was a 'complete anti-vaxxer' says she has changed her views after contracting Covid-19 twice.

Saja Ali, 31, from Didsbury, south Manchester, was severely ill for a month due to the coronavirus in February last year.
She had not had a jab at the time and admitted she had been wary because of what she had read.
After recovering, Ms Ali got both her vaccines, then caught Covid again at Christmas time, now she is speaking out to raise awareness and encourage people who have not had a Covid-19 jab to get one.

I was a complete anti-vaxxer until I got Covid-19 really, really badly back in February.
I had it again and I honestly felt normal and fine.
I am 100% and I believe it's due to the double vaccine I got.

Saja Ali
The mum of three believes that because she had both her jabs when she caught Covid again In December it prevented her from becoming very ill.

She said: "From my perspective, the vaccine has definitely worked."

Explaining how she felt the first time she got Covid 19 the mum said: "I had not been jabbed. I was proper against it back then."For me, it was all because it was new. It was a new vaccine and I was hearing a lot of conspiracy theories."At the time my husband was also really against it. I did not think twice about not having a jab.

"Then I got it [Covid] really, really bad."

Ms Ali said catching Covid so badly the first time changed her mind about getting the jab.

"It totally changed my mind. A week later my dad caught Covid and needed hospital treatment," she said."We were prepared for the worst with him. He was in hospital for 11 days and needed help."

It made me think. I have three kids and it just made me realise. I believed what people were saying but I felt regret at not having the jab.

Saja Ali
The mum of three immediately got both jabs and is now waiting for a booster.

Like millions of others across the country, Saja tested positive just before Christmas and isolated.But, she said, the symptoms were nothing like they were the first time caught the virus.Saja said: "I felt a bit tired but nothing to stop me doing what I would normally do in a day. It was nothing like it was back in February."I don't want it to come across as being offensive, but I do not want people to take a chance."I believe the vaccine won't stop people from being poorly, but it will help prevent you from falling really ill and needing hospital treatment."

https://www.itv.com/news/granada/20...ews-and-now-wants-people-to-get-the-covid-jab

 

[Flat Foot]

Nadhim Zahawi has promised an additional 7k air cleaning units "in addition to" 1k already promised for the most poorly ventilated classrooms.... Deckchair off the Titanic springs to mind

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Nadhim Zahawi has promised an additional 7k air cleaning units "in addition to" 1k already promised for the most poorly ventilated classrooms.... Deckchair off the Titanic springs to mind

The old saying "Shut the stable door after the horse has bolted" fits well.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

There is nothing in the current Covid data to suggest new curbs are needed in England at this stage, ministers say.
Health minister Edward Argar appealed for "cool, calm heads", while colleague Steve Barclay said there had been "significant behaviour change" as a result of Plan B measures.
Daily Covid cases have been above 100,000 for each of the past 12 days.
Dr Chaand Nagpaul, council chairman of the British Medical Association, urged ministers to bring case numbers down.
On Sunday, England and Wales recorded 137, 583 daily cases and 73 deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test. Data for Scotland and Northern Ireland is due to be updated after the bank holiday weekend.
The latest figures for England are down on the 162,572 new cases reported on Saturday, which had been a record number for the fifth day in a row.
NHS bosses have warned of mounting pressure on health workers against a backdrop of staff absences, rising hospital admissions, the implementation of the booster campaign and more planned treatments being carried out.
Speaking before the latest figures were published, Mr Argar insisted he saw nothing in current data to suggest further Covid measures were required.
"We need cool, calm heads," he told Times Radio, adding that introducing new curbs "must be the absolute last resort", echoing the health secretary's words on Saturday.
He said the data changes "day by day" and that ministers were keeping a close eye on it.

Full article -
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-59853621

 

[DavidDetroit]

In the US, COVID deaths per year are about 10:1 to the flu: around 380K COVID deaths to 36K (ten year average) flu deaths. Stats are similar for the second year of COVID, if not worse. (Johns Hopkins)
COVID is not like the common flu. Deaths are bad enough but that's not even mentioning the complete havoc being wreaked on the US healthcare system--the sheer numbers can't be handled.
Edit: the complete overwhelm of the medical industry has also demoralized workers and they don't want any part of it after seeing countless, needless hospitalizations. (WebMD)