Corona Virus: How Are We Doing?

[winjim]

I tested negative a few weeks ago, having taken a home testing kit. I have to say I'm impressed with the speed the test was sent out and the results returned, especially as it was over a weekend.

I have heard that demand for tests is increasing, and I suspect that will continue as we get into cold/flu season.

We have had them back within 24hrs before, it just seems there's now a backlog. Winter cold and flu seadon with kids back at school passing things around is only going to make things worse.

It's not like they've had 6 months to sort it out or anything. As it is, our little cold is likely to cost the NHS four days of my time and three days of my wife's when really it could be two days of mine and one of hers.

Plus I'm pissed off cos I've got a really cool project I want to get cracking on but I'm stuck at home with my family instead.

 

[fossyant]

We have had them back within 24hrs before, it just seems there's now a backlog. Winter cold and flu seadon with kids back at school passing things around is only going to make things worse.

It's not like they've had 6 months to sort it out or anything. As it is, our little cold is likely to cost the NHS four days of my time and three days of my wife's when really it could be two days of mine and one of hers.

Plus I'm pissed off cos I've got a really cool project I want to get cracking on but I'm stuck at home with my family instead.

No remote working ?

I suspect it's a major reason my Uni has said nobody to go back unless absolutely essential, or you are doing face to face - can you imagine the chaos if half a Department has to isolate for a few days - stay at home where you can. At least if you feel 'iffy' you can carry on working until your results come through. Business continues. Asymptomatic or those with minor effects can carry on. Fortunately, if people are poorly, they don't need to work. It's too risky to business continuity to send everyone back to the office.

 

[vickster]

No remote working ?

He works in a hospital lab I think...so presumably not as not really something you can take home easily

 

[Andy in Germany]

Minor scare on Friday when we sent someone home with symptoms. He lives in protected housing with several other clients so they would all be in quarantine (again) if it was positive.

Negative result.

 

[All uphill]

27yr old son who had mild covid (normal temperature, no coughing) confirmed in late July is now at home with us trying to recover his energy and clarity of thought.

Make no mistake covid is not just bad flu for most, or death for the vulnerable. It can seriously mess up young healthy people.

 

[numbnuts]

showing symptoms ? - hope you are OK !

It started with a very high temperature on Saturday and feeling very weak, the nearest test centre was 80 round trip there was no way I could have done that so asked if I could have a home kit.
On Monday evening surprise surprise my temperature went back to normal, but sent the testing kit off. Today I feel fine....until now temperature gone up to 100F and feeling lousy, I don't thing it is Covid.........hopefully.

 

[winjim]

He works in a hospital lab I think...so presumably not as not really something you can take home easily

WFH kind of quietly disappeared from our place as they realised that the only people who could realistically do it were management level, which isn't a good look. There are also IT issues, I think the dept has only one encrypted laptop. At the beginning of lockdown I did WFH a bit as my boss could email me bits and pieces but TBH with a 1yo and a 5yo in the house the chances of getting anything done are close to zero. And of course I don't have a mass spectrometer in my kitchen or anything so practical work is out.

Our threshold for isolation and testing seems to be lower than that for the general population which is understandable. Certainly my manager doesn't want to risk the lab by having me in work, even with very minor symptoms. You can imagine the consequences if an entire hospital chemistry lab goes down, especially considering some of the covid work we're doing ourselves.

 

[srw]

One of my colleagues lives a mile from Chessington Zoo, one of the largest and longest-established testing centres in the London area. His 5-year old was offered a test in Dundee.

Eventually they found an appointment for him in Luton - still a 3-hour round-trip with a sick child.

 

[winjim]

One of my colleagues lives a mile from Chessington Zoo, one of the largest and longest-established testing centres in the London area. His 5-year old was offered a test in Dundee.

Eventually they found an appointment for him in Luton - still a 3-hour round-trip with a sick child.

Blimey. I know I'm complaining but at least I don't have to travel any distance for my tests. That's ridiculous.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

Just received from school...

Dear parent and carer,
We have been notified that a member of staff has tested positive for Covid-19....

No close contacts with children, school remains open.

 

[gbb]

They say familiarity breeds contempt...
As the virus took hold here in the UK and most of the country went into lockdown, I worked throughout and mentioned several times in here how I thought my employers were sailing far too close to the wind. As time passed and we had a good few cases I began to realise it's not the company attitude...its the staff.
We have now increased staffing by about 100 a day for an increase in work, there now even more people in the factory, (around 500 a day I suspect) it's ever harder to socially distance if you want to....but the vast vast majority just dont seem to care.
Masks are used poorly by a significant percentage of people, they might as well just not bother, noses exposed, mouth exposed or no mask at all.
The one way system is defeated as soon as any management turns it's back.
The smoking area (hugely increased in are to try to give people room) looks like a forest of people who make little or no attempt to distance.
Three 50 odd seater buses arrive each morning, hardly anyone climbs off wearing a mask.
The canteen seating, arranged to seperate people is constantly defeated.

It beggars belief honestly. I have complained directly to management, I have used the whistle blowing service , I've complained to the agency who supplies the labour...it just makes no difference because a very significant proportion of people (IME) are stupid, belligerent or simply dont understand....or care.

All you can do is distance as much as possible, wear a mask, wash and sanitize as often as possible...and leave the fcukwits to it.

 

[DCLane]

All you can do is distance as much as possible, wear a mask, wash and sanitize as often as possible...and leave the fcukwits to it.

Ditto with my world.

Son no. 2 started 6th form today; 400 pupils in his 'bubble'. Hand sanitiser outside every room but they're all using the same door handle, same fingerprint scanner, same rails and the classrooms aren't sanitised. He's extremely uncomfortable about 1800 pupils milling around the whole school from tomorrow.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

A worker at my wife’s work tested positive. After that she went to the pub. She came into work. Despite all the training the shop floor did bugger all sanitising. She didn’t tell track and trace about both the people she gives a lift to work. One is a director. After he’d rung up track and trace he denied he got a test saying to isolate despite that being the guidance . He got an employee to do his hair during early stages of lockdown.

a photocopy engineer came into today. Didn’t wear a mask. DumpEd his tools on a desk. Used a pen belonging to an employee not there at the time. Didn’t ask or wonder why others were wearing masks. Did sanitise anything he’d touched. He goes from business to business .

Some people really don’t give a flying fark

 

[PaulSB]

All you can do is distance as much as possible, wear a mask, wash and sanitize as often as possible...and leave the fcukwits to it.

Some people really don’t give a flying fark

Two great examples of why we are not going to beat this virus. It is or will become endemic. A very large section of the population are too ignorant to understand the impact of their (lack of) actions on society. No one should be very surprised by this.

By keeping oneself, family and friends safe through responsible behaviour one makes a huge contribution in the battle against Covid-19. It's not much to ask or difficult to achieve but sadly millions couldn't give a hoot.

The rest of us have to accept the new reality, protect those we know and love while watching Darwinism in action.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Two great examples of why we are not going to beat this virus. It is or will become endemic. A very large section of the population are too ignorant to understand the impact of their (lack of) actions on society. No one should be very surprised by this.

By keeping oneself, family and friends safe through responsible behaviour one makes a huge contribution in the battle against Covid-19. It's not much to ask or difficult to achieve but sadly millions couldn't give a hoot.

The rest of us have to accept the new reality, protect those we know and love while watching Darwinism in action.

All those examples demonstrate is that a large proportion of the population are simply not as hysterical and paranoid as the ones who keep freaking out and having a good rant about it every time they encounter someone else who is not wearing a mask or not crossing the road so they don't have to pass each other in close proximity.

We're not all obsessed by the virus, and plenty of us just intend to go about our daily business with as much normality as possible. I can't stop the paranoid section of society being paranoid, but by the same score the paranoid section can't force me to join them in their paranoia. That's what really gets their goat more than anything.
I'll just be observing the normal polite behaviour of not coughing and sneezing or breathing all over other people and that's as far as it will go. I'm not going to wear a mask to keep the pro-maskers from freaking out, and I'm not going to walk in the gutter or cross the road just because someone else is approaching me in the street. If it bothers others that much, they can do the avoidance actions themselves