Coronavirus outbreak

[Fab Foodie]

Good article....
https://talbotspy.org/letter-from-toronto-an-infectious-diseases-specialist-reflects-on-corvid-19/

 

[Mugshot]

Any truth in rumours he burns his baseball caps after every media appearance as his contribution to virus hygiene?

I'm assuming he's wearing it while his wig is being disinfected.

 

[nickyboy]

The local health service has been fantastic in the past but who knows how they'll cope with this situation, the dilemma is how much they'd be increasing their risk by flying set against they'd rather be here with family support etc.

They need to be wherever gives them the best care. They need to decide quickly because it looks like Spain will close borders in the same way as Italy soon. If I had parents in a similar situation I would be tempted to bring them back to UK as I suspect if they close borders they will remain closed for several months

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

The local health service has been fantastic in the past but who knows how they'll cope with this situation, the dilemma is how much they'd be increasing their risk by flying set against they'd rather be here with family support etc.

Spain is about 6 days ahead of us (i.e. we will be like Spain in about 6 days), but it would appear Madrid has a high concentration of cases. One thing worth considering, whether they are staying or joining you, is which local health service is likely to be more overwhelmed, which has got to do with quality/size of hospitals in relation to number and age/health of the nearby population, and what initiatives the respective countries have taken to stop it exploding.

For example, IF anybody can fly into Hongkong now*, they can more or less guarantee 100% top class healthcare over the next month or two, whether they caught it on the flight or not.

* think they have just stopped entry from Schengen today

 

[Rocky]

Good article....
https://talbotspy.org/letter-from-toronto-an-infectious-diseases-specialist-reflects-on-corvid-19/

Yes, I agree that is a good article. The Prof tells me that the main concern is that the NHS will be overwhelmed and that difficult choices will have to be made. FWIW she thinks Whitty and Vallance are doing a good job and following what science there is. There have been all sorts of calls to get doctors and medical scientists (to do the testing) into work. She has been working all weekend on advice, guidelines and support for GP video consultations - there'll be much more of this happening in the next few weeks.

 

[stowie]

Bog roll is one people tend to panic buy as well as cat food, salt, bread and milk and sometimes bizarely a few other things. Happens a few times a year. Not like this. I don't bother to read much retail stuff now but I'd imagine the situation will look a bit better by Tue/Wed when the weekly cycle starts to balance it out a bit.

If that is what they intend to eat during the crisis, I can totally see why they might need to stock up on toilet paper....

 

[BoldonLad]

If you had looked, you would have noticed others have indeed worked it out, because this Government's response is more and more at odd with relevant countries that matter by the day, and indeed WHO guidelines, while without providing anything near cogent and detailed justification.

I am not panicking. Me and my family are not old or unfit enough to be at any significant risk. I feel deeply for the millions who are though.

I don't mean to be rude, as they say debate is neither required nor indeed appropriate for maths, so what is "amazing", is instead of posting their views based on reason and logic, people resort to blind faith or rhetoric instead.

It might have something to do with the island mentality, or the superiority complex derived from the position achieved based on said island environment a few hundred years ago, which in case they haven't noticed has long been lost.

In my 70’s, with two chronic conditions, not feeling in the least superior, but, am staying calm.

 

[marinyork]

Yes, I agree that is a good article. The Prof tells me that the main concern is that the NHS will be overwhelmed and that difficult choices will have to be made. FWIW she thinks Whitty and Vallance are doing a good job and following what science there is. There have been all sorts of calls to get doctors and medical scientists (to do the testing) into work. She has been working all weekend on advice, guidelines and support for GP video consultations - there'll be much more of this happening in the next few weeks.

Spain now/have had 293 serious/critical cases which is looking scary, especially as it seems concentrated in some areas (although I don't speak spanish so much less of an idea what's going on there than in Italy which has got so bad reporting is drying up).

 

[Mugshot]

Some poll results from late Feb and now

 

[Rezillo]

For those who think this is all a huge over-reaction, why not go to the Lancet for something rather more objective about what is happening in Italy, whose footsteps we are walking in:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)30627-9/fulltext

From its conclusion:

"We predict that if the exponential trend continues for the next few days, more than 2500 hospital beds for patients in intensive care units will be needed in only 1 week to treat ARDS caused by SARS-CoV-2-pneumonia in Italy. In the meantime, the government is preparing to pass legislation that will enable the health service to hire 20 000 more doctors and nurses and to provide 5000 more ventilators to Italian hospitals. These measures are a step in the right direction, but our model tells us that they need to be implemented urgently, in a matter of days. Otherwise, a substantial number of unnecessary deaths will become inevitable. Intensive care specialists are already considering denying life-saving care to the sickest and giving priority to those patients most likely to survive when deciding who to provide ventilation to. This attitude has already been criticised by the current President of the Italian Comitato di Bioetica who, in a recent declaration to lay press stated that the Constitution recognises the right of every individual to receive all necessary health care. They might not recognise that the reality is that intensive care wards are overflowing with patients and that COVID-19 is not a benign disease".

 

[BoldonLad]

Just been speaking to my parents who are at their apartment in southern Spain, they're both high risk if they get the virus and can't decide whether to fly home (whilst they can) and risk getting it whilst traveling or hunker down where they are.

We have made that decision, currently sitting tight in Valencia Province. So far, plenty of essential supplies (vino tinto), and, sunshine. No complaints.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

All bets are off. I was ( and still am ) 100 percent willing and able to lead my crew from Switzerland to England in June. My crew are 100 percent committed and able to do it. It looks like we are going to get the rug pulled from under us, so we won’t be able to do it. It’s like a bad dream, and when push comes to shove, ....[snipped braggadocio]

“Pffft, don’t know what all the fuss is about, I’ll get through there no prob....”

“Erm, hello, fire and rescue?”

 

[marinyork]

For those who think this is all a huge over-reaction, why not go to the Lancet for something rather more objective about what is happening in Italy, whose footsteps we are walking in:

The numbers in Lodi (and a few neighbouring provinces too) now are totally insane. This had 10 municipaliities within Lodi and 1 in veneto that were locked down* on 22nd of February. In theory with what some virologists are saying about infection and deaths being about a month apart on average, depending on your point of view this won't stop for another week, or maybe even longer. The 2nd lockdown also had neighbouring provinces effected badly (which was why they were doing that). Now some of the provinces in the south are reporting relatively large numbers of cases vs most other bits of the world.

*The lockdown in Lodi/2nd lockdown as well wasn't stuck to and everyone in Italy knows it sadly.

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

If you want to take a peep at what they see in an Intensive Care Unit in Seattle USA, below is an anonymous report posted on Twitter, it is very medically technical, but fortunately a medical PhD student has taken the trouble to "translate" it for non-medical folks and put it alongside the original text:

PDF link:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/u7yubwfittg8sv6/SeattleICU.pdf

Google Doc:
https://t.co/qHhGSk1yqG?amp=1

 

[Mike_P]

In the absence of any toilet rolls shoppers in Waitrose had obviously ignored the use of newspaper and gone mad on kitchen rolls. Suspect there will be a big increase in blocked wcs.