CoVid19 Part X - 1,564 cases ROI (9 deaths) 209 in NI (7 deaths) (25 March) *Read OP*

techdiver wrote: »

Unfortunately, it looks like out testing strategy has essentially collapsed.

https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2020/0325/1126202-those-seeking-test-must-display-two-major-symptoms/



Essentially anyone not called for a test who is waiting for one is taken off the list and has to called their GP again. So what has gone wrong with the commitment to test 4500 per day (last week it was to be 15,000)?

Most people who contract the virus have either no symptoms or mild symptoms. We are now not going to test any of that group of people.

Are they working off the assumption that the extra measures announced yesterday is enough to curb the spread alone without a community testing strategy?

I'm not trying to be overly critical here as the government have handled this well, but why was a commitment made to ramp up testing without the means to analyse the results? Due to the huge backlog of testing and the new developments today, our figures for infection cannot be trusted in any way. It is a drop in the ocean compared to the actual numbers.

The change is based on the W.H.O definition (albeit recently updated by them).
I would not say our testing strategy has collapsed but has been reviewed based on information that public are and are not privy too. Making sure that the queues for testing are not so long that the ppl who need to be prioritized get seen to quicker. 8 - 10 days, yes it a long time to wait, but if you look at the numbers of 2k tests yesterday 10% were marked as positive. While I am all up for testing that's a 90% "fail rate" and that had to be questioned as well.

Roger_007 wrote: »

There’s an old saying about babies and bath water. If the result of this is a wrecked economy then we will have a wrecked health service and a wrecked society as well.
I think it is vital to keep the economy going as much as possible while taking sensible precautions What’s going to happen when the tax money runs out? We have seen in the recent past what economic devastation does to a society. It’s relatively easy to shut things down, it’s not so easy to get things started again.

Personally id be happy to be know of a generation where the economy fell apart if it means we are not remember of the generation who sat by and done nothing as our parents and grand parents died alone in hospital beds,

Quote from Dr David Zaruk, environmental-health risk analyst and professor based in Brussels. He has worked in risk management and science communications for industry, public institutions and the academe since the 1990s. He writes a blog under the name The Risk-Monger.
*************************************************************

H1N1 led to the loss of up to 575,000 lives in the first year of circulation in 2009. While there was concern (especially as the vaccine was not available until the end of the first year), there was no mass global precautionary lockdown or strangulation of economic activity (which was just recovering from the financial crisis the year before). Why is our present reaction so extreme compared to H1N1? While some would say it did not affect wealthy western countries, it did (there were 60 million cases in the US leading to over 12,000 deaths).

H1N1 was normalised. It was called a flu (swine flu) so people understood it in the context of how to manage influenza outbreaks. COVID-19 is called a virus – a coronavirus! In public perception terms, we might as well call it the “corona-plague”. There are many strains of influenza and we accept that the flu will not go away. It is part of life and, for far too many, the cause of death. At times our healthcare system is overwhelmed by flu outbreaks (as the British NHS was in the days leading up to the British election in December, 2019).

Vaccine-makers try to anticipate the strains that will dominate in any season. COVID-19 will not go away but will likely become one more strain to consider in the vaccine lottery. We need to normalise our vocabulary so the mass public precautionary panic plateaus.

techdiver wrote: »

Unfortunately, it looks like out testing strategy has essentially collapsed.

https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2020/0325/1126202-those-seeking-test-must-display-two-major-symptoms/



Essentially anyone not called for a test who is waiting for one is taken off the list and has to called their GP again. So what has gone wrong with the commitment to test 4500 per day (last week it was to be 15,000)?

Most people who contract the virus have either no symptoms or mild symptoms. We are now not going to test any of that group of people.

Are they working off the assumption that the extra measures announced yesterday is enough to curb the spread alone without a community testing strategy?

I'm not trying to be overly critical here as the government have handled this well, but why was a commitment made to ramp up testing without the means to analyse the results? Due to the huge backlog of testing and the new developments today, our figures for infection cannot be trusted in any way. It is a drop in the ocean compared to the actual numbers.

No because were getting so many negative tests were wasting too much time.

Its about testing people who are really showing symptoms and get the result for them.

frillyleaf wrote: »

Why does Germany have such a low death rate when they clearly have a lot or cases?

What is Germany doing to manage this so well and is there parts of that model that we can follow ?

I think we are on our own re. other country models. We wanted to do Korea but failed

igCorcaigh wrote: »

The virus must be very widespread in London:

"Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, has warned that more tube services in the UK capital may have to be cut because of staff sickness rates approaching 30%,"

Guardian blog

It's another think we have going for us, a negative turned to a positive.

Pathetic public transport.

From RTE feed. Finally they "found" some cases.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a televised address to the nation later today, the Kremlin said, without providing further details.

Mr Putin's address follows the sharpest daily reported rise in coronavirus cases, which now stand at 658 in Russia.

Fics wrote: »

If some thug coughs or spits at me and I "defend myself" am I liable for assault or do I have the right?

Kick the absolute bollox out of them anyway, worry about rights and liabilities after - Emergency times call for emergency measures - just like the national strategy.

Fics wrote: »

If some thug coughs or spits at me and I "defend myself" am I liable for assault or do I have the right?

I suppose you would have to prove your actions were reasonable to defend yourself.

That being the case as we are talking about a Virus that can be transmitted via saliva, a good punch into the mouth with gloves on might be acceptable.

Makes sense to prioritise testing. Sounds like a few hypochondriacs were clogging up the system.

techdiver wrote: »

Unfortunately, it looks like out testing strategy has essentially collapsed.

https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2020/0325/1126202-those-seeking-test-must-display-two-major-symptoms/



Essentially anyone not called for a test who is waiting for one is taken off the list and has to called their GP again. So what has gone wrong with the commitment to test 4500 per day (last week it was to be 15,000)?

Most people who contract the virus have either no symptoms or mild symptoms. We are now not going to test any of that group of people.

Are they working off the assumption that the extra measures announced yesterday is enough to curb the spread alone without a community testing strategy?

I'm not trying to be overly critical here as the government have handled this well, but why was a commitment made to ramp up testing without the means to analyse the results? Due to the huge backlog of testing and the new developments today, our figures for infection cannot be trusted in any way. It is a drop in the ocean compared to the actual numbers.

This is about massaging numbers.

Yet the hospitals will still be overwhelmed. That can't be hidden.

We were told everyone who was referred would be tested. We have spent a fortune on testing sites around the country.

Now we are told hardly anyone is going to be tested.

Great news, we'll only have a handful of cases.

If you don't test there is no problem by default. That's the theory anyway.