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Covid 19 Part XXXV-956,720 ROI (5,952 deaths) 452,946 NI (3,002 deaths) (08/01) Read OP

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  • Moderators, Arts Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 11,032 Mod ✭✭✭✭Hellrazer


    Arghus wrote: »
    McConkey has for sure said some inconsistent things throughout, but he was referencing those kind of figures in terms of a possible worst case scenario, not that it was a certainty that those kind of figures were to be expected. He never said we are definitely going to have 80,000 deaths or more, he was making an assumption about the worst possible outcome.

    Youre splitting hairs now - he was asked his opinion being the "Head of the Department of International Health and Tropical Medicine" and his response was this below.

    https://www.irishpost.com/news/top-doctor-warns-coronavirus-claim-lives-120000-across-ireland-181227


    He was wrong about swine flu aswell when he predicted a million cases - we had 3000 cases and 20 deaths - he was wrong about covid when he predicted 4 million cases - weve had 255,000 cases and 4940 deaths.

    Even if covid 19 deaths are under estimated we`re still no where near his predictions.

    It amazes me that so many people thanked your post, without really thinking about it. I guess if you just put the combination of "McConkey" and "doom" close together it'll get the thanks, even if the sentiments expressed aren't accurate or logical.

    Show me where they are inaccurate - in two "pandemics" his predictions have been off by miles - to me thats either fairly inaccurate or an attempt to scare the sh1t out of the public.
    If someone asks you what is the worst possible outcome of a given situation, you outlining that isn't the same as saying you think it definitely will happen.

    You would generally look at what evidence you have around you before giving a random figure. While I agree that the actual death rate / infection rate was unknown in March 2020 - the evidence from the WHO was that the death rate in confirmed infections was between .5 and 3.0% - McConkey obviously picked the higher of these figures during these interviews ie 3% of his 4 million predicted infections instead of answering the question in a way that didnt frighten the crap out of the public.


    Hes "supposed" to be an expert and while Im no expert even I could see that we were never going to have these case numbers or deaths.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,933 ✭✭✭ArthurDayne


    Not one to defend McConkey, who is a bit of a donkey but from March 2020:



    https://www.thesun.ie/news/5181665/coronavirus-ireland-kill-transform-scoiety/

    So the median case scenario was 20,000 deaths and looking at what the likes of Hungary and Czech Republic have had, with significant restrictions, it does not in any way look particularly wild

    Fair enough as far as McConkey’s stated projection goes (though the Uppsala University figures are still fairly unequivocal).
    It’s probably worth pointing out though that McConkey’s words (and maybe this is just how the newspaper reported them for effect) seem to disregard the fact that a significant proportion of the 20,000 pandemic deaths in Ireland (versus the 30,000 average annual deaths figure) would still have been within non-excess deaths. He essentially makes out — and again, perhaps the article just doesn’t mention any acknowledgement on his part — that these 20,000 deaths are deaths that would not happen but for Covid, despite the severe underlying conditions and life expectancy age of many of the victims (a point which has been clear from quite early on).

    I know it’s the Sun and they would have wanted the scary “20,000 people will die of Covid” headline rather than a “20,000 people will die of Covid but many of those will be within the expected range of deaths for the year due to their age and underlying conditions” — but I can only go by what’s on the page when judging McConkeys comments there. Sweden’s relatively lighter touch approach has yielded just over 14,000 deaths in something like 14 months. We would have to somehow assume that, with less than half of Sweden‘s population, a similar approach here would have emulated and even surpassed Sweden’s before coming close to McConkey’s median scenario.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 26,578 ✭✭✭✭Turtwig


    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 11,032 Mod ✭✭✭✭Hellrazer


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?

    10,000 - 13,000 is where I would have put deaths with no restrictions.

    Based on
    7000000 over 65s -According to official statistics 35% of this age group have caught covid.
    Thats 245,000 people.

    Death rate in confirmed cases is anywhere from 1.8%- 5%

    At 1.8% it gives us 4410 deaths , at 4% it give 9800 and at 5% it gives us 12250 deaths.


  • Posts: 4,727 ✭✭✭ [Deleted User]


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?

    Like Sweden, not too much more.

    Certainly wouldn’t be bodies piling up in the streets like the media would have you believe.

    There is no real evidence that lockdown achieved much at all other than destroying business, the economy and neglecting people with illnesses other than Covid.

    People only think that lockdown works because cases tend to go down after lockdown. But that’s because the illness has peaked and dies off itself.

    Closing business when there is no evidence that cases are even occurring is just the government and NPHET looking like they are doing something


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 26,578 ✭✭✭✭Turtwig


    Like Sweden, not too much more.

    Sweden had some level of restrictions. Social distancing was also applied. I'm asking for Sweden or Ireland in 2019 with no restrictions or social distancing.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 26,578 ✭✭✭✭Turtwig


    It's difficult to put a number on it, but to guess I'd say higher than they are now but nothing close to some of the more extreme predictions. I don't think things would have continued like 2019 even if there was no government intervention. At some point, a good amount of people would have taken things into their own hands and limited their movements.

    Try though. Put numbers on it. At what point does the population start the self controlled behavior, what proportion would this be and how does that alter the numbers of deaths?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,326 ✭✭✭CruelSummer


    So RTÉ are still giving airtime to ISAG on national radio, in relation to our travel policy why?
    What has Aoife McLysaght got to do with travel policy here? OR even Covid for that matter? What are her qualifications to be given a national platform on this. Claire Byrne's shameful support of this group needs to be reeled in and investigated.

    Tomás Ryan has been on an ISAG video this morning stating he has NO DATA but that Covid could cause Autism in pregnant women...total scaremongering.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,598 ✭✭✭crossman47


    Hellrazer wrote: »
    10,000 - 13,000 is where I would have put deaths with no restrictions.

    Based on
    7000000 over 65s -According to official statistics 35% of this age group have caught covid.
    Thats 245,000 people.

    Death rate in confirmed cases is anywhere from 1.8%- 5%

    At 1.8% it gives us 4410 deaths , at 4% it give 9800 and at 5% it gives us 12250 deaths.

    But with no restrictions, many more than 245K would have got Covid - say 500K. Then, at 5%, you would have 25K deaths.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 288 ✭✭purplefields


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?


    I believe that 80% of the population would get it, before herd immunity kicks in. Of those, maybe 2% fatality rate - possibly higher.
    This is because the health system would have broken down. Oxygen shortages etc. If there is a non-functioning health system, sitting in a corridor in Ireland would be the same as those poor people in India experienced.

    However, once the death figures start increasing, people become naturally more cautious, even without a lockdown. This would reduce the figures a bit, or at least spread it out a bit more.

    I can't see how this wouldn't be the case.


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,326 ✭✭✭CruelSummer


    So RTÉ are still giving airtime to ISAG on national radio, in relation to our travel policy why?
    What has Aoife McLysaght got to do with travel policy here? OR even Covid for that matter? What are her qualifications to be given a national platform on this. Claire Byrne's shameful support of this group needs to be reeled in and investigated.

    Tomás Ryan has been on an ISAG video this morning stating he has NO DATA but that Covid could cause Autism in pregnant women...total scaremongering.

    Just to add:
    Aoife also stated that her view (ISAG's view) was no International travel should take place until 80% of the whole population are vaccinated, including children. Mentions Sept / Oct - smacks of desperation of the highest order to try and keep our borders closed. Claire Byrne was not impartial in this interview whatsoever and kept interrupting Tim Dooley when he tried to highlight the fact vaccinations work against variants, Europe are reopening and other valid points.

    How many air routes and jobs would be gone by then and for what? Meanwhile rest of EU will be open and US also.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,225 ✭✭✭giveitholly


    Just to add:
    Aoife also stated that her view (ISAG's view) was no International travel should take place until 80% of the whole population are vaccinated, including children. Mentions Sept / Oct - smacks of desperation of the highest order to try and keep our borders closed. Claire Byrne was not impartial in this interview whatsoever and kept interrupting Tim Dooley when he tried to highlight the fact vaccinations work against variants, Europe are reopening and other valid points.

    How many air routes and jobs would be gone by then and for what? Meanwhile rest of EU will be open and US also.

    Heard that interview,disgraceful broadcasting by Claire Byrne,she might as well be a member of ISAG the way she spoke to Dooley


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 9,523 ✭✭✭runawaybishop


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?

    In reality once the hospitals were rammed and people started dying in droves people would have self-restricted so its impossible to say.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,497 ✭✭✭lee_baby_simms


    So RTÉ are still giving airtime to ISAG on national radio, in relation to our travel policy why?
    What has Aoife McLysaght got to do with travel policy here? OR even Covid for that matter? What are her qualifications to be given a national platform on this. Claire Byrne's shameful support of this group needs to be reeled in and investigated.

    Tomás Ryan has been on an ISAG video this morning stating he has NO DATA but that Covid could cause Autism in pregnant women...total scaremongering.

    Wow. I’ve long regarded Ryan as a POS but this is a new low.

    What’s one of things that parents are most afraid of?
    Let’s use that to emotionally blackmail and manipulate the public.

    ISAG are only interested in using baseless fear rather than scientific reasoning to further their aims…whatever those aims actually are. It’s never been clear.

    Absolute scum.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,229 ✭✭✭✭normanoffside


    crossman47 wrote: »
    But with no restrictions, many more than 245K would have got Covid - say 500K. Then, at 5%, you would have 25K deaths.

    Many more than 245k did get covid, that's not disputed.
    They weren't tested or had no symptoms so were never a confirmed 'case'.

    Phillip Nolan and his dodgy seroprevalence study in August put the figure at 3x, the WHO says worldwide it is 10x.
    In Ireland it's probably somewhere between those numbers.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,578 ✭✭✭Azatadine


    Wow. I’ve long regarded Ryan as a POS but this is a new low.

    What’s one of things that parents are most afraid of?
    Let’s use that to emotionally blackmail and manipulate the public.

    ISAG are only interested in using baseless fear rather than scientific reasoning to further their aims…whatever those aims actually are. It’s never been clear.

    Absolute scum.

    I dont know why RTE and TV3 keep bringing them on to contribute at this stage. They have been well and truly debunked as a fringe outfit.

    RTE and TV3 should be embarrassed to be associated with them. Surely even the academic institutions that employ them must be embarrassed at this stage. These lads and ladies are a bad reflection on those institutions.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,916 ✭✭✭✭Goldengirl


    wadacrack wrote: »
    While India struggles with Covid and the Israel and Palestine conflict, we seem to be more concerned with a 99 flake shortage. Its a premium article now on the Independent

    Yes , saw that !
    And the good lady from Cadburys apparently is hiding them under her bed ..bizarre article :D


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 11,032 Mod ✭✭✭✭Hellrazer


    crossman47 wrote: »
    But with no restrictions, many more than 245K would have got Covid - say 500K. Then, at 5%, you would have 25K deaths.

    How do you know that many more would have got it - theres really no comparison out there as almost every country has had restrictions in one form or another. You havent really got a "control" so to speak.

    Also covid can be completely asymptomatic so people dont even know if they have it or have had it.

    I know I said it before but unless a whole country is tested ie - every single person then its almost impossible to predict. The best you can do is work backwards from what we do know already.


  • Moderators, Arts Moderators, Recreation & Hobbies Moderators Posts: 11,032 Mod ✭✭✭✭Hellrazer


    Like Sweden, not too much more.

    Certainly wouldn’t be bodies piling up in the streets like the media would have you believe.

    There is no real evidence that lockdown achieved much at all other than destroying business, the economy and neglecting people with illnesses other than Covid.

    People only think that lockdown works because cases tend to go down after lockdown. But that’s because the illness has peaked and dies off itself.

    Closing business when there is no evidence that cases are even occurring is just the government and NPHET looking like they are doing something

    Thats interesting about Sweden - if you take their confirmed cases against their death rate you get around 1.36% 1.05million and 14301 deaths

    In Ireland if you do a similar you get a 1.93% death rate. 255,000 cases and 4941 deaths.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,916 ✭✭✭✭Goldengirl


    crossman47 wrote: »
    But with no restrictions, many more than 245K would have got Covid - say 500K. Then, at 5%, you would have 25K deaths.

    No restrictions and the numbers who would have caught Covid would have just gone up and up and our hospitals and emergency services would have been swamped .
    January was scary enough and we only lifted restrictions for 3 weeks albeit that it was the festive season .


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 869 ✭✭✭Vudgie


    Like Sweden, not too much more.

    Certainly wouldn’t be bodies piling up in the streets like the media would have you believe.

    There is no real evidence that lockdown achieved much at all other than destroying business, the economy and neglecting people with illnesses other than Covid.

    People only think that lockdown works because cases tend to go down after lockdown. But that’s because the illness has peaked and dies off itself.

    Closing business when there is no evidence that cases are even occurring is just the government and NPHET looking like they are doing something

    I’m always amused at woefully unqualified people making general statements like these without any evidence etc just because it’s what they feel.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,121 ✭✭✭✭Jim_Hodge


    Hellrazer wrote: »
    Thats interesting about Sweden - if you take their confirmed cases against their death rate you get around 1.36% 1.05million and 14301 deaths

    In Ireland if you do a similar you get a 1.93% death rate. 255,000 cases and 4941 deaths.

    You can use stats many ways.

    Sweden per 100k: 103,600 case and 1413 deaths.
    Ireland per 100k: 51,400 cases and 991 deaths.

    We'd need over 2000 mire deaths to equal Sweden.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 35,540 ✭✭✭✭odyssey06


    Like Sweden, not too much more.
    Certainly wouldn’t be bodies piling up in the streets like the media would have you believe.
    There is no real evidence that lockdown achieved much at all other than destroying business, the economy and neglecting people with illnesses other than Covid.
    People only think that lockdown works because cases tend to go down after lockdown. But that’s because the illness has peaked and dies off itself.
    Closing business when there is no evidence that cases are even occurring is just the government and NPHET looking like they are doing something

    Sweden's death toll was multiple that of its neighbours - who did lockdown.
    Without lockdown, our death toll would have been multiples higher.

    Lockdown had nothing to do with what happened to people with illnesses other than Covid. Please show how health services such as cancer sceenings continued uniterrupted in Sweden, for example. Or economic activity.
    You won't be able to - because they did not.
    They are two entirely separate things.
    You don't know what you are talking about.

    "To follow knowledge like a sinking star..." (Tennyson's Ulysses)



  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,916 ✭✭✭✭Goldengirl


    Vudgie wrote: »
    I’m always amused at woefully unqualified people making general statements like these without any evidence etc just because it’s what they feel.

    While I agree with you there, it doesn't help when some of our " eminent scientists " are spouting unverified sxxx on the airwaves every day ! :(


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 306 ✭✭Just Saying


    Like Sweden, not too much more.

    Certainly wouldn’t be bodies piling up in the streets like the media would have you believe.

    There is no real evidence that lockdown achieved much at all other than destroying business, the economy and neglecting people with illnesses other than Covid.

    People only think that lockdown works because cases tend to go down after lockdown. But that’s because the illness has peaked and dies off itself.

    Closing business when there is no evidence that cases are even occurring is just the government and NPHET looking like they are doing something

    A fascinating example of the lengths people go to in order to justify a pre-existing opinion.

    If you were to believe this quote Government's imposition of a lockdown is timed to coincide with a virus peak in order to make it look like lockdowns work.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 15,916 ✭✭✭✭Goldengirl


    odyssey06 wrote: »
    Sweden's death toll was multiple that of its neighbours - who did lockdown.
    Without lockdown, our death toll would have been multiples higher.

    Lockdown had nothing to do with what happened to people with illnesses other than Covid. Please show how health services such as cancer sceenings continued uniterrupted in Sweden, for example. Or economic activity.
    You won't be able to - because they did not.
    They are two entirely separate things.
    You don't know what you are talking about.

    These posters are coming back with last year's arguments , when they did not have much to say ( on this thread anyway !) when the proverbial was hitting the fan after restrictions lifted at Christmas .
    Nothing new in their debate , just usual stuff about Sweden and lockdown , which frankly is irrelevant now we are getting vaccinated .

    Could we have done some things differently ? Yes ,but essentially we have done what the majority of the world has done to a greater or lesser extent .

    Some want no restrictions , be grand sure

    There's a thread for that somewhere ...


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 18,943 ✭✭✭✭bucketybuck


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?

    I have a question.

    What do you think our deaths would have been had the government not implemented lockdown, if social distancing measures were advisory only, but then the government had aggressively targeted nursing homes and health care settings with measures to protect the residents from covid?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 130 ✭✭Boggerman12


    So RTÉ are still giving airtime to ISAG on national radio, in relation to our travel policy why?
    What has Aoife McLysaght got to do with travel policy here? OR even Covid for that matter? What are her qualifications to be given a national platform on this. Claire Byrne's shameful support of this group needs to be reeled in and investigated.

    Tomás Ryan has been on an ISAG video this morning stating he has NO DATA but that Covid could cause Autism in pregnant women...total scaremongering.

    Isag are a bigger danger than some of the conspiracy theory goons out there.shameful stuff again from Clare Byrne today giving mclysaght free reign spouting absolute drivel.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,513 ✭✭✭bb1234567


    Turtwig wrote: »
    Out of curiosity if there were zero restrictions and no social distancing. Everything continued like 2019. What do people think our deaths would have been?

    It's hard to know, because no restrictions doesn't mean nobody follows social distancing of their own accord. Sweden may not have had so many government level restrictions but mobility data showed Swedes behaved very sensibly all the same throughout the pandemic, and not that dissimilarly to other Europeans who were under lockdown orders.

    I think we can safely say Ireland's deaths would have been about 5000 more than now without restrictions, but probably wouldn't have gone much above a total of 15,000 without restrictions. But then again in such a situation it could have easily resulted in an overrun ICU capacity which may well have exaggerated those deaths further again.


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  • Posts: 0 [Deleted User]


    Hellrazer wrote: »
    10,000 - 13,000 is where I would have put deaths with no restrictions.

    Based on
    7000000 over 65s -According to official statistics 35% of this age group have caught covid.
    Thats 245,000 people.

    Death rate in confirmed cases is anywhere from 1.8%- 5%

    At 1.8% it gives us 4410 deaths , at 4% it give 9800 and at 5% it gives us 12250 deaths.

    Interesting statistical tactics to try and apply the population death rate to the over 65's and still try to present the conclusion as credible.

    Death rate in confirmed cases in Ireland in over 65's is 14%


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