Coronavirus (Covid19) Corner

[plaques]

In one of the report I heard was the testing would monitor the spread of the covid variants. This would suggest the result must be automatically put in a central computer. Something we don't do at the moment since its all voluntary. Another £35Billion down the Swanny.

Maz, do you realize that in say. "Phew! I thought I must have lost the plot completely...." You've no chance of getting in the UK government.

[Marilyn]

Australia’s boffins meet for an A/Z safety meeting on Thursday....( another report said Wednesday, but most reports say Thursday....sometimes sorting news reports can be tedious!). I expect some clarity by then, though there will be the official palette knife brought out to smooth over the icing once again...

[Stanley]

Brazil has posted over 4,000 deaths in 24 hours. So much for Bolsanaro and his ignoring of the virus....
See THIS link.

[Marilyn]

It seems we are “referring to the UK” about the safety of A/Z vaccine
Gawd help us...a sad day...
( I do wish Australia would grow some balls...)
Our government is treating us like idiots. Honestly, I have had more fruitful conversations with challenging teenagers..

[Tizer]

I keep hearing the reports of `fear of blood clots' with the AZ vaccine. I wish the news media would give some context by pointing out, for example, that the latest (2018) official statistics show 1,750 deaths and 25,000 serious injuries on Britain's roads in one year. Our risk of death and serious injury is far higher on the roads than having a covid vaccination yet anti-vaxers don't give up their cars and don't stay away from roads. And RoSPA states: "Every year across the UK, there are approximately 6,000 deaths as a result of home accidents."

[Big Kev]

I hope people don't read the data sheet that comes with a packet of paracetomol

[Marilyn]

True Tizzy...but I think this will ( sadly) become a bit more specific, given time.
I hate to be at odds, but I have a gut feeling...

[Stanley]

[Marilyn]

I think most people have found little help from Paracetamol ( apart from reducing fever) since it came into being!
Iboprofen ( I think) relieves pain slightly better, but does not relive fever so well.
A combination is the best choice.

[PanBiker]

Paracetamol was the only pain killer I needed after my surgery and that was only to dull the ear to ear wound with all the staples I had across my head. I feel thankful that I didn't need anything stronger.

Back in Coronavirus corner, I had a letter from NHS today to invite me onto another Imperial College study. I will fill the necessary in online tonight and sign up. This time it is for monitoring for antigens which I thought would involve a blood test, not so according to the information, it will be another swab test linked no doubt to information on whether you have had the virus or vaccine. Anyway, every little helps as they say.

[Marilyn]

Women under 30 will not be given A/Z jab. They will be offered an alternative. ( Hallelujah! Good news indeed)

[Stanley]

Still more danger in refusing the jab than having it despite what may be a slight risk. There is a risk in every medicine and vaccination. You are in more danger of injury on the stairs at home. This is safety awareness gone wild. An eminent doctor from the WHO said exactly that this morning.
See THIS BBC explanation of the risk.

[plaques]

How many young people will actually try to calculate the risk factor and then make a valued judgement? Its the grey tops who are hanging on until the fat lady sings that would go down this road. The rest would simply follow the last tabloid headlines and get Vaxit done.

The vaccine passport debate rolls on. Labour's Keir Starmer is basically saying "when Boris outlines his plans I'll tell you if I will vote for it". Currently its a dogs dinner with ingredients going in and out depending on whether he thinks he could get it through parliament without upsetting his credibility which begs the question ' what credibility' a clown is a clown is a clown.
Boris appears to have taken over the crown for the vaccine roll out success so when the third wave hits he wants someone to blame for stopping his fantastic passport scheme. Politics writ large.

[Marilyn]

Well... ( sigh)...I think if you really want to find somewhere that nailed it, look at Singapore.
Anyone who has ever landed in Singapore will tell you how “clean” everything is. ( and yes...we did venture outside the beautiful airport. Look at their population...now look at their Covid deaths. Makes you think...)
Singapore is a BEAUTIFUL place.

[plaques]

Yes we've been to Singapore and its clean but so is Canada. America is not bad in places and dare I say it so is most of rural England. A friend on his first visit to Colne from the Newcastle area commented on how clean the town was. All this comparison business is quite in order but with the covid virus it appears to be find someone with a worse record than yourself then say how well we are doing. Our two weeks behind the curve approach has been an utter failure and cost thousands of lives but lets not talk about that when we can talk about Brazil.

[Marilyn]

I have to stick my bib out here, and say I would be much happier if A/Z was not given to those under 45....and maybe up to 50 years in those undertaking HRT.
( come on...knock me down...pile it on...but give me REAL answers)

[Marilyn]

If you have ever been in Changi Airport for 12 hours, you will know they clean every inch of the place and every window in the place, every 3 hours! And if you have ever been to Changi airport, you would know how damn big it is. Massive effort.
( I spent a lot of time in the Butterfly house and watched the Khoi fish being fed a few times. ) the toilets were a pure delight too.

[PanBiker]

I think from all the breakdowns I have heard that the odds for the young (those under 30), so worst case scenario is 1 in 250,000. What makes a refreshing change is that the odds get better as you get older. They also get a lot better if you have not had any serious reaction to the first dose. Roll on May 8th.

[PanBiker]

Just registered for the Imperial College study. Should get the wherewithal between the 15th and 29th of this month. If it's like the last one I participated in it will have link information in the kit for courier collection of the test.

[Marilyn]

I think all of us on this site need to give a nod that we are not in our reproductive years, so the vaccine may well suit us oldies that have no useful hormones.

[Marilyn]

Australia has just announced that AZ will not be given to those under 50 years of age
( that should keep me quiet on this topic for a while )

[Tripps]

If you have ever been in Changi Airport

It's late - again.

I arrived at Royal Air Force Changi on New Years Eve 1963. Was taken down to Changi village where the most popular post - boozing food was a large fresh baked crusty white bread roll with hard boiled eggs and HP sauce on.

Pam Ayres was there in the WRAF at the time. I never noticed.

[Marilyn]

Yeah...you gotta watch that HP sauce...it has a kick like a mule...

[Marilyn]

( oh Gosh...here I am on this topic again already).
I am confused. ( not a good state for my brain)
A news story said today that the UK had SECRETLY shipped 700 thousand doses of their homeland -UK made- A/Z vaccine to Australia...another report said one load came in February and a follow up in March. That story mentioned a specific 717 thousand doses.
Really? ( so why isn’t it secret....why would UK slip us thousands of doses when their own folk were so desperately needy at the time and EU clamped down on the doses exported to UK?)
What has happened to these doses? Our government has the palette knife out once again, dodging questions. Boris may be doing the same. As far as I can tell, these doses have not yet made it into Australian limbs.
You can’t ship that many doses in a pair of socks in your hand luggage. It takes careful handling and monitoring to be viable.
Aren’t we meant to be saving the world here? Our government is woefully behind with rolling out the vaccine, citing our decision to only use A/Z in over 50’s has slowed them down and they might not get us vaccinated by years end. ( no...it hasn’t slowed them down...they have barely got started and are moving at glacier rate to get even the oldest of us done with a first dose! Not even our front line people have been done yet. It would take 6 months from now to get to the under 50s. )
Something really worrying is going on here. ( My spider senses are tingling...)

Is A/Z becoming the new Bitcoin?

[Marilyn]

We really need to keep talking. It is in the best of our interests.