Coronavirus (Covid19) Corner

[PanBiker]

I thought Stanley's original invitation was at Colne Health Centre? Either way it is only a 10 -15 min drive to either venue. I would have though that Stanley's daughter Susan would have been able to take him, particularly as she is tested three times a week, not much risk there. Also by now there would be a reasonable amount of immunity built up.

Barlick surgery worked fine for the flue jab (very efficient) but that is a straight walk through job, about 60 seconds in total when I went. Not much room to sit the patients down (with social distancing) for 15 mins at Park Road surgery. Plenty of other venues around Barlick that could be used though.

[Gloria]

I read yesterday somewhere (?) that the 15 minute wait after the injection had been stopped - on the grounds that a strong reacion was only a 'one in a million chance'.

Seemed reasonable to me especially after weeding out high risk people who have already shown strong allergic reaction to other things. Has anyone else seen such?

PS Google shows Post vaccination waiting time
Seems it applies only to the Oxford Astra Zeneca vaccine, not the Pfizer. I'm surprised it has not got wider publicity.

I had the Pfizer yesterday and had to wait 15mins afterwards. I am under 75 and didn’t think I had any underlying health issues, they texted me asking that I rang my surgery for an appointment which I did.

[Stanley]

Thanks for that link David about the 15 minute waiting time being regarded as not essential. That cheers me up as I am sure that that, plus the temperature constraints of the Pfizer vaccine, have been the blocking factor to local vaccination. Exactly the same process as the annual flu jab.
I will say it one last time, there are good and sufficient reasons why I can't travel and the surgery understand that.

[Tripps]

My feeling (hunch) is that over the next year or so, despite being of a different nature, the coronavirus virus will in future be treated much like the flu virus is now.

I think there will be annual vaccinations based on an analysis of which strain is currently in fashion, and hospitalisations and deaths will be much reduced, but not eliminated.

It will be a gradual process, not an event. One day I may even chance getting my hair cut.

[Tizer]

The Oxford vaccine is based on ones they've already done for other applications such as cancers. The allergy concerns are usually because of the other ingredients in the vaccine formulation such as adjuvants and stabilisers, not the `active ingredient' itself. I expect the same auxiliary ingredients are being used in the Oxford covid vaccine as in their previous vaccines so there has been plenty of experience to show whether or not there could be allergy (like with flu vaccines). On the other hand the Pfizer BionTech vaccine is completely new and doesn't have that background information.

Tripps, I agree with you about it being like flu in the future. Let's not forget, some of the bad respiratory bouts that we have called flu in the past were due to other types of coronavirus. Covid-19 is new but coronaviruses have been with us for a long time!

[Stanley]

I too think that David is right. Eventually when things settle down the normal flu vaccination and this new one for Covid19 and its mutations could be one vaccination. We will learn to live with it!
Until then I shall continue to take extreme shielding precautions and I wish everybody else would. I saw two couples having a conversation yesterday and they were not distanced. It's not rocket science...

[Tizer]

This freely accessible FT page provides an enormous amount of information on covid-19...
`Coronavirus tracker: the latest figures as countries fight Covid-19 resurgence: The FT analyses the scale of outbreaks and tracks the vaccine rollouts around the world' LINK

[Tizer]

On Saturday I reported how a relative in her 80s currently in a small auxiliary hospital (for non-covid reasons) had tested positive for covid-19 and was feeling unwell. The last I've heard is that she's still OK but the hospital wants to send her home to her flat. It turns out they had planned to do that last Friday but they hadn't told her daughter about it until yesterday! (Daughter has power of attorney for mum.) There's been no discussion with daughter about how mum would be cared for, who would provide food, what services would be involved etc. Mum's not capable of making sensible decisions for herself. Daughter has been told to self-isolate because she was present with all the people at the meeting in her mum's flat last week to assess whether mum can continue living there. We're waiting to hear more....

[Stanley]

That sounds like a situation with the potential to get very complicated. I wish your elderly relative and her daughter all the best !

[Whyperion]

This situation basically shows what has been said here for a number of times, lack of investment in hospital services , and a mis-match to social health care and nursing homes - the system does not work properly at the best of times and when there is a clinical need in with a care need nursing homes are now not equipped (have they ever been - MRSA , other Flu/Virus things ripping through them) , nor supply of affordable community provided rental properties.


In other thoughts, is the science correct or has it been mis-led in the transmission of covid between families by young children. Although the assumption that lack of ACE receptors in younger children would lead to lack of virus load has in particular genetic changes in the virus side stepped that into children being a good enough host at least to quickly pass on the virus, this would explain with schools and play groups etc open why ( assuming all other rules adhered to) why there was a spread of disease to adults. Just a thought , wondered if more research is needed.

[Big Kev]

Good to see that Morrisons, and now Sainsburys, are putting trained security staff in place to stop entry to their stores without a face covering.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55618408

[chinatyke]

Positive thinking:

99.9% of UK citizens haven't died from Covid.

[Tizer]

Good to see that Morrisons, and now Sainsburys, are putting trained security staff in place to stop entry to their stores without a face covering. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55618408

I'm glad to see that news but they should have done it at the start of the pandemic. People were better behaved in supermarkets during the first lockdown and discipline has slipped now. Check out staff tell awful stories of clashes with people who refuse to wear masks. Mind you, I have concerns about how effective the masks are that most of us use. They might protect us from splatter but they don't protect from aerosol carried inwards around the sides of the masks, and that's even more dangerous with the new covid strain which can infect with fewer virus particles reaching our nose and mouth (and we don't hear much about infection via the eyes now).

I've been a bit OCD about stuff put through our letterbox since the pandemic started. I'm glad about it now I see that the Royal Mail are having to reduce deliveries due to having so many staff off with covid infection.

That sounds like a situation with the potential to get very complicated. I wish your elderly relative and her daughter all the best !

Thanks Stanley. We are watching to see what unfolds. The latest last night was that mum is no worse and daughter and her family are OK, but the hospital says other patients are now showing some ill health. We're trying to find out if those patients have tested covid positive - if they have then it's likely mum's +ve test result was genuine; if not then it might have been a false positive. So many people visited mum's flat for the assessment meeting a week ago there's potential for a lot of covid having been spread if someone was infected then.

Covid-19 has jumped to another primate animal. Although the presence of covid-19 was confirmed using faecal samples I'd be interested to know if it is one of the strains currently circulating among humans or whether it has mutated further. Usually viruses have to mutate to jump from one species to another but perhaps gorillas are close enough genetically and physiologically to humans for the `human' strain to pass to them without change.
`Gorillas at San Diego Zoo test positive for Covid in apparent first' Guardian Covid-19 can infect other species including cats and dogs but so far there is no evidence of it being passed from cats and dogs to humans. Cats and dogs carry their own coronavirus strains but perhaps we've lived with them long enough to be immune to those viruses.

[Whyperion]

Positive thinking:

99.9% of UK citizens haven't died from Covid.

The BBC are re-defining a year again.

Covid: 2020 saw most excess deaths since World War Two
There were close to 697,000 deaths in the UK in 2020 - nearly 85,000 more than would be expected based on the average in the previous five years.
When the age and size of the population is taken into account, 2020 saw the worst death rates since the 2000s.

This measure - known as age-standardised mortality - takes into account population growth and age. (its about a 14% extra deaths than expected based on a 5 year trend, however I have previously noted that increase in expected deaths in Nov Dec 2019 have not been explained).

The data is only available until November - so the impact of deaths in December have not yet been taken into account - but it shows the death rate at that stage was at its highest in England since 2008.


_____________________
I presume that is the end of November. So 697K of deaths is about 1% of a 69,000,000 population. I reckon there will be 100k covid attributable deaths by the time 2020 stats come in, which is well in excess of 0.1% and more than 10% of all deaths.
Interestingly the number of births (in england and wales) looks to be heading towards a reduction of 40,000 compared to 2019, but this might be explained by european younger people returning to europe (there is also a starting brexit trend of a small number of younger british working age going to spain and older persons from spain returning to the uk). Birth information for Oct to Dec has not been published yet which might be the most interesting numbers to actually see.

When they say death rate to they mean the numbers dying/total pool of that age in residence or the number of deaths per time period?

[chinatyke]

... which is well in excess of 0.1% and more than 10% of all deaths.

It's 0.145% but I make the figures up as I go along!

[Stanley]

I'm reasonably secure about my supermarket strategy, apart from the till where there are two layers of polypropylene between me and the lady, I am well spaced and there is hardly anyone in there. I had a message during the night to call the surgery, I suspect it will be about my vaccination.

[Tizer]

The good news...
We've discussed interferon beta before. It has the advantage of being one of those drugs that we've had for a long time (since 1957) and have used for other illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, so it's properties and safety are well understood...
`Covid: Large trial of new treatment begins in UK' LINK
`A large-scale trial of a new treatment it is hoped will help stop Covid-19 patients from developing severe illness has begun in the UK. The first patient received the treatment at Hull Royal Infirmary on Tuesday afternoon. It involves inhaling a protein called interferon beta which the body produces when it gets a viral infection. The hope is it will stimulate the immune system, priming cells to be ready to fight off viruses. Early findings suggested the treatment cut the odds of a Covid-19 patient in hospital developing severe disease - such as requiring ventilation - by almost 80%. It was developed at Southampton University Hospital and is being produced by the Southampton-based biotech company, Synairgen. .'.

The bad news....
`Covid: NHS doctor 'receives 20 to 30 abusive messages a day'' LINK
`Dr Samantha Batt-Rawden, an intensive care registrar, says NHS staff are facing "devastating" abuse online and at protests. She thinks it’s driven by coronavirus sceptics and anti-lockdown activists. In response Dr Batt-Rawden, who is president of the Doctors' Association UK, started her own campaign for people to post blue hearts on social media to show their support for health workers.'

I couldn't find a blue heart smiley but to Dr Batt-Rawden and all her NHS colleagues I want to say a great big..

[Stanley]

I'll join you in that Peter. Anyone who is trolling the doctor is sick as well as being stupid and should get medical advice.
Message waiting at surgery was about a blood test to check on diabetes.

[PanBiker]

I may be wrong but I don't think Barlick Surgery itself will be suitable for dishing out the vaccine. OK for a walk through with the flu vaccine but too small for the regime required for the Covid vaccine.

Just seen a news item that ASDA will be making spaces in some of it's stores for vaccination by their pharmacy staff. Apparently they will convert the George clothing areas into temporary clinics.

In our part of the forest our lad Jack has come down with a cough and fever and feeling generally rubbish. He got tested last night. Had to get his girlfriend to drive him to Skipton for the test as he didn't feel fit enough. Contacted them this morning and Jemma is feeling crap as well this morning.

[Wendyf]

My friend took her 90+ year old parents to Colne for their jabs last week and was very impressed by how well organised it was. Straight in with no waiting around then plenty of space to sit down for 15 min afterwards with their release times stuck on their coats!

[Stanley]

Sorry to hear about Jack and Emma Ian. More confirmation that the virus is out there and the further away I can stay from it the better. Living on a knife edge, and don't let us forget it!

[Wendyf]

Ian, I missed your post about Jack, I hope all turns out ok.

[Big Kev]

In our part of the forest our lad Jack has come down with a cough and fever and feeling generally rubbish. He got tested last night. Had to get his girlfriend to drive him to Skipton for the test as he didn't feel fit enough. Contacted them this morning and Jemma is feeling crap as well this morning.

That's a bit pants, hopefully all will be well.

[Tizer]

Ian, if it's covid I hope Jack and girlfriend have the `lite' version.

We're still waiting to see how my cousin is getting on and whether they are keeping her in or sending her back to the flat. Her daughter sent me this link showing the Hospital Discharge Factsheet she has been given - only 28 pages to read! LINK

[PanBiker]

Thanks for the comments. No news yet I think the results may be tomorrow.