Covid 19 Part XXXII-215,743 ROI (4,137 deaths)111,166 NI (2,036 deaths)(22/02)Read OP

Ficheall

Coybig_ wrote: »

The most crushing one is obviously building up the vaccines for months as the thing that we needed to wait for to make this end. And now we know that was a lie.

The vaccines are one (big) tool in the box. They need to be used in combination with others. People claiming the vaccine was going to be the silver bullet were just doing so to avoid having to put efforts into other tools.

Klonker

Ficheall wrote: »

The vaccines are one (big) tool in the box. They need to be used in combination with others. People claiming the vaccine was going to be the silver bullet were just doing so to avoid having to put efforts into other tools.

I hate this vaccine is another 'tool' in the fight against covid that politicians love spouting. What's the other tools that work? Test and trace that hasn't worked apart from giving us a rough estimate of infection rates. The only restrictions that seems to work is close everything and don't meet up with anyone else outside household, the unsustainable sledgehammer approach. There's very little talk of better treatments so far outside of a few trials but hopefully they'll come online in the near future. I always wear a mask but I have my doubts how useful theyve been considering the way most people wear them.

So if vaccines aren't the silver bullet we are screwed as nothing else has helped us apart from lock us down to the point of not seeing other people which is far from living with the virus.

polesheep

Klonker wrote: »

I hate this vaccine is another 'tool' in the fight against covid that politicians love spouting. What's the other tools that work? Test and trace that hasn't worked apart from giving us a rough estimate of infection rates. The only restrictions that seems to work is close everything and don't meet up with anyone else outside household, the unsustainable sledgehammer approach. There's very little talk of better treatments so far outside of a few trials but hopefully they'll come online in the near future. I always wear a mask but I have my doubts how useful theyve been considering the way most people wear them.

So if vaccines aren't the silver bullet we are screwed as nothing else has helped us apart from lock us down to the point of not seeing other people which is far from living with the virus.

Vaccines are the only 'tool' we need. It matters not if they have to be tweaked every year. They are proven to prevent severe illness, what more does any reasonable person want?

Coybig_

Ficheall wrote: »

The vaccines are one (big) tool in the box. They need to be used in combination with others. People claiming the vaccine was going to be the silver bullet were just doing so to avoid having to put efforts into other tools.

People were claiming this because that is literally what the government said! They are the ones who kept reiterating that vaccines would allow us to return to normality. And now, theh sre saying they wont.

Varadkar: With the vaccine, with mass testing, we will see the end of this pandemic in 2021.

A lie.

Martin: Until we get a vaccine, normal life will not resume as we know it.

Vaccines now irrelevant to resumption of normal life. A lie.

Varadkar: Only a scientific breakthrough, a vaccine or an effective anti viral medicine, will truly allow life to go back to being as it was

They won't truly allow this as goalposts have now shifted to 'potential, undiscovered and possibly undeveloped variants'. A lie.

hmmm

Coybig_ wrote: »

I just cannot understand how the most hopeless part of this pandemic is the part after the vaccine rollout has started to happen. That is incredible to me.

Governments want this to be the last lockdown, and figure we can take an extra few months of pain to make sure it is. This means that new more infectious variants are slowed from spreading while people are vaccinated.

Once everyone has received their vaccine, the virus will no longer be completely new to our immune systems.

polesheep

hmmm wrote: »

Governments want this to be the last lockdown, and figure we can take an extra few months of pain to make sure it is. This means that new more infectious variants are slowed from spreading while people are vaccinated.

Once everyone has received their vaccine, the virus will no longer be completely new to our immune systems.

Why on earth can they not come out and state that instead of the jumble of miscommunications that they are subjecting us to?

Coybig_

hmmm wrote: »

Governments want this to be the last lockdown, and figure we can take an extra few months of pain to make sure it is. This means that new more infectious variants are slowed from spreading while people are vaccinated.

Once everyone has received their vaccine, the virus will no longer be completely new to our immune systems.

The government have already spoken of Christmas restrictions. Restrictions in 11 months time ffs. So how you can say they want this to be the last lockdown is beyond me. What we are doing now makes no difference to our outlook for the resumption of normality in even a years time. They have literally been telling us this for a month.

They have already stated that vaccines will not end restrictions as we have to be wary of new variants. I have yet to get a proper answer on this. If Covid becomes endemic, we will see always see variants. So when do we get back to normal if the thing now stopping us from doing so is variants? Variants which are going to keep arising.

stephenjmcd

NPHET has recommended close contact testing resume with two tests instead of the current one on day 5 as soon as capacity allows.

It's recommended two tests one at day 0 and another at day 10. If the day 10 one comes back not detected then the close contact can end the period of restricted movement

Ficheall

Klonker wrote: »

I hate this vaccine is another 'tool' in the fight against covid that politicians love spouting. What's the other tools that work? Test and trace that hasn't worked apart from giving us a rough estimate of infection rates. The only restrictions that seems to work is close everything and don't meet up with anyone else outside household, the unsustainable sledgehammer approach. There's very little talk of better treatments so far outside of a few trials but hopefully they'll come online in the near future. I always wear a mask but I have my doubts how useful theyve been considering the way most people wear them.

So if vaccines aren't the silver bullet we are screwed as nothing else has helped us apart from lock us down to the point of not seeing other people which is far from living with the virus.

Masks/ppe, hand/cough hygiene, social distancing, quarantining travellers, actual enforcement of any rules put in place. Track and trace has always been a bit of a shambles - if people kept track of their own contacts and there wasn't this bizarre notion that it's not okay to tell people what businesses/people you might catch/have caught covid from, it might be a bit easier to avoid.


Vaccines, sufficiently tweaked, will get us there eventually, so I suppose in that sense it is a silver bullet, but if other abhorred "tools" were used, we'd get wherever it is faster and with fewer casualties en route.

Coybig_

Another one:

Martin: The vaccine gives us hope and enables us to say 'let's double down, let's not lose pace for the final 10 minutes of this.

Last 10 minutes?! We all know he meant the final stretch, but yet we have government now saying restrictions well into 2022. This statement was another steaming pile of manure.

Ficheall

Coybig_ wrote: »

People were claiming this because that is literally what the government said! They are the ones who kept reiterating that vaccines would allow us to return to normality. And now, theh sre saying they wont.

It was mainly the gov't "people" I was talking about, sorry for being unclear.

Coybig_

Ficheall wrote: »

Masks/ppe, hand/cough hygiene, social distancing, quarantining travellers, actual enforcement of any rules put in place. Track and trace has always been a bit of a shambles - if people kept track of their own contacts and there wasn't this bizarre notion that it's not okay to tell people what businesses/people you might catch/have caught covid from, it might be a bit easier to avoid.


Vaccines, sufficiently tweaked, will get us there eventually, so I suppose in that sense it is a silver bullet, but if other abhorred "tools" were used, we'd get wherever it is faster and with fewer casualties en route.

Great to hear. 'Eventually' vaccines will get us there. No indication of when this might be. Eventually could be a decade with new variants of an endemic virus.

podgeandrodge

Coybig_ wrote: »

Another one:



Last 10 minutes?! We all know he meant the final stretch, but yet we have government now saying restrictions well into 2022. This statement was another steaming pile of manure.

Govt needs to provide some obvious sense of where they are going and what their thoughts are.

Either the vaccines are going to prevent hospitalisations and death to "acceptable" levels or they are not.

Are we going to get vaccines for elderly and vulnerable by Autumn? Presumably yes. So figures go way down.

Are the rest of us, that want one, going to get it later this year? Presumably yes. So further drops.

Why does Leo think we can't do foreign travel in 2022?

polesheep

podgeandrodge wrote: »

Govt needs to provide some obvious sense of where they are going and what their thoughts are.

Either the vaccines are going to prevent hospitalisations and death to "acceptable" levels or they are not.

Are we going to get vaccines for elderly and vulnerable by Autumn? Presumably yes. So figures go way down.

Are the rest of us, that want one, going to get it later this year? Presumably yes. So further drops.

Why does Leo think we can't do foreign travel in 2022?

More importantly, why is he saying it? They need to stop with the projections and guesswork.

Icantthinkof1

[Deleted User] wrote: »

We will hardly be leaving the AZ vaccines in a fridge somewhere once healthcare workers are done?

Will the az vaccine be given to the next groups though the 60-65’s with medical vulnerabilities or the 18-60’s with medical vulnerabilities?

Sanjuro

It loathes me to say this... but to be fair to Leo... ugh... what he's saying with regards to international travel is not unique to Ireland. Both New Zealand and Australia have said that their borders are likely to be closed for most of, if not all of 2021. At least until the efficacy of the vaccines can be determined. So Leo is taking his cues from the international community. The difference is, he just says stuff without thinking. We've seen this throughout the pandemic. Other international leaders who have made similar statements have at least provided reasons for their thinking.

https://www.thejournal.ie/new-zealand-borders-closed-covid-5335856-Jan2021/

https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/nz/news/breaking-news/australia-expects-substantial-travel-restrictions-throughout-2021-244230.aspx

Coybig_

Sanjuro wrote: »

It loathes me to say this... but to be fair to Leo... ugh... what he's saying with regards to international travel is not unique to Ireland. Both New Zealand and Australia have said that their borders are likely to be closed for most of, if not all of 2021. At least until the efficacy of the vaccines can be determined. So Leo is taking his cues from the international community. The difference is, he just says stuff without thinking. We've seen this throughout the pandemic. Other international leaders who have made similar statements have at least provided reasons for their thinking.

https://www.thejournal.ie/new-zealand-borders-closed-covid-5335856-Jan2021/

https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/nz/news/breaking-news/australia-expects-substantial-travel-restrictions-throughout-2021-244230.aspx

Bringing up significant outliers in their approach to Covid 19 doesnt make sense in the context of our own approach, which we have said we will not be adopting.

muddypuppy

polesheep wrote: »

More importantly, why is he saying it? They need to stop with the projections and guesswork.

Politicians need headlines, newspapers need headlines. It's a win:win for them.
Just ignore anyone that tries to predict where we will be in a month. It's clear that there is no long-term plan (not only in ireland, but in pretty much every country in the world) since this is an evolving situation. Any sort of plan can change overnight due to vaccines, shortages, outbreaks, etc.

seamus

Icantthinkof1 wrote: »

Will the az vaccine be given to the next groups though the 60-65’s with medical vulnerabilities or the 18-60’s with medical vulnerabilities?

My understanding is that the AZ vaccine will be distributed according to the priority groups.

So first up is "other healthcare workers not in direct patient contact" (if any are left!), followed by 65-69 year olds, followed by high-risk 18-64 year olds.

"Key workers" technically come in the middle there, but I believe most of them are already done.

iamwhoiam

seamus wrote: »

My understanding is that the AZ vaccine will be distributed according to the priority groups.

So first up is "other healthcare workers not in direct patient contact" (if any are left!), followed by 65-69 year olds, followed by high-risk 18-64 year olds.

"Key workers" technically come in the middle there, but I believe most of them are already done.

Workers involved in vaccine rollout are before the 65-69 group as far as i know .

Sanjuro

Coybig_ wrote: »

Bringing up significant outliers in their approach to Covid 19 doesnt make sense in the context of our own approach, which we have said we will not be adopting.

Okay. Take it up with Leo, so.

Icantthinkof1

seamus wrote: »

My understanding is that the AZ vaccine will be distributed according to the priority groups.

So first up is "other healthcare workers not in direct patient contact" (if any are left!), followed by 65-69 year olds, followed by high-risk 18-64 year olds.

"Key workers" technically come in the middle there, but I believe most of them are already done.

There unfortunately are plenty of healthcare workers in direct and not in direct patient contact left to vaccinate; including myself and most of my colleagues

Would the vulnerable 60-65’s and 18-64’s not be offered the Pfizer’s over the AZ vaccine though?

stephenjmcd

The Wednesday bump occurs again, but pretty much inline with what most people expected.

1096 swabs from 18,213 tests

MerlinSouthDub

1096 Swabs
6.02% Positivity rate

klose

It's starting to remind me of jsut before the last lockdown was lifted it seemed like we were forever at 300 cases odd a day and it plateaud, same seems to be happening now except its around 1,000 odd cases a day and not budging. Level 5 lockdown and schools closed and we are stuck it seems, bit of an elephant in the room at the moment, hard to see when any loosening of restrictions will happen anytime soon unfortunately.

MerlinSouthDub

Swabs were mildly disappointing today (would have been nice to stay below 1000)

Good data on GP referrals from yesterday though - down about 30% from the same day last week.

https://tomorrowscare.ie/covid/2021-02-10_COVID_GP_Survey_Results.pdf

PmMeUrDogs

Last Wednesday's swabs were 1201 with 6.6% positivity I believe, so still a decent enough drop

Plumbthedepths

klose wrote: »

It's starting to remind me of jsut before the last lockdown was lifted it seemed like we were forever at 300 cases odd a day and it plateaud, same seems to be happening now except its around 1,000 odd cases a day and not budging. Level 5 lockdown and schools closed and we are stuck it seems, bit of an elephant in the room at the moment, hard to see when any loosening of restrictions will happen anytime soon unfortunately.

Restrictions will remain in place as long as the collateral damage is acceptable to the politicians and public at large.

seamus

Reminder: https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=116220836&postcount=4722

Decent numbers for a Wednesday, and also a rare occurrence where the Wednesday positivity rate is lower than the Monday one.

If definitely looks now like close contact testing has replaced mass testing - this would explain why there appears to have been a bump/slowdown in the rates at the start of last week.

7-day average positivity is now 5.78%, 7-day average swabs is 1,002.

Unfortunately I expect a relatively large case number tonight or tomorrow given a low case number announced last night.

Hard to say how quickly the numbers will drop from here. Close contact testing might be more effective at ensuring people quarantine, which should accelerate the reduction, but this effect won't begin to show in the data till next week.

Or it could be a very long, slow drop where we still have ~600 cases/day at the end of February.

Rebelbrowser

Just a bit of real time positive feedback on the system and hopefully the numbers. My kid developed a fairly sporadic but dry cough and even though he had no other symptoms we said we would call our GP. We did that at noon yesterday. Within minutes we had an appointment for a test at 4pm yesterday. The testing centre (Old Mallow Rd in Cork City) was pretty quiet (as getting a test within 3 hours might have suggested). Test was done and we got result (negative) at 2pm today - so 26 hours from GP call to result and 22 hours from test to result. All very relieved obviously. But speed does also suggest the testing isn't in much demand right now.