Carers with Corona virus

50Twuncle

warby68 said:

No, that was a minor side issue - just meant to show its surprising what's out there. It was a one off couple of hundred quid not means tested just to do with being a carer, nothing to do with the caring as such - it was to treat myself essentially.
Your wife would also be up the creek if she was ill as presumably there is noone to care for her either. You should be looking at contingencies for both of you but your posts are very much 'I' focussed. I hope that's just the way you write. Hopefully you can get to work on some plans now pending any 'government' updates. 

You are correct - it is just the way that I write - I love my wife and would do anything for her !
When I say "I" - I mean "We"

poppy12345

50Twuncle said:

ie) Does it knock you for 6 - and you just want to curl up and sleep ?

Impossible to answer that question, unless someone reads this and has actually had the virus.

societys_child

It affects some more than others. Same as any flu.

50Twuncle

societys_child said:

It affects some more than others. Same as any flu.

But once the "isolation phase" is over - does this mean that we are free to visit the shops because there will be no fear of infecting others because everyone will already be infected ?

Alice_Holt

50Twuncle said:

I have absoutely no idea what a CARERS EMERGENCY PACKAGE is - or how it would be enacted...................

    Has your wife looked at the links I posted earlier?   
   You seem to be raising many ancillary questions that might be addressed in those links

    Have you made plans to look after your wife should she succumb? 
   I would expect the caring rolls to be reversed in that situation. 

  Please read through these links, and contact the organisations concerned. They will be more able to answer the questions you are posing than us forumites.
https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/health/looking-after-your-health/77-help-advice/health/your-mental-and-physical-health/6268-coronavirus-guidance

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/health-wellbeing/conditions-illnesses/coronavirus/

https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19

sazaccount

What plans do you currently have in place if your wife was to get say the flu or a sickness bug and be laid up a week? TBH these things are far more likely to happen in the short term than COVID-19.
The self isolation for 14 days is BEFORE you have any symptoms (the current thought is that the incubation time is anywhere up until 14 days, it could be longer or shorter, where you are still infectious just not showing any signs) eg if you have been to a high risk area or in contact with a confirmed case. Then however long to get over the virus and no longer be infectious. 
There seems to be 2 tracks for the virus one where it gives you a "cold" where some may feel pants for a few days, bunged up etc and then are fine. and the other is the more sever put you in hospital kind causing pneumonia, bronchitis etc.   

Alice_Holt

sazaccount said:
...the other is the more severe put you in hospital kind causing pneumonia, bronchitis etc.   

   There is a thread on the savings and investment forum which has a couple of rather alarming posts:
   https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76916778/#Comment_76916778
  these posts do not contain links to authoritative sources - so I'm not sure how valid they are. 

However, this statement about the Covid-19 situation in Italy: " We are seeing a high percentage of positive cases being admitted to our Intensive Care Units, in the range of 10% of all positive patients."   is taken from https://www.esicm.org/covid-19-update-from-our-colleagues-in-northern-italy/
European Society of Intensive Care Medicine.

It would seem very prudent to have an emergency plan in place, in the light of the above statement and this (hopefully very overly pessimistic) UK government briefing paper -  http://socioecohistory.x10host.com/2020/02/27/coronavirus-could-kill-half-a-million-britons-and-infect-80-of-uk-population-government-documents-indicate/

Some Lancet articles:
https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2930522-5
 https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2930567-5
"The evidence surely indicates that political leaders should be moving faster and more aggressively. As Xiaobo Yang and colleagues have shown, the mortality of critically ill patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia is substantial. As they wrote recently in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, “The severity poses great strain on critical care resources in hospitals, especially if they are not adequately staffed or resourced.” This coronavirus is not benign. It kills."  This may answer the OP's question - "e) Does it knock you for 6 - and you just want to curl up and sleep ?"

Update:  "All of Italy will be placed under the lockdown conditions thus far imposed upon the so-called “red zone” in the north of the country, the Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte has said.

The restrictions will include banning all public gatherings and preventing all movement other than for work and emergencies. According to the Reuters news agency, he has said the decision was necessary to protect Italy’s most vulnerable citizens and that the right course of action now is for people to stay at home."

 
  

born_again

50Twuncle said:

What would a disabled person be expected to do - if their partner /carer gets this virus?
For myself - shopping is impossible - mobility is too poor
Is the government going to offer advice on what to do? 

My take on this at the moment. (yep paranoia strikes)
Other than some of the great advise already given on Carer plans.
Is to simply avoid going to places with lots of people. So all shopping is online either delivered to home or pick up from store (thankfully this for us is a van parked outside)
We no longer go out for our daily coffee. Have it at home instead.
There are many things you can do to protect yourself. Sure it's not nice being stuck inside most of the time. But it's chucking it down here. So the only real time I need to go out is to walk the dogs. And that does not require any interaction with other people, unless we want to stop and talk. (just stand up wind)
As other have said there are many more common ways that your partner could end up without your support. Heart attack, Stroke can effect any of us at any time.

Just stay safe and remember that in order to look after someone else, you have to look after yourself.

born_again

50Twuncle said:

societys_child said:

It affects some more than others. Same as any flu.

But once the "isolation phase" is over - does this mean that we are free to visit the shops because there will be no fear of infecting others because everyone will already be infected ?

Well No.. As there are cases where people have got it more than once.
It appears that they have got over it, but the body has not built up enough immunity and has caught it again.
I think one of the highlighted case was a Australian couple on a cruise ship. While they both tested positive. he displayed no symptoms, but she was taken to hospital. Was tested as all clear and when retested 2 weeks later was showing as having it again.

Alice_Holt

50Twuncle said:

What would a disabled person be expected to do -C) if their partner /carer gets this virus?
S) For myself - shopping is impossible - mobility is too poor
G)  Is the government going to offer advice on what to do?

         S)  As you have a computer and internet then online shopping left outside your door would seem obvious. Would this present you with any particular difficulties. 
         I would also suggest you create a neighbourhood online group for self-help -  can you do this? Do you know your neighbours?
       Some bartering may even possible. Or some households may have younger, less vulnerable, members who are willing to shop for infirm older neighbours. 

     G)  Yes the government will give advice - I have supplied you with links to 111 -  Are you regularly washing your hands for 20 seconds? And not touching your face?   As you are no longer in work - I would suggest you and your carer self isolate as much as possible.
       
    C)  Do the best you can 50TWuncle, try to put your own difficulties to one side and concentrate on the help you now need to give your partner.