Social distancing at work

ThunderHoof

Some countries have not implemented lock downs and have done better than us just by enforcing social distancing and proper testing. Considering the disease has a fatality rate of less than 1% based on the latest data I am looking forward to going back to work (albeit with my P3 respirator).

bradders1983

ThunderHoof said:

Some countries have not implemented lock downs and have done better than us just by enforcing social distancing and proper testing. Considering the disease has a fatality rate of less than 1% based on the latest data I am looking forward to going back to work (albeit with my P3 respirator).

Be even less than 1%, loads have had it and will never have been tested. 

just_trying

Suki the fear is it can be deadly. The deaths in care homes is probably due to staff going home, shopping etc as a lot are not staying /living in the care homes. The problem is people who haven't had it/ had no symptoms don't realise what it like and don't take it serious. 

Bradder I read similar and I don't think a journey to KFC is a essential journey. . It's not paranoid would you be happy to possibly take it home!? 

suki1964

just_trying said:

Suki the fear is it can be deadly. The deaths in care homes is probably due to staff going home, shopping etc as a lot are not staying /living in the care homes. The problem is people who haven't had it/ had no symptoms don't realise what it like and don't take it serious. 

Bradder I read similar and I don't think a journey to KFC is a essential journey. . It's not paranoid would you be happy to possibly take it home!? 

I know it can be deadly

The deaths in care homes is because yes someone took it in unknowingly , when the GVT KNEW the elderly were at risk, had plenty of notice this was coming our way, and done NOTHING

New Zealand locked down their care homes at the start of March - Look at their infection and death rate

Here are the Northern Ireland figures Deaths Registered in NI - Week 17 - 2020.pdf


As you can see from that, 45% of Covid 19 deaths were in care homes

0.8 % died in hospices

And over 77% of all deaths registered as Covid 19 related, were in the over 75s

And now because of the governments complete balls up, we are watching our futures flushed down the drain

Northern Ireland is a very rural country, we don't have traffic outside of the cities, and even the city rush hour is nothing compared to the A3. My own council area only has 145 000 people, in an area of 1796 km² , we are hardly living on top of each other, we are surrounded by beaches and Glens, none of which we can use and enjoy because of the care home situation

Take what's happening in them out of the equation and we would have an R of about 0.2

Whilst it is terrible what is happening in the care homes, the public are not analysing the figures and are swallowing the government spiel ,they are just seeing the headline number - 4 in the past 24 hrs and believing that we are not safe to go out of our homes, too scared to go back to work, petrified of the thought of sending their kids back to school

kaMelo

It can be deadly but so are many other illnesses and I think a little perspective is required.
Flu kills on average around 15,000 people a year in the UK and a peak of close to 30,000 in 2015.
This is flu, we all know the flu season comes around every year, it's well understood scientifically and we have a well established vaccination programme for those most at risk. Despite all this thousands die every year and most people don't blink an eyelid over it.
Covid19 has no vaccine hence the extraordinary precautions being taken but this is only sustainable for a short period. The initial reason for lockdown was to prevent the NHS becoming overwhelmed which in turn would lead to a surge in deaths from all causes. The lockdown cannot go on until a vaccine is developed as no one knows when or if that will ever happen. There is currently no vaccination for any other known corona viruses so why is this one likely to be any different? Given the seriousness of this virus one may well be developed but it's unlikely to be quick or immediately great. 

We need to be honest here and say there is no easy option. People will unfortunately die due to this virus but if we stay in a lockdown then people will die of other things instead, the statistics are starting to show all cause mortality rates are higher than normal even allowing for confirmed Covid19 victims. 
This is no one's fault, history shows it's just what happens sometimes but history also shows we will get through this. Not by being scared, not by beating ones chest shouting "you'll never take my freedom' but by having the facts given to us as best as can be, accepting the risks involved and then getting back to some sort of normality. 

just_trying

Suki,  I see where your coming from but everywhere is different at present. People are scared to return to work and scared about there jobs.  The government should have taken action sooner in my opinion.

Kamelo,  just flu, seems more complicated than that! This is widespread and in lots of countries, would you want it. Yes flu kills over a long period. If it's a normal flu why can't family be at there bedside and the unprecedented demand for ppe. The all cause mortality is mainly due to this, why should people accept the risk and put themselves in danger?

kaMelo

I used flu for perspective. thousands die of it every year and no one really bats an eyelid. People really don't die over a long period of time with flu though the length of time from incubation to death is not too dissimilar to Covid19. I am not comparing the two other than for perspective. One people don't seem to care about, the other people are, rightly, concerned about yet both have a similar death rate in relation to infection. The biggest problem is the lack of knowledge, hence the belt and braces approach with the advice and guidance given. No doubt without the extraordinary measures we a taking the rate of death from Covid19 would be higher, but with them extra people are dying of other things too. We do not know the exact reasons for those extra deaths yet, studies will no doubt show this in time but we know for example that people will die from cancer due to lack of treatment.

Regarding not accepting the risk, what other option is there? Lockdown until a vaccine is developed? What if this is for six months, twelve, maybe two years or even never?  At some point people are not going to keep on board with the Government message whatever the risks as evidenced by the numbers out in parks this weekend. Government has a role, to keep the health service protected from being overwhelmed which in turn protects us. If it feels the need to tighten things in the future to achieve that then that's responsible Government. Other than that I think it's time to give us the facts as best they can and it's on us as adults to use common sense, take sensible precautions and move on. 

unforeseen

The deaths in care homes is because yes someone took it in unknowingly , when the GVT KNEW the elderly were at risk, had plenty of notice this was coming our way, and done NOTHING

New Zealand locked down their care homes at the start of March - Look at their infection and death rate

My wife works in a care home and they "locked down" very early on at the beginning of March. They have had no cases. 
Lock down in this case was banning all visitors. The problem with care homes is the staff. They cannot, in most cases, start living in. Care homes don't have the spare space to accommodate around 100 staff and also lots of staff wouldn't be able to do it for personal/family reasons. 
The staff will always be the weak point in any protective measures for care homes as they are still living in the 'wild'. 
The death rate in care homes is partly due to the fact that most  residents are in the highest risk group. In my wife's care home all but one had the letter. A lot are heading toward end of life anyway and a dose of Covid, even mild, is enough to finish them off maybe a few weeks or months earlier than if they hadn't had it. This death will get reported as Covid related when it really isn't. Catching Pneumonia would have had the same effect, its just the straw that breaks the camels back. 

The care homes where it runs rampant need to be looked at as there appears to be a fundamental failure in basic protection methods, although social distancing in care homes can be difficult. It is very difficult to get dementia sufferers to adhere to it for a start, then there is the attitude of the residents that they're 85 or whatever and it no longer matters to them if they catch it. They don't always understand its for the common good and not just them. 

Dymphna60

OP it sounds as if your employer has done a pretty good job of work place social distancing. 

Hopefully when you do go back you will find that your worries diminish . 

I would also say don’t let the fear shamers get to you , nothing wrong with a healthy fear of danger, keeps us alert .   We are all here because our ancestors didn’t say man eating tigers pah they don’t bother me . 

Just as an aside we all don’t give no thought of those killed by flu every year , I have always carried a healthy respect for it since it killed my mother at 40 . 

onwards&upwards

Dymphna60 said:

OP it sounds as if your employer has done a pretty good job of work place social distancing. 

Hopefully when you do go back you will find that your worries diminish . 

I would also say don’t let the fear shamers get to you , nothing wrong with a healthy fear of danger, keeps us alert .   We are all here because our ancestors didn’t say man eating tigers pah they don’t bother me . 

Just as an aside we all don’t give no thought of those killed by flu every year , I have always carried a healthy respect for it since it killed my mother at 40 . 

I’m sorry for your loss, a colleague of mine lost her mum to it last year, only in her fifties. 

As a society we definitely DO give it a second thought, which is why so much is spent on the vaccination campaign each year.