To think Sir David King may be right about another lockdown?

[Hamsteratemylunch]

www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/uk-heading-back-lockdown-next-22491159

Summary - track and trace a disaster, not safe to open schools, heading back into lockdown (possibly national ) very soon.

Rainbow12e

didn't Nick Gibb say that there would be no regular teasing in schools?

@FrippEnos

Rainbow12e

didn't Nick Gibb say that there would be no regular teasing in schools?

Yep.

www.theguardian.com/education/2020/aug/09/ministers-reject-call-for-weekly-covid-19-testing-in-english-schools

Rainbow12e

Yes, that was published but has since been rescinded.

The children's commissioner said there should be weekly testing, which was published in the news, but the government said they would continue to only test people with symptoms.

We couldn't use them, and can't in future, because there are insufficient trained nurses.

Royal Society of Medicine has an an excellent run of seminars on COVID19. One of the topics was how to cope with the NHS backlog and rebuild a health service. The surgeons and others were completely sensible about their 5 year plan which involves delegating a lot of stuff to other people, increasing their skills on that level, while they delegate some of their previous duties to the level below them and so on.

The NHS could upskill a huge number of people and create a workforce that is properly resourced to deal with our new reality.

As ever, there's no lack of work to be done, or increased opportunities for education, there's a lack of vision to pay for the work to be done.

@FrippEnos

Rainbow12e

Yes, that was published but has since been rescinded.

And this is the problem. Promising what is needed and quietly removing it.

Even people up to their elbows in biology degrees still don't know what the long term effects of this virus will be.

Nope, they don't. But they may be more used to balancing risks than average person, wrt pathogens. I suppose saying my expertise will put me in the equally ignorant category according to PP. I'm the person without a biology degree but I have a high tolerance for risk. I get called "a moron" on MN for that. Not Nice. It seems like proclaiming that you're very very afraid makes you right in public policy and anyone else is "a moron". Emotion trumps logic or even an actual conversation about what level of risk is safe to live with. UK is not having that conversation. Instead the fearful win by default. Usually it's the angry who win by default. I actually think fear is a slight improvement, but it's still a situation I despair of. Too little talk about the actual risk trade offs and too much encouragement to identify good/bad tribes. Oh well...

We can't afford another national lockdown. The furlough scheme has to end (I'd argue it has been too generous as it is ). We need to do what we can to prevent transmission of the virus. Back to work with mandatory, enforced correctly worn, masks everywhere including indoors in the work environment. At least KN95/FFP2 level and stop all the useless scarf and face covering crap including face shields. Sadly, those who are declared exempt from mask-wearing by an NHS doctor are the only ones who need to stay in lockdown in order to protect the rest of us.

When the vaccine is available those who are exempt from mask-wearing get it first.