Is this whole thing being exaggerated?

[agentstarling]

Coronavirus seems to only affect mostly older people with already compromised immune systems. So far we have had only 11 deaths some being 80 even a ninety-year-old. The press is whipping people up into a hysteria in my view I have a degree in biology I am not a doctor but I would say that some of this is ridiculous.

Oh right. The papers will pick that up surely re children. People will go nuts if Boris doesn’t act.

Actually some seem unaware what’s coming but tensions will heighten again.

The problem is that many people do not understand exponential growth and how quickly 1000 cases can grow to 1 million. Using WHO data which shows that left unchecked without a lockdown 1 person will infect 2 others every 6 days total cases will number over 1 million in 10 weeks.

France is going to lockdown. They state that ICU is overwhelmed and beds are running out. It is just beginning clearly the world despite scientist warnings every year failed to listen and nobody was prepared.

Despite the fact that we had 10 weeks warning with what was happening in China why is it that it was only yesterday the PM asked industry to start making ventilators, why is it that only now they are thinking we need to train staff to use the ventilators as they have 5000 and state that it is likely some won't be in use because they have a staff shortage.

Why is it that the govt is more concerned about the loss of 3% of its GDP that has been estimated would be lost if schools are closed, than saving lives.

One thing that we must all remember is to ask these questions of the govt when we come out the other side of this as it is just not acceptable. When this world is full of fat cats who don't care as they have BUPA and therefore starve the NHS we have to remind them who works in those factories and industries are also human beings and are entitled to live and are not just expendable.

Sorry but it's appealing what govts do and how its just no.s to them. Europe is the ones who brought the right to rest, decent pay and a standard of living to this country. The same people who got us to leave the EU for the same reasons as it gives them more money in their pockets are now disregarding the people just like they used to in the past - nothing changes.

Sorry but our government is not taking it seriously enough.
At the moment myself and my family are in isolation. I believe my husband has it, as his symptoms are similar to the virus. He started as mild then it got worse, he was in bed pretty much all day for a few days, he thought he started feeling better , to then feeling horrible again.
So the fact that they have stopped testing people there are at least 5000-10000 of unknown cases.
And I believe the death toll is higher than they say it is.
It's going to get worse here , people are travelling into the UK without being tested at the airport.
My brother has just travelled back to China and he was tested at the airport and he is receiving messages daily to check if he is ok and hasn't had any symptoms. The government can learn a few things from China.

Another issue is that some people can be infected by the virus without having any symptoms themselves can still transmit it to someone else.

If you haven't read about the Spanish flu, you need to look it up. This virus is similar, the first wave of the virus was reported as quite mild and death rates were low. It was when the second wave of the mutated virus that was so contagious it is estimated to have killed up to 100million.
If the public health are worried about this virus then that's says a lot. the death rate for seasonal flu is 0.1% , the death rate for Spanish flu was 2.5% and the covid-19 death rate is recorded as 2% which is close to the Spanish flu.

I would rather lose my job than risk lives right now

France is not in lockdown yet: they have now limited movements to only essential trips (food, work if WFH not possible, medical reasons) as of noon tomorrow. That won't work, IMO, but is a preliminary to enforcing total lockdown.
Army called in to help in the East where things are bad.
A whole raft of measures and emergency funds for businesses, the self-employed (taxes and contributions suspended/cancelled, utilities provided for free).
Total transparency and regular updates.
Calls for individual and collective responsibility. "We are at war" repeated several times. Calls for calm as people all tried to flood home, away from Paris, etc. tonight.
Seriously, even if you don't understand French, it's worth watching the speech Macron just gave - dubbed excerpts may be online soon. The contrast with BJ's "press conference" is stark.

I should qualify: it's not total lockdown, but as near as it gets and I think more reference will be made to penalties soon when some people don't comply.

I was on earlier in this thread, saying it was being blown out of proportion. I am usually a person that tries not to panic.

Now I am sick myself. I was fine until I popped to the shops three days ago. My chest hurts, my breathing is heavy, my lungs feel like they are on fire. It is very scary

Be careful everyone.

@angell84 Take care of yourself, that sounds pretty frightening. Sounds like you need to ring 111 and let them know how painful your breathing is.

It's worth bearing in mind that of the 40,000(ish) people they've tested in the UK, only around 10% tested positive. Which indicates that the other 90% had bad flu, or colds, despite showing Covid19 symptoms. So, fingers crossed, perhaps you are in the 90%. Even so, you may need some medical help, as "ordinary" flu can be hideous.

Spot the difference...

@Defenbaker They were never focused on testing people with flu symptoms. They were previously testing people who had come back from infected regions overseas or who had had direct contact with a confirmed case. So a lot wouldn't have had symptoms at all; they were advised to go into quarantine until they had the all clear.

I know this, because they wouldn't test me despite me having flu symptoms and, what's more, all the symptoms of COVID-19. Now they're not testing at all, the paramedics told us this weekend when I was hardly able to breathe because I was choking on my sputum. They didn't take me in, as I was still breathing (apart from an hour on Saturday evening where I was really gasping for breath.

This is why climate change is going to kill us all if coronavirus doesn't get there first.

Despite tons of evidence it's happening, some people simply refuse to believe it till they see it with their own eyes - by which point it'll be too late.

Not sure what we do about that.

ITU doctor on call this weekend. Since Thursday gone from no cases to multiple confirmed positives, several intubated, one needing retrieval for ECMO. This seems to be the exponential part of the curve. So no, not exaggerated. Most medics I know are doing social isolation and staying home, only leaving the household for school (for now) and work, nothing else.

It’s not hyped. Even if you were a total psychopath, convinced you were a perfect physical specimen not at risk yourself and didn’t care about so many people dying (it’s not begun yet) it will be a major health hazard having so many dead bodies around.

In Portugal we only got the first cases a couple of weeks after most other european countries.
We are expected to go to lockdown this week.
As far as I know, despite not being banned, most group activities have been cancelled voluntarily, anyway.
Shop workers are demanding that shops close. They're mostly empty. Restaurants are closing or offering take always voluntarily too. Public transport is reportedly empty from people who weren't initially allowed to work from home.
The UK is well behind in measures and ahead in disease progression.

Btw, I'm stunned that a fellow biologist thought this was all hysteria. Even if 3 days ago.

I wish it was over exaggerated. We are only at the beginning of the epidemic in the U.K. unlike Asia and Southern Europe.

If nothing else we can learn which strategies work best.

It is shocking people say things like that. So an older person life is not important? I no longer have my parents but have people in my family that are at risk. My niece has to take medicines that impairs her immune system. She will have to self isolate at the grand age of 22. If she catches very likely it would get serious. I look at Italy, that happens to have a very good health system, and despair at what is around the corner

The more vulnerable people get ill the more the NHS won’t cope and then when the OP gets ill they will see it wasn’t hyped. Just because you don’t like news it doesn’t mean it isn’t true.

@agentstarling I notice you haven't posted for a couple of days.

Do you still think it is being exaggerated?

Funny isn't it.
I've noticed a lot of "agent starling" style posters have gone a bit quiet.
I bet they're a) thanking MN for the namechange facility b) buying more lav paper and starting more hysterical threads than anyone else.

I'm not happy that we're right. But after the abuse some posters have been on the receiving end of, a oops soz might be nice.

Yes, I'll never forget the 'Bored of the Madness' thread. it came out when Italy was well into crisis. OP found the whole thing tedious and overblown. As did the poster Todayisnotturday. We kept being told not to overreact, there's no evidence the UK Willbe anything like Italy. As if we had some inexplicable and magical forcefield.

@DianaT1969 Sadly that's so true. The testing criteria until very recently was that it was only available for people who had been overseas in 'infected regions' or who had been in direct contact with a confirmed case'. So I couldn't be tested despite the fact that I've very clearly had it!

It's only now been accepted that the UK IS an infected count!y now!

I don’t think it is being exaggerated but I’m sick of the bleating about it I’ll be honest.

Think people need to collectively grow a set.

1918. Spanish Flu, right on the tails of WW1. Killed people in droves in their physical prime - unlike this virus - just after a lot of people had just been killed in war in their physical prime & 1 in 3 caught it globally. No internet whinging, no 24 hour news hyperbole, no exotic foreign holidays having to be cancelled.

What a bunch of snowflakes we are now in comparison eh? ‘Ooo I cant go to the gym’ Yes, life is a bit shit at the moment. But not that shit.

Rant over.

@Mumpop00 - Newsflash, the Internet, and 24 hour news channels didn't exist in 1918 and people didn't go on 'exotic holidays'.

Feel sorry for you if this is really the depth of your thinking about this global crisis. You have a massive shock coming.

HTH

@agentstarling

They didn’t exist? No way! That was kinda my point.

No shock for me darling. I know what’s coming.

Just pointing out that previous generations (arguably our greatest generations) just got on with things.

Oh Mummy. If you weren't saying such twattish things about real people living through really scary situations, I'd almost feel sorry for you.
There's a meteorite heading your way love and the govt is telling you it will be diverted by Bruce Willis before it gets there.

It won't.