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.

Do you not read the papers love? There's this country called Italy and it's right in the midst of an almighty shit storm! 50 icu nurses in intensive care themselves critical as we speak!

DH is immunocompromised. He's 51. Are you seriously saying he shouldn't leave the house for over a year?

No one knows how long. What you do know is that whatever steps the government/society will or will not take, should you be taking the chance right now? I would self-isolate. While the fatality rate is 1% overall, if you have a pre-existing condition that jumps up to 20% or more. Are you going to rely on others to ensure your safety?
No one knows what's going to happen. Even if they shut everything down, there are thousands of people walking around spreading this.

The age related risk is one thing. People need to understand that people with conditions are often NOT old. Just look at the stats for high blood pressure. That's on the list. Type 1 diabetics - all ages. COPD- plenty of younger people.

I know someone in my town who is 22 with leukaemia. They are in the HIGHEST risk category as they live a normal and working life but on immune suppressing drug- most people may not even know who.

This is so going to sink in soon.

It is older people AND people with conditions.

It is older people PLUS people with conditions.

It is older people AS WELL AS people with conditions.

Think about that!

When planes which left the UK to Spain this morning were being turned back mid-air back to the UK, no, the UK nor UK media isn't exaggerating. Have you not watched the news? Countries all over the World are doing similar to the UK, some more, some less. I read that New Zealand has banned almost all travel in/out of the country. People need to stop reading SM and bitching about Boris and find out what's happening in the rest of the World.

Waiting for your morning cheeseburger, Donald?

Alice02132354

There is absolutely no way that I'm putting my parents in isolation. I and the rest of my family shall continue to visit them as they have asked us to do. They, their friends and us all know the risk but they would rather continue as they are. Neither will survive the illness but it's their choice, they fear loneliness more.

Vulnerable people older or otherwise cant do this alone, it needs is all to help and think of others when deciding what to do.

No one says panic, no one says clear the shelves those things won't help anyone.

What people can do to help is:

• Wash your hands well and often.
• Follow the guidelines if you have symptoms.
• Don't greet people using touch when a smile will do.
• If you have a choice then limit the number of people in the household going shopping, go as an individual not a family if you can.
• Spend leisure time at home or if you want to go out then try to go somewhere outside where you aren't walking/standing/sitting close to lots of other people.
• If you can then walk rather than get the bus/tube.

I am sure there are many other things but these strike me as the easy basic things that wont cause a huge problem to many but would help flatten the infection curve.

There is a great contradiction between what the British govt is doing and what the WHO have advised.
The British govt. have suggested that expert opinion has suggested what they need to do and they are following the science. However having looked at the science they are actually acting contrary to the science – the science shows that if china had taken steps to contain the virus 3 weeks before they did the cases would have been reduced by 95% and therefore deaths would have been reduced by 95%. S.Korea, Singapore and Taiwan have carried out testing and isolation rigorously and reduced the spread effectively.
Therefore the failures and they can only be that cannot be following ‘the science’ .I think we the public need the govt to outline what this science that they are relying upon is as most counties around the world are taking proper steps to reduce the spread, and GB is the only country in the world that isn’t and it just makes no sense not to . The decisions as far as I can make out are more biased toward protecting the economy and this is totally bonkers because the economy will crash because the levels of sick will rise massively because no steps are being taken to stop this spread.
This is something that we cannot afford to get wrong and some questions just cannot wait they need to be asked now.
Part of the process that needs to be followed are schools need to be closed. There is presently a petition for this and please sign this. Whilst children are at a lower risk of developing the severe symptoms ( and there are now cases were they are starting to poss mutations??) they are carriers and whilst you can take measures such as social distancing and staying at home to reduce the risk having a child bring it home just makes these measures worthless. If you have anybody over 40 who is more at risk of needing ICU care and especially those 50+ then the children bringing home the virus is a death sentence.
Overall I think that the public has to start asking the question is the govt caring more about the economy than the public safety and lives and are they biased due to the fact they see their shareholding being slashed by the crashing of the economy as I cannot see how any govt would just sit on its hands and do nothing. Even third world countries are taking more measures than the UK is at present. The strategy needs to change and only public outcry can do this.

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/300403

A good source of the information you need is available from Dr. Campbell just one of my youtube sources for the basic daily info. no affiliation jsut gratitude for the truth.

agent starling come to my work and stand and watch what is happening. It is not just the old and sick.
Young people are very sick as but more likely to survive.

I Italy the death rate of strokes and heart attacks and other illnesses which they would normally survive is rising as there are no beds or resources to treat these people who just happened to get sick in a covid crisis.

Ethical dilemmas currently being faced : do we treat the patient with covid and sick in preference of the person with a broken leg with covid and place more staff at risk by putting them in an operating theatre.

We are expecting our doctors and nurses to play God, which everyone roundly tells us doctors are arrogant and do not have the right to decide normally - but right now around the world doctors are having to play God and believe me it is not pleasant and there will be a lot of people who buckle under this pressure.

Be thankful for the NHS they will attempt to treat you regardless of race colour creed or the size of your wallet and health insurance package. In the US no health insurance - no hospital treatment - that is more criminal.

Do you think limiting the number of people shopping will help because of possible higher infection risk in supermarkets? Is that the case?

Some of you doubters have absolutely no idea the chaos that comes our way.

Stop the world forever? Maybe. It won’t be the same ever again that is for certain.

Good luck everyone.

@Oddboots

There is absolutely no way that I'm putting my parents in isolation. I and the rest of my family shall continue to visit them as they have asked us to do. They, their friends and us all know the risk but they would rather continue as they are. Neither will survive the illness but it's their choice, they fear loneliness more.
Just facetime them. I'm facetiming my mum multiple times a day. The thing is, you are more likely to pass it to them than strangers. I mean, you have to think about this. It's pretty serious. There's people out there who already have it and you don't know if you had it and just never developed symptoms... one of the guys interviewed said he barely had any symptoms, just felt rough for 3 days but he tested positive. You really have to be careful here.

peeled exactly, but as well as immunisation schemes, some people will build up natural immunity to it like they do other viruses. That's why couples or families can share very close quarters where one of them has a virus, but the other members still don't catch the virus from them. Otherwise we'd have all died out long ago, if we all caught the same viruses that are circulating all the time.

Also, mutations are not always worse mutations, sometimes they mutate to something weaker, or related mutations which are still recognised by the natural immunity.

What I was essentially saying though is that people can run, but they can't hide forever unless it was guaranteed the virus could be made to die out completely, or a failsafe vaccine was made available to all. In the unlikely event of that happening any time soon, then in order to carry on some of the population are going to catch it and recover, hopefully with some form of immunity rather than none.

... and if you have this attitude, how do you expect people who have to earn a living etc... not to go out when they feel a bit poorly?

I do partially agree. The risks are similar to seasonal flu (which hasn't gone anywhere! Neither have any of the other viruses and other illnesses that might cause problems). I do worry about the government's approach though - the more people who catch it, the greater the chance of a mutation that takes out the young and healthy. I am also alarmed at the 1200 who died in Italy.

Do you think limiting the number of people shopping will help because of possible higher infection risk in supermarkets? Is that the case?
Guys, you have OP saying it's not that lethal... then a barage of comments deriding hers. Then you think it's ok to go shopping when we don't know how many people are already infected? There are people out there who have not given this a second thought.

Sht can you source the link to the 50 icu nurses in intensive care?

I have a degree in biology I am not a doctor Exactly!

I very much doubt your degree in biology equips you to know more than all the doctors let alone the leading Chief Medical Advisors around the world. Almost endearing that you think you know so much because you have a degree in biology :)

onlinelinda, I think the numbers are important, it stands to reason that the more people there are in any confined space the more chance there is that one of them is carrying this virus, it doesn't take complex maths to see that.

I sometimes think that it is being exagerrated but that's mainly because I don't trust governments (of any variety) to be honest with Joe Public. Maybe it's wishful thinking, I certainly hope that it is all exagerrated.

Just worth pointing out that (Dr) John Campbell is NOT a medical doctor. He is a retired nursing lecturer. And he’s clocking up thousands of pounds in AdSense revenue. If he really was as altruistic as people make out he’d switch off AdSense surely?

If you have a degree then I'm the Pope.

@Alice02132354, DH will be full time wfh for the foreseeable future. But not sure what happens if I or the kids catch it. We are fortunate enough to have enough space for him to isolate himself from us with his own bathroom etc

But right now he's away for the weekend with friends.

I think we both have to mentally get our heads around the fact that he could be housebound for months.