What is the situation in London?

[notevenat20]

I read about the covid situation in London and it sounds bad. I see the graphs of case numbers and it looks terrible. But my doctor friend who was called up in lockdown 1 and is ready to be called again has heard nothing this time round. It seems they are not running out of capacity at all.

Why is this and what is the real situation?

Close friend works for ambulance service and is in charge of a team. She said it’s bad in the hospitals, medical staff are dropping like flies and queues in corridors. Lots of non urgent surgeries on hold. She’s begging everyone she knows just to stay indoors.

It seems to be spreading so quickly. In March I heard of a friends friends friends second cousin getting it, this time round it seems like it’s so rife. By the end of term all local schools were closed and online learning due to isolation. My daughter hasn’t been in since before December.

But there’s no policing and most do not seem to be obeying rules. I don’t think you can blame the government for that. Lots of shops in lockdowns seem to magically have decorating done. Basically a mask so that you can’t see what’s going on inside the shop. Barbers / hairdressers going to peoples homes rather than the salons. But can you blame them ? I don’t know anymore. It’s questionable how many shops (like garden centres / paint stores etc) are actually essential shops

Well my children's primary school has every class bar 1 in isolation. So I would say it is not great.

With regards to your friend, they probably just don’t have the admin staff available to call people up. My DD is allergic to nuts and needed an urgent prescription for an epi pen. No one could get in contact (or find out who the consultant was that we spoke to) as the prescription hadn’t arrived. GP couldn’t give me a prescription without knowing dosage, I was advised to go to a&e ! It is the same for DD’s bloods, she needs them urgently and I have to bother a&e with it. I spoke to a lovely lady in a&e triage. She said that it’s just a shambles everyone is just chasing their tails and everyone is at breaking point. I felt so sorry for her.

Every school seems to be affected. But this means it's mostly younger people, which might be why fewer hospitalizations. The hospitals are also better prepared than in March.

I live in London and still only know one person who's had it! I don't know why everyone I know is breezing through!

I live in Greater London and know of one family and one single person. Until December, I knew of only two other people and they caught it in March (before testing, so they are just assuming).

Our schools have been off since Friday which should help. However DD's class was in isolation until last Monday and they were brought back for the last week, which seemed pointlessly risky, but they were threatening to sue Greenwich so I guess the borough/schools didn't want to risk it.

My whole family is going through it, plus I know of 6 colleagues with it. Definitely seems a lot more prevalent around me than ever before.

I live in London and don’t know a single person, even a ‘friend of a friend’s mum’s neighbour’ who has it. I know a couple of people who did back in April but nobody in months.

I have several hospital-based doctor and nurse friends, they say their hospitals are nowhere near close to capacity at the moment. Like previous posters, I can count on one hand the number of people I know who have had Covid symptoms this year, let alone a positive test. So I think “the situation” varies hugely depending on who you know and who you speak to.

No greater prevalence since March that I am aware of personally although that is not what the data says.

It's interesting what you say about policing @Scaryprospects. The tier extension was introduced after Parliament went into recess and has been neither debated nor voted upon. Unless we live in a totalitarian state the government can realistically only offer guidance at this stage. The fact this happened straight after the recess is more terrifying than Covid imo.

I have several hospital-based doctor and nurse friends, they say their hospitals are nowhere near close to capacity at the moment

Yes this is what I hear too. I don't know how to tally that with the terrible graphs we get shown.

I think we seriously need to question who is running the country when this is over. The elected government or members of a left leaning scientific academic community and Sir Simon Stevens.

@RosesAndHellebores

No greater prevalence since March that I am aware of personally although that is not what the data says.

It's interesting what you say about policing @Scaryprospects. The tier extension was introduced after Parliament went into recess and has been neither debated nor voted upon. Unless we live in a totalitarian state the government can realistically only offer guidance at this stage. The fact this happened straight after the recess is more terrifying than Covid imo.

I’m glad I’m not boris. It’s difficult decisions. But I do feel like Westminster and the rest of the UK work differently. In the first lockdown, police were actively patrolling the streets, sending people home etc.

But how do they do that now ? There’s so many different rules. Restaurants had a sign up pre tier 3 - ‘by entering you are verifying that you are one household’

It was obvious that this wasn’t the case. But restaurants can’t be expected to police and police can’t be expected to enter every restaurant !

I really don’t know what the answer should be. That’s why it’s the impossible question. Roll on summer 21.

Just to add to this, I went to a restaurant just before lockdown in my household (there were two of us)

I think we were the only table of two, there were people on desserts when we entered and still there when we left being served alcohol (substantial meal had been and gone!)

Tables of six, clear as anything not all from the same household. No 2m between tables. The table of six men went up to a table of six women and asked where they were going after the meal. Said they knew a bar serving drinks if you bought some chips. So that then became 12 households mixing.

It’s no surprise we are in tier 4, but will it make a difference when the other tiers weren’t being obeyed ? I really don’t know.

I sympathise on both sides. Lots of these people live in one bedroom apartment blocks. I had to talk a friend into not throwing himself off a balcony because he couldn’t go home and he was going to be on his own for the next two weeks, after an already stressful year. So I can see why people break the rules when the risk is relatively small to them. But then I can see the anger when there was also people rushing up to Leeds etc when the realisation set in on Saturday. Argh I’m just fed up of the whole thing.

I’m just so thankful we have all the technology we have. Can you imagine going through this in 1920?!

Everyone I know who has it has school aged children. I think it is spreading and amongst and via that age group, who are now out and about in the community,

We're in Essex, literally surrounded by the top 3 highest areas. Loads of people I know recently have tested positive although all seem to be mild so far. Loads of queues on the high street today. Have heard our local hospital is struggling but don't know anyone who actually works there.

I just don’t get these cookie cutter quotes about “who is running the country....left leaning blah blah.” Really sound like trolls.

@Whatafool123

I live in Greater London and know of one family and one single person. Until December, I knew of only two other people and they caught it in March (before testing, so they are just assuming).

Our schools have been off since Friday which should help. However DD's class was in isolation until last Monday and they were brought back for the last week, which seemed pointlessly risky, but they were threatening to sue Greenwich so I guess the borough/schools didn't want to risk it.

Me too. Just one and he was fine.

No Gawd let's be entirely clear. These new rules were announced after parliament went into recess and they have not been debated or voted on. It is terrifying.

Personally I think the next CEO of the NHS should be elected. Rather like the Mayors of London and NY.

London - ICU doctor friend had her christmas leave cancelled... but she says much less people needing ICU and intubation - although when they need it's generally later on.

also ICU isn't just covid and she had two suicide attempts just last week... hence mental health being KEY

I live in Greater London too and personally know of no-one locally who has had Covid.

40+ positive tests at child’s primary school, 7 relatives, 2 close colleagues, at least 50 other acquaintances e.g. people I know through work/NCT/neighbours. 1 death.

6 kids in my child’s year have it. They’re all asymptomatic, and only had testing for the purpose of getting travel certificates and/or to see if they were safe for Christmas bubbles (prior to the announcement that these are cancelled).
Only a couple of the parents have it and and have flu-like symptoms. I’ve only heard of one elderly person who was hospitalised in recent months.

Maybe (just a theory) the hospitals are busy because of all the medics self-isolating, moreso than the amount of patients? I think A&E is still really quiet though from anecdotal evidence.

Wales (which has had more cases for a longer time but noone cares about that because it's not London) has had two health boards with no ICU beds for the past week, ambulances queued for up to 20 hours outside waiting to unload, emergencies declared cancelling all non urgent appointments and surgeries indefinitely and the health boards asking people not to turn up at A&E since the beginning of December. So I assume that's where London/Kent/Essex will be soon if it follows our pattern. There are fewer hospitalisations and deaths this time around though.

BBC News - Covid: Army deployed to drive ambulances in Wales
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-55410775