Queen has covid

[JustLyra]

Buckingham Palace has announced.

Mild “cold like” symptoms apparently, but I bet there’s a lot of worried courtiers and politicians right now!

[quote nether]Anyone of a certain age or who is particularly clinically vulnerable can access the antiviral medication quickly and fairly easily

Nope - no age criteria - see link above with eligibility criteria - it's the critically vulnerable immune suppressed group, plus some CEV.

PANORAMIC trial is what you try if you're not in the eligible group, you need to be over 50 or younger with a qualifying underlying medical condition. Then it's 50/50 whether you get an antiviral drug or the control

digital.nhs.uk/coronavirus/panoramic-trial[/quote]
If they call their GP almost all very elderly people can access them, based on what my GP has said. Just not automatically necessarily but most should be able to from what I've been told.

@Monopolyiscrap

Okay sorry I was not thinking of the panoramic trail but those who have been told they will get antivirals. I had not even heard of the panoramic trial. I read the newspapers every day and watch BBC news every day, so I doubt most people have heard about it.

If you get positive on a PCR the email you receive includes details and a link about the panoramic trial.

@Joystir59

I've just connected to how incredibly sad I'm going to feel when the Queen dies. And I'm staunchly anti royalist. She is described by the BBC as "considerably thinner and frailer than she was last year". I struggle with the inevitability of death.

Me to, tbh. I think it's less about the Queen as a person (I've not much time for the royals these days) but more about her being a link to other people and times I miss.

When she became Queen, my grandparents were all young adults, starting out on their own lives. They, and my parents, and myself have all watched the same monarch on Christmas Day.

She will die, the world will keep turning and changing and the similarities that link me to people of the past will go with her. I am prone to soppy nostalagia but that makes me teary.

@Abraxan but you no longer need a pcr. I am not sure if I am even eligible for one anymore as an ecv person if I test positive? I thought pcrs were only for hospital now? Certainly if I tested positive I would not request a PCR as I thought I should not.

If they call their GP almost all very elderly people can access them, based on what my GP has said. Just not automatically necessarily but most should be able to from what I've been told

I think we must be talking about different treatments.

The antibody treatments and the new antivirals are not available from your GP. I linked

Though GPs can signpost people to PANORAMIC, where participants have a 50/50 chance of getting the active drug. And can refer to a CMDU if the patient isn't automatically in the system for that and if in their clinical judgement they should be.

There are no age categories for eligibility via CMDU (list of who could qualify is in the doc linked earlier in the thread).

But I don't think anyone wouid begrudge the Queen an armful!

I saw from a news pop-up that she's called off today's online engagements. I hope that's only because of unsightly/inconvenient symptoms

I do begrudge the Queen. No other 97 year old would get this treatment. In fact at the beginning of the pandemic a 97 year old would be left at home without medical treatment at all.
She should get the same as anyone else. She won't though.

I dont begrudge a Head of state getting treatment even if she is 95. She will have been in contact with many people and has a great sense of duty so probably wants to keep going

@Monopolyiscrap

I do begrudge the Queen. No other 97 year old would get this treatment. In fact at the beginning of the pandemic a 97 year old would be left at home without medical treatment at all. She should get the same as anyone else. She won't though.

I think you are in the minority in feeling that way. The Queen isn't like anyone else - she has worked in her unique role of public service for 70 years and intends to continue until she dies. She deserves good medical care, as do other elderly people. Also, perhaps many people would be happy for her to be offered less widely available treatments, considering the fact that she is still a working royal and has done so much for our country, for so long.

I do not agree she has done so much for our country.
She has done a lot for the Royal Family.

@Monopolyiscrap

I do begrudge the Queen. No other 97 year old would get this treatment. In fact at the beginning of the pandemic a 97 year old would be left at home without medical treatment at all. She should get the same as anyone else. She won't though.

That’s not true about a 97 year old at any stage of the pandemic. Not purely because the person was a 96 year old anyway.

Any wealthy 97 year old with access to private medical care will get the same treatment she will be getting right now if they are in a country where it is available.

Even mild covid in those who are triple jabbed can be very unpleasant. A nonagenarian is also very likely to have underlying health conditions and even at best, their immune system’s strength will be impacted by their age.

Well I’m sure prescribing expensive antivirals for Covid sufferers would have been preferable to shutting the country down for 2 years.

It is a worry she isn't feeling well enough to do her zoom meetings. I think she would have gone ahead if she could, even to ressure the country it is just mild. I am praying for her.

I just find it curious that you would expect a 96 year old to be anything other than a person who reaches that grand old age and to be praying for her. It's life. You don't live forever, and the idea that we should squeeze more and more years out of a 96 year old is a bit odd in my book.

Of course, I wish her the best but her age is just what it is. As long as she's comfortable, that's it really.

I do work with AgeUK, I'm more concerned with some of the elderly people connected to that charity to be honest, because I know the Queen will be getting the best care imaginable.

@Monopolyiscrap

I do begrudge the Queen. No other 97 year old would get this treatment. In fact at the beginning of the pandemic a 97 year old would be left at home without medical treatment at all. She should get the same as anyone else. She won't though.

For goodness sake.

I'm with with you Monopolyiscrap. Have you read this:

And What Do You do? by Norman Baker

I think you might enjoy it....

@SandysMam

She will be on the best antivirals with the best medical care on hand. She won’t die from Covid.

How on earth do you know. People who are as rich as Croesus get ill and die even with the 'best medical care'. I wish the Queen well. She's been a public figure for all of our lives.

@nether

If they call their GP almost all very elderly people can access them, based on what my GP has said. Just not automatically necessarily but most should be able to from what I've been told

I think we must be talking about different treatments.

The antibody treatments and the new antivirals are not available from your GP. I linked

Though GPs can signpost people to PANORAMIC, where participants have a 50/50 chance of getting the active drug. And can refer to a CMDU if the patient isn't automatically in the system for that and if in their clinical judgement they should be.

There are no age categories for eligibility via CMDU (list of who could qualify is in the doc linked earlier in the thread).

But I don't think anyone wouid begrudge the Queen an armful!

I saw from a news pop-up that she's called off today's online engagements. I hope that's only because of unsightly/inconvenient symptoms

I know exactly what antivirals are. I was given them just a month ago - an antiviral infusion, delivered by a drip taking half an hour at a local hospital.

You can get tablet versions, but the infusion is usually deemed most suitable.

And yes, I accessed them via my GP. The GP put everything in motion. I called the GP who then contacted the relevant department at the hospital the same morning. That unit then called me The GP did say they would discuss with me as to whether I was definitely suitable (I qualify for the 4th vaccine but hadn't received the PCR kit) but in reality they simply called me, checked I definitely had a positive PCR (I had) and called me in within 2 hours that same day for my infusion.

When there every other person having it was in the elderly category. After it I sat in a room with these people, all quite elderly women at the time, and two said they'd been surprised they'd been taken in for the antivirals as they didn't think they'd be eligible. However there doctors had organised it for them, like me they'd had a follow up phone call and was called in within a day or two.

So, it may be just be city but the criteria for accessing these antivirals isn't actually always as strict as the official list says. And GPs are involved in the process of accessing them at times.

The panoramic trial link was included in my positive PCR email. You enter details in the form - the vulnerable aspect of the trial is wider than the official list. You complete details online and they call you back, usually the same or next day, and discuss it. My message re them did state it was a wider eligibility. But yes, not everyone accepted gets the drugs - it's 50/50. Half get the drugs and a month's diary to complete, half just get the diary (which is actually more of a one page questionnaire each day.)

I know what the official information states re antivirals but in my area, and through my own experience a month ago, it was much easier to access for anyone classed as vulnerable either medically or due to very old age.

[quote Monopolyiscrap]@Abraxan but you no longer need a pcr. I am not sure if I am even eligible for one anymore as an ecv person if I test positive? I thought pcrs were only for hospital now? Certainly if I tested positive I would not request a PCR as I thought I should not.[/quote]
If you are even vaguely likely to be eligible you should organise a PCR asap. It's the only way to access antiviral medication.

That sounds like your GP passed you on to a CMDU (who are Hospital based) who arranged your hospital treatment (those in the 4 jabs group are all potentially eligible). The GP cannot do more than that.

You should have had the red box PCR to keep at home, but any PCR test will set off the same chain of events, as it's linked to your name/dob and NHS number, and should get you a call from CMDU directly, but if none forthcoming and you believe yourself eligible then GP can (and in your case did) prod the system. But GPs are not the decision makers, they can neither prescribe nor provide the drugs.

And there is no provision for an age category. So either the age of the other patients you saw was coincidence, or they had access via PANORAMIC

Only a small number of people are in the 4th jab category. Not all ecv people.

Correct.

The list of all those eligible for the advanced new treatment (linked earlier in the thread) includes then and those with certain other conditions, and is pretty similar but nitnthe same as the group known as CEV

But even if you're not sure that would wouid qualify, it's worth getting a test done and informing your specialist, as they might have bespoke advice for you (and can argue for treatment for you if you don't fit the criteria exactly)

Oh come on! How easy do you think it is to get hold of a consultant.
Sorry I think you have no idea what it is really like. My first point of contact is a specialist nurse, not a consultant. Nurses monitor and are point of contact.
And no only 100,000 people are eligible for 4th jab. ECV list of over 3 million people.

@Roussette TBH, I don't want to live into my 80s, let alone 90s, having seen what my parents went through in their final years. However, the Queen is amazing for her age, and she is an important figure in this country, commanding respect in a way that few of our politicians do (particularly the ones in power right now). I think she is something of a national treasure, and although it might have been better if she had retired years ago, there is a part of me that admires her absolute determination to carry on until she dies, because she sees it as her duty.

When I watched a recent documentary about her, it struck me how young she was when she acceded to the throne - just 25. She became Queen the instant her father died, so had to take on a very onerous role when she was deep in grief at her loss - I can't imagine how heavy that burden must have seemed to such a young woman. So, I hope she lives for as long as she has reasonable quality of life, but not beyond that point (which sadly happens to many elderly people, who are living way longer than they wanted to).

If you think I have no idea what it's like, I suggest you search my posting history.
And it's an estimated 500,000 on the 4 jabs list, and I'm not sure how many on the longer list with potential eligibility for antibody and antiviral treatments (list for those is not the same as any of the CEV lists over the whole period)

And yes, it's hard to think if a 25 yo stepping in to role of monarch. But back in the 50s it was the age of the vigorous young New Elizabethans.

It seems strange now, because most of the population is younger than the Queen, and you need to be a bit older than 70 to remember the old king (or kings) at all. So I think we just see the role as for someone who is grown up.

Whereas we'd already have celebrated 90th Jubilee if she acceded to the throne at the same age as Louis XIV (who had a 20 year head start on her). We've lost sight of how monarchy and monarchical styles vary

Seemslikeagoodidea

Yes, in part, I agree. There will be enormous upheaval when she dies I think. Many people know no different than the Queen as Monarch. I have always been of the mind that I think she should've abdicated 20 years ago, but I'm probably on my own with that. And I understand why it didn't happen.