Another issue - are the government going to build creches for children of NHS staff? The likelihood of closing schools has been mentioned so NHS staff will need to stay at home to look after theirs unless govt magics up huge creches.

I dont doubt that "non urgent" operations will be cancelled, it seems to be an obvious step.
However, your thoughts om treatment will depend on the severity of the illness and of course the numbers involved.

Certainly the situation has some way to go and I guess it all depends on how the governments 4 step plan works out.
Apparently we are between step 1 and step 2.

I dont doubt that, if your figures of 100 people are lining up for each intensive care bed then, it can only be based on need and probability of surviving.

I work for a MAT, and we've been working on a contingency plan for the past week for if we have to start closing schools. If all of ours close, that's over 20 thousand primary and secondary age kids staying at home, many who will need some form of adult supervision.

I'm just border line 60 in June and suffer from RA while it limits my ability to live as I used to do when I could hold a job down it does put me with an underlying health issue with the drugs I have to take to help control it and to be honest I don't feel like it is a threat to me, but that is the pig headed part of me that still thinks I can still change the world

Dont give up on trying to change the world mate and just be pleased that Dally isn't running the health service or the country.
The thing that getting a little older tells us, is to fight for our rights and not be pushed around by anyone and I think you will be ok on that score

I wonder at what stage RL may be affected by this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/51777154 As I suggested in the opening post, travel to and from France will be most interesting, especially for the fans

I wonder at what stage RL may be affected by this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/51777154 As I suggested in the opening post, travel to and from France will be most interesting, especially for the fans

If the NHS is under strain, and people start asking tough questions about why the service has been allowed to degrade so much that it doesn't have capacity for this, I wonder if the government will take responsibility for it, or will they mock outrage at anybody trying to hold them accountable for "using the NHS as a political football" and "taking advantage of the coronavirus crisis".

I think some Government Ministers will be ecstatic at the thought of coronavirus spreading throughout the country.

With an estimated death rate of around three percent & a population of sixty odd million, that could be one hell of a cost saving.

The N.H.S. would be a major benefactor, imagine all the “creaking gates” taken out of the equation, those waiting list would take a hell of a dive.

Add to this the savings on pensions & pension credits, free bus passes, winter fuel allowances & T.V. licences that’s one almighty cost reduction.

Then, with some much new housing stock freed up, prices could come down to a reasonable level.

The future's bright, the future's COVID-19.

Those "creaking gates" are the Conservatives' core voters.

Abdu Sharkawy

I'm a doctor and an Infectious Diseases Specialist. I've been at this for more than 20 years seeing sick patients on a daily basis. I have worked in inner city hospitals and in the poorest slums of Africa. HIV-AIDS, Hepatitis,TB, SARS, Measles, Shingles, Whooping cough, Diphtheria...there is little I haven't been exposed to in my profession. And with notable exception of SARS, very little has left me feeling vulnerable, overwhelmed or downright scared.

I am not scared of Covid-19. I am concerned about the implications of a novel infectious agent that has spread the world over and continues to find new footholds in different soil. I am rightly concerned for the welfare of those who are elderly, in frail health or disenfranchised who stand to suffer mostly, and disproportionately, at the hands of this new scourge. But I am not scared of Covid-19.

What I am scared about is the loss of reason and wave of fear that has induced the masses of society into a spellbinding spiral of panic, stockpiling obscene quantities of anything that could fill a bomb shelter adequately in a post-apocalyptic world. I am scared of the N95 masks that are stolen from hospitals and urgent care clinics where they are actually needed for front line healthcare providers and instead are being donned in airports, malls, and coffee lounges, perpetuating even more fear and suspicion of others. I am scared that our hospitals will be overwhelmed with anyone who thinks they " probably don't have it but may as well get checked out no matter what because you just never know..." and those with heart failure, emphysema, pneumonia and strokes will pay the price for overfilled ER waiting rooms with only so many doctors and nurses to assess.

I am scared that travel restrictions will become so far reaching that weddings will be canceled, graduations missed and family reunions will not materialize. And well, even that big party called the Olympic Games...that could be kyboshed too. Can you even
imagine?

I'm scared those same epidemic fears will limit trade, harm partnerships in multiple sectors, business and otherwise and ultimately culminate in a global recession.

But mostly, I'm scared about what message we are telling our kids when faced with a threat. Instead of reason, rationality, openmindedness and altruism, we are telling them to panic, be fearful, suspicious, reactionary and self-interested.

Covid-19 is nowhere near over. It will be coming to a city, a hospital, a friend, even a family member near you at some point. Expect it. Stop waiting to be surprised further. The fact is the virus itself will not likely do much harm when it arrives. But our own behaviors and "fight for yourself above all else" attitude could prove disastrous.

I implore you all. Temper fear with reason, panic with patience and uncertainty with education. We have an opportunity to learn a great deal about health hygiene and limiting the spread of innumerable transmissible diseases in our society. Let's meet this challenge together in the best spirit of compassion for others, patience, and above all, an unfailing effort to seek truth, facts and knowledge as opposed to conjecture, speculation and catastrophizing.

Facts not fear. Clean hands. Open hearts.
Our children will thank us for it.

#washurhands #geturflushot #respect #patiencenotpanic