Coronavirus: General discussion (see opening post for rules)

[JordanT91]

Looking for some advice with kids going in to school later this week for their first covid tests. One son has started his nose bleeds, common at this time of year following tree pollen and sneezing. Swab up his nose could well bring on a nose bleed - anyone know what the advice is in this situation?

Do tonsils only.

[6Foot2]

Google Doodle today:

 

 

Dr. Wu Lien-teh's 142nd Birthday

Today’s Doodle celebrates the 142nd birthday of Chinese-Malaysian epidemiologist Dr. Wu Lien-teh, who invented a surgical face covering that is widely considered the precursor to the N95 mask.

 

Born into a family of Chinese immigrants in Penang, Malaya (modern-day Malaysia) on this day in 1879, Wu went on to become the first student of Chinese descent to earn his MD from Cambridge University. Following his doctoral studies, he accepted a position as the vice director for China's Imperial Army Medical College in 1908. When an unknown epidemic afflicted north-western China in 1910, the Chinese government appointed Wu to investigate the disease, which he identified as the highly contagious pneumonic plague that spread from human to human through respiratory transmission.

 

To combat the disease, Wu designed and produced a special surgical mask with cotton and gauze, adding several layers of cloth to filter inhalations. He advised people to wear his newly invented mask and worked with government officials to establish quarantine stations and hospitals, restrict travel, and apply progressive sterilization techniques; his leadership contributed greatly to the end of the pandemic (known as the Manchurian plague) by April 1911—within four months of being tasked with controlling its spread.

 

In 1915, Wu founded the Chinese Medical Association, the country’s largest and oldest non-governmental medical organization. In 1935, he was the first Malaysian—and the first person of Chinese descent–nominated for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work to control the pneumonic plague. A devoted advocate and practitioner of medical advancement, Wu’s efforts not only changed public health in China but that of the entire world.

 

Happy birthday to the man behind the mask, Dr. Wu Lien-teh!

 

Wear a mask. Save lives.​

[Andrew_C]

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/who-can-get-the-vaccine/

 

Gov 'Who can have...' page.

 

That's me booked.

Drs' surgery just offered a jab a week earlier, and a much more accessible venue! Next Weds.

[mavhc]

He also invented the first Anti-Masker:

 

a prominent French doctor who intended to replace Lien-teh at his post was thought to have hurled racial slurs at the Chinese doctor. According to an account from Lien-teh, the French doctor “raised both his arms in a threatening manner, and with bulging eyes cried out… ‘How dare you laugh at me and contradict your superior?’”

 

The French doctor, known now only as Dr. Mesny, is said to have operated on a number of plague patients, and “refusing any kind of mask, very soon succumbed.”

[caffrey]

Oof, I got dragged into a concerns meeting for my refusal to go into the hall to help out

[mavhc]

"You're right, I'm very concerned that there's 100 people in a room together, thanks for starting this meeting, what will you be doing to fix the flagrant opposition to health and safety?"

[sigma]

Had the Oxford jab on Monday. Still have aching shoulders which has nothing to to with the jab and everything to do with increasing the weights I was working out with on Tuesday. Slight tenderness at the injection site, otherwise nothing.

[mikeprice]

Mrs mikeprice rang her sister this evening to have a chat

 

she has her vaccine booked (that is us kneeling thanking the gods for her not seeing $stuff on Facebook)

her husband has already had his - my knees are getting sore at this point

 

at which point said husband walks into hearing saying - "and now apparently it causes clots"

 

no - clots have the vaccine - just bare you arm and think of England

 

FFS - family!!!!!

 

 

Oh and as an extra - their son has just had a 'gender revel' thing - apparently it is a girl - sister-in-law REALLY has wanted a grandkid - she os great with kids and has had to put up with visits from ours until now

soon she will have one of her own!!!!

[caffrey]

"You're right, I'm very concerned that there's 100 people in a room together, thanks for starting this meeting, what will you be doing to fix the flagrant opposition to health and safety?"

 

Pretty much what I said, plus part of it is to do with another concern I have which is there is no control as to what device kids are bringing into schools, we're having to support whatever they have

 

Pupil equipment list specifically states ipad. We are having major issues with android \ unifi and latest IOS is giving us issues as well - some devices are taking huge chunks of time to get connected and with them being BYOD we have no control over them at all - we have 0 issues with class set school owned chromebooks \ loaners

 

Might contact my Union, it's not something I've ever done before so I don't even know where to start!

[elsiegee40]

Had our AZ vaccines yesterday afternoon. We both took paracetamol before going to bed. I got cold in the night, which is unusual for me being a menopausal female, and put an extra layer on.

 

This morning nothing particular for me. Mr gee40 says he doesn’t feel quite right, but nothing he can pinpoint and has taken more paracetamol.

 

I’d say any side effects are mild bordering non existent for us.

[kennysarmy]

Anyone know when the 50-54 bracket will get their invite?

[elsiegee40]

Anyone know when the 50-54 bracket will get their invite?

 

I’m guessing they’ll get their call up next week sometime. It seems to be about a fortnight for each group

[paulkerton]

Anyone know when the 50-54 bracket will get their invite?

Originally Mid-April, but it looks like it might be bought forward. Nothing officially announced yet.

[caffrey]

Good, can't wait to get mine

[foofighterjim]

Originally Mid-April, but it looks like it might be bought forward. Nothing officially announced yet.

 

Don't forget that in the next few weeks, the very first groups to have their first jab will need their second, this will reduce the rate of first jabs and they may need to hold some vaccines back to ensure supply.

[paulkerton]

Don't forget that in the next few weeks, the very first groups to have their first jab will need their second, this will reduce the rate of first jabs and they may need to hold some vaccines back to ensure supply.

Well that's the thing, the original capacity for injections was 2 million a week when the very first groups were getting their jabs and it looks like they'll have the capacity for 4 million a week in the next few weeks, which means they can at least roughly keep up the pace regardless of the second jabs coming online.

[stevejp]

Had our AZ vaccines yesterday afternoon. We both took paracetamol before going to bed. I got cold in the night, which is unusual for me being a menopausal female, and put an extra layer on.

 

This morning nothing particular for me. Mr gee40 says he doesn’t feel quite right, but nothing he can pinpoint and has taken more paracetamol.

 

I’d say any side effects are mild bordering non existent for us.

 

Not wishing to take on the role of Job’s comforter, but I had mine yesterday. Had as good a night’s sleep as I ever have these days, woke up fine this morning, and was sure I’d dodged a bullet. Come half-past one this afternoon, and I’ve been dragging myself around school shivering like an Eskimo and feeling like I’d been kicked several times by a deranged mule. Hope you stay OK...

[elsiegee40]

Not wishing to take on the role of Job’s comforter, but I had mine yesterday. Had as good a night’s sleep as I ever have these days, woke up fine this morning, and was sure I’d dodged a bullet. Come half-past one this afternoon, and I’ve been dragging myself around school shivering like an Eskimo and feeling like I’d been kicked several times by a deranged mule. Hope you stay OK...

 

Interesting. We both got to about the same time and just needed to go to sleep. Nothing worse than that, but so tired!

[Ditto]

Good, can't wait to get mine

Keep a regular eye on the NHS booking website, it appears it can change to the next group before gov announcements. The changeover with 2nd vaccines impact the volume of first vaccines is likely to show significant change late March. On a positive note, I have learnt from a trusted NHS contact that the recent challenge with Pfizer vaccine quantities has largely been addressed, so hopefully first vaccine rate will be stronger than anticipated as early phase groups get their second jabs.

[elsiegee40]

Every adult in UK 'set to get coronavirus vaccine first dose by early June'

 

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/every-adult-uk-set-coronavirus-23705196

 

The UK will offer a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine to all adults by early June, reports claim.

 

Vaccination teams are reportedly on track to offer every adult at least one jab by June 10.

[Ditto]

The last two days of positive tests, nationally, has increased on a weekly basis for the first time in quite a while. This indicates that LFTs in schools are picking up (hopefully asymptomatic) cases that otherwise would not have been identified. To what extent is hard to determine. Telegraph suggest 7 in 10 could be wrong, yet Evening Standard state for the March 7th, approaching 40% have been confirmed by PCR, with the remainder yet to be confirmed. There is no figure for unconfirmed cases. ES conclude that schools re-opening is behind the increase. In my mind, at the moment, I think it should be reported as an 'increase in detection' rather than an 'increase in covid cases'. Whether that remains to be true as lockdown continues, only time and data will reveal.

[jmak]

The last two days of positive tests, nationally, has increased on a weekly basis for the first time in quite a while. This indicates that LFTs in schools are picking up (hopefully asymptomatic) cases that otherwise would not have been identified. To what extent is hard to determine. Telegraph suggest 7 in 10 could be wrong, yet Evening Standard state for the March 7th, approaching 40% have been confirmed by PCR, with the remainder yet to be confirmed. There is no figure for unconfirmed cases. ES conclude that schools re-opening is behind the increase. In my mind, at the moment, I think it should be reported as an 'increase in detection' rather than an 'increase in covid cases'. Whether that remains to be true as lockdown continues, only time and data will reveal.

Definitely one to watch, but I heard a representative from the ONS on the news last night and they said that their survey (which has been used as the best guage of community prevalence for many months now) is still showing a decrease in England and Wales. Hopefully it's the increased testing [emoji1696]

 

In other news, I'm trying to decide whether I ache all over because 1) I used a fork to aerate 200m² of lawn yesterday, 2) I'm having reaction to the vaccine I had yesterday or 3) it's all in my head....

[Andrew_C]

MrsC had the Astra jab yesterday morning. Shivery, achy, and a headache by bedtime.

[elsiegee40]

Interesting. We both got to about the same time and just needed to go to sleep. Nothing worse than that, but so tired!

 

Mr gee40 and I both fine today. My arm is still a little tender but that’s it.

[mavhc]

I wonder who was going around pushing this "False Positive Lateral Flow panic" story, it's exactly the opposite of the actual problem of false negatives everyone was complaining about before.