Weston Super Saint

Like I said, I hadn't noticed it reported, I wasn't denying it and claiming it was wrong. I didn't watch the daily briefing yesterday because I was working.

Jesus wept, talk anout making up scenarios to suit your agenda. The original post regarding this stated that 125,000 NHS were self isolating BECAUSE THEY WERE SHOWING SYMPTOMS! To recap, the symptoms can be found here : https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/symptoms-and-what-to-do/ The original post was NOT claiming that 125,000 NHS had a bit of a cough, but had either a temperature - indicative of an infection - or a new persistant cough, coughing a LOT FOR MORE THAN AN HOUR. (For the record, I'm not entirely sure where the 125k came from and haven't noticed it reported anywhere). I'm fairly sure those that work for the NHS and are trained medical professionals will know the difference between a bit of hayfever and Covid-19 symptoms, unless you think they are all just taking the **** and having some extra time off?

The current test takes 24 hours for the result to be confirmed. A new test that has been developed that will deliver the results in just 90 minutes - but that is still 90 minutes that someone in the NHS cannot work whilst waiting for the result, unless you take a risk based approach and allow them to go straight to work in the hope they are negative. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-52130230

Do you mean, apart from the ones calling for an antibody test - which was exactly the point I was making?

Then the only way to ensure that is to test all key / NHS workers every day (or at least every other day, depending on the incubation rate of the virus) - that's assuming the results come back instantly, rather than having to wait for cultures to be grown.

She would isolate for SEVEN days if she had symptoms, NOT FOURTEEN. It's really not difficult to understand.

Unless, which is hugley unlikely, all NHS workers started showing symptoms on the very same day by doing absolutely nothing at all, you would get more than 10% back to work every day due to them only having to self isolate for 7 days....

Wait a week and you could have about 95% of them back to work and you wouldn't have risked infecting anyone else...

if you have a cough and do not need any assistance/show mild symptoms, and have been practising social distancing. why do you need a test? - it's my argument that you don't, so not sure what your point is. I would, however, argue that someone working in the NHS cannot practice social distancing at work as the NHS is not set up for people to keep 2 metres of seperation at all times. Hence, self isolation is the only answer for someone with symptoms. With regards to your second point, as I mentioned earlier, the only effective test - at this time - would be one that identifies antibodies to confirm that someone truly is 'safe' to continue working.

Which brings us full circle to my original point, you can be tested - because you have a cough - and return a negative result, walk out the door, touch something and pick up the virus, happily spreading it around everyone you meet safe in the knowledge that you tested negative!

And if you live in a city and don't drive / take public transport, how do you get tested? I'd hazard a guess that the logistics of testing Boris, Charlie and a few others is way more manageable than the logistics of testing ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND people scattered across the entire UK....

How do they get tested? If you are showing symptoms, you have to self isolate, which means do not leave the house, do not receive visitors. How do you get tested if you can't go anywhere and no-one can visit you - magic testing pixies?

Clearly it's a struggle for you, so let me spell it out.... 125,000 are SHOWING SYMPTOMS. Can you see they key words there? If you are SHOWING SYMPTOMS you HAVE TO SELF ISOLATE FOR SEVEN DAYS. What's more, your family members / house mates (who may also work for the NHS) have to self isolate for 14 days.... https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-advice/

I'm struggling to understand how testing 125,000 NHS staff who are 'showing symptoms' is going to get them back to work any quicker. If they are 'showing symptoms' then the advice - from the NHS - is to self isolate for 7 days. Testing them is not going to get them back to work any sooner than 7 days. Frankly, testing 125,000 who are showing symptoms is likely to do more harm than good as they will have to leave their self isolation to go for the test - unless you're suggesting home visits which would put thousands more people at risk!

Doctors should know better! Stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives! That goes for NHS workers too - which is why they have asked retired workers to come back to work to increase the numbers. Or are you suggesting the advice is invalid if you work for the NHS? The absent staff (self isolating) are presumably doing so because they either have the symptoms or have been in close contact (presumably unprotected as you would hope precautions would be in place whilst at work) with someone who has the symptoms. In which case they would have an incubation period of up to seven days, or are you suggesting they can ignore that and carry on working as normal potentially infecting many people even after a negative test result?

Are you saying that NHS staff who are showing symptoms are not being tested? Should they be tested or should they be self isolating like everyone else who has the symptoms to stop it spreading? Should we be wasting money on people (NHS or otherwise) who have the symptoms by testing them, when the prescribed course of action - self isolation - will be the same whatever the outcome of the test?

Exactly what is testing going to achieve if a person has no symptoms? Will it merely confirm that they don't have the virus? What is to stop them from opening a door two minutes after they have been tested and picking the virus up? Testing people who have no symptoms would appear to be a bit of a waste of time, resources and money. Shouldn't the testing be focussed on antibodies - i.e. determining who has already had the virus and thus developed an immunity(?) to it and will therefore be 'safe' to continue their work? Although I'm not sure an antibody test has been developed yet?

Nope. If anything, my weekly mileage has increased but that is because the gym is closed so using the cycling as a substitute. But, I only ever ride solo anyway and apart from the odd wave at other cyclists (and swearing at motorists), I don't have any interaction with another human being which I'm very happy with! There was a big issue last week with an ironman competitor who completed a 200 mile training ride. Not sure what all the fuss was about to be fair, people were complaining that he risked having an accident and thus 'tying up vital NHS resources'. The reality is, you can ride 200 yards from your house and still have exactly the same risks of having an accident. Besides, someone who can ride 200 miles in one go probably has a reasonable set of lungs on them so is unlikely to take up a valuable ICU bed if they did catch the virus....

They are looking at ordering 10,000 of them so someone, somewhere clearly thinks we don't have enough. Meanwhile, other technology companies are looking at fast tracking their inventions for ventilators to solve that shortage problem - although it is unlikely that the number of beds and trained personnel to manage those beds will be able to keep up once the production of ventilators gets under way but that's another battle....

Can we not just take a little bit of good news or does everything has to be a battle? From the same article : That's got to be a good thing, right?

Amazing how technology can solve problems and we're lucky to have some of the best minds in the world on our doorstep. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-52087002

Doesn't seem that bad

Didn't Germany state that if someone dies with underlying conditions even if they test positive for Covid, then they would record the death as being caused by the underlying conditions?

A 'Darwin' government surely?

Mike Ashley - for the second time in a week! https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52040579