2019 Novel Coronavirus Covid-19 Discussion

Forums › Health and fitness › 2019 Novel Coronavirus Covid-19 Discussion

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#2846061 10-Jan-2022 12:32

Oblivian:

In other news.. the american doctor out here that paddy gower found... Struck off.

It is understood that investigation is ongoing.

However today the Medical Council confirmed Girouard cannot practise medicine at all in New Zealand.

"Council can confirm that Jonie Girouard is no longer listed as registered and able to practise in New Zealand," said council chair Dr Curtis Walker.

Indeed, good start for the week: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/covid-19-delta-outbreak-fake-vax-exemption-doctor-jonie-girouard-no-longer-able-to-practise-in-new-zealand/ELYAK5VECGTJDU6KLBDQTX4DEM/

I wonder if she'll be deported as well?

SJB

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#2846068 10-Jan-2022 12:42

Some talk in the UK about canning all restrictions/testing/isolation and treating covid as endemic. March a suggested date.

Case numbers are dropping although still at a very high level. Hospitalizations much lower than with delta.

Oblivian

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#2846074 10-Jan-2022 12:58

Which is a little odd given the current nhs staffing issues/squeeze.

But yes, I see a few taking a new stance/ need to find a middle ground. That said, we are a different nation and biological lineage now.

What's to say they are not in that position to consider an option due to it weeding out their elderly/weak already. And more of the population having encountered it (but perhaps not know)

While here, we've still been able to fend off both variants. It may not be a one nation fits all scenario.

trig42

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#2846098 10-Jan-2022 14:03

Oblivian: Which is a little odd given the current nhs staffing issues/squeeze.

But yes, I see a few taking a new stance/ need to find a middle ground. That said, we are a different nation and biological lineage now.

What's to say they are not in that position to consider an option due to it weeding out their elderly/weak already. And more of the population having encountered it (but perhaps not know)

While here, we've still been able to fend off both variants. It may not be a one nation fits all scenario.

Whilst that may be correct, if all of our trading partners start treating it as endemic (I suspect Australia and Europe will very quickly follow the UK), we will be left behind.

NZ is in a good position in that it can see what happening overseas. I'm not sure we are doing enough to prepare for Omicron's release (though, I'm also not sure what more we could do?)

I think the government will be waiting for more boosters to get into arms (500,000 already done?), and hoping we can get a few more weeks into the booster roll out then they'll basically let it run.

KrazyKid

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#2846135 10-Jan-2022 14:43

Yeah, I agree with Trig. The only plan is to get as many vaccines in arms. Not sure if the government will have to deliberately let in run though. It will escape by itself.
I'm not actually sure how ethically (or politically) they can let it rip deliberately.
I suppose they open up home isolation and that will speed up escape.

My booster is 9th March so if it can stay out until end of Feb I'll be very happy (and surprised).

On another related note, Vaccine passports will surely be a thing of the past after Omicron goes through?

Buster

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#2846162 10-Jan-2022 15:11

The kids doses arrived over the weekend and that program is starting next week. Eight weeks between doses ideally but that may be shortened depending on circumstance.

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ajobbins

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#2846319 10-Jan-2022 17:16

Oblivian: Which is a little odd given the current nhs staffing issues/squeeze.

I would not be surprised in Australia follows suit in the not too distant future. Our case numbers are about 20x higher than they were back in October, where we had about 100 people on ventilators here in VIC. Today we have 28 - and most of those are probably Delta cases.

Our total hospital numbers today are similar to what they were back in October as well (where there were at least 20x less cases), but we also know that at least half of those hospital numbers are due to admissions for unrelated reasons, so it's quite hard to get a real picture of what strain Omicron is directly putting on the health system.

The key reason we are seeing hospitals overwhelmed now, and why supply chains are buckling is not because more people are seriously sick, but because there are so many people isolating as close contacts who have not tested positive. By shifting to an 'endemic' response, where only active cases are isolating until no longer infectious it will make a huge difference in alleviating the strain on the health and other systems.

Is that the right health response? I dunno - but it may be if the alternative is hospitals and essential businesses start failing to function due to the number of staff being forced to isolate.

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Daynger

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#2846321 10-Jan-2022 17:28

Another strain found in France via Cameroon.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10365005/Covid-tracking-scientists-France-spot-variant.html

Deltacron mashup of delta and omicron found in Cyprus.

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2022/01/coronavirus-25-cases-of-new-combined-delta-and-omicron-strain-found-in-cyprus.html

Its not going well.

MaxineN

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#2846324 10-Jan-2022 17:35

Dailymail is tabloid. Can we get another source?

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

Oblivian

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#2846330 10-Jan-2022 17:49

Most of the NZ media running with it, so it's not hard to find

As a wise mathematician once said (and was on TV again recently ;) )

"Life will find a way"

At least everyone all at once cuts off its ability to mutate it will keep on doing so

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#2846331 10-Jan-2022 17:50

there are always new strains everyday. but only the strongest at reproducing survive.

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debo

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#2846333 10-Jan-2022 17:58

Daynger:
Another strain found in France via Cameroon.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10365005/Covid-tracking-scientists-France-spot-variant.html

Deltacron mashup of delta and omicron found in Cyprus.

https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/world/2022/01/coronavirus-25-cases-of-new-combined-delta-and-omicron-strain-found-in-cyprus.html

Its not going well.

This is the risk of the New Zealand approach. We save the country from a relativly mild Omicron wave and instead get a new wave that is both highly transmissible and highly deadly. The longer we keep Omicron out the higher the risk of getting a new variant instead.

ajobbins

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#2846356 10-Jan-2022 18:14

debo:

This is the risk of the New Zealand approach. We save the country from a relatively mild Omicron wave and instead get a new wave that is both highly transmissible and highly deadly. The longer we keep Omicron out the higher the risk of getting a new variant instead.

The other risk is that you have waning immunity to and lack of exposure to seasonal illnesses. NZ had a pretty bad outbreak of RSV last year, perhaps because of your border controls. The longer you stay locked to the rest of the world, the greater this risk becomes.

I'm not saying throw open the borders and let it rip, but it does add to the risk factors of a long term border closure.

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Sup

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#2846357 10-Jan-2022 18:19

India is where I am most concerned at the moment. They are growing a fairly substantial omicron outbreak off their mostly Delta immunity. Hopefully the vaccine uptake there is at least enough to stop creating another super variant like Delta.

These other variants are popping up quickly, but we did say this would happen with the astronomical omicron numbers..you are going to see lots of mutations.

Letting omicron rip, just ensures you breed a stronger virus. I guess many are happy to take the completely random chance that the next variant is not more virulent.

Just keep swimming...

sbiddle

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#2846378 10-Jan-2022 19:11

Oblivian: Most of the NZ media running with it, so it's not hard to find

As a wise mathematician once said (and was on TV again recently ;) )

"Life will find a way"

At least everyone all at once cuts off its ability to mutate it will keep on doing so

Funny how they all love the clickbait headline about the French mutant strain that's going to wipe us all out, but don't bother with the facts. The problem is Dr Gloom himself Eric Feigl-Ding tweeted the paper without providing context and it went wild online.

The Dr who actually discovered this in November in France and who wrote the paper was also famous for claiming hydroxychrloquine was a cure. Numerous experts since then have thoughly debunked claims about it being worrying, and even the Dr who originally isolated and identified the strain has said that.

Did any mainstream media bother to mention the last reported case of this in France was on the 6th Dec?

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