UK, Scotland & Ireland - Coronavirus COVID-19

[Amonet]

BBC:

Some of the biggest names in music have joined forces to celebrate healthcare workers in a globally televised concert.

Lady Gaga, Paul McCartney and Billie Eilish were among more than 100 artists who performed songs from their living rooms, due to the coronavirus lockdown.

The Rolling Stones even managed to play together from four separate locations.

The eight-hour show also featured real-life stories from those on the front line of the fight against Covid-19.

The event raised almost $128m (£102m), with proceeds going towards vaccine development and local and regional charities, organisers Global Citizen said.

Star-studded concert celebrates health workers

 

[Amonet]

From the BBC Live page

First patients released from London's Nightingale Hospital

The NHS Nightingale Hospital in London, the 4000-bed emergency hospital set up to treat those suffering from coronavirus, discharged its first patients on Sunday evening.

The field hospital, set up in east London's converted ExCel centre, took in its first patients on 7 April, four days after it opened.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock sent his congratulations, praising the "brilliant team" working at the hospital on Twitter.

There's a video along with the story, showing lots of staff cheering and clapping as the ambulance carrying the patient leaves the Nightingale Hospital.

Coronavirus: 'Only halftime' in New York fight says governor - BBC News

 

[Amonet]

BBC:

Bolded section BBM

Boris Johnson has told colleagues his concerns that relaxing lockdown measures too soon could lead to a second outbreak of coronavirus.

The PM is understood to have met his deputy Dominic Raab at Chequers on Friday to discuss the crisis.

He is thought to have told Mr Raab and other officials via video that stopping a second peak was his priority.

The PM is currently staying at Chequers - the country retreat of the prime minister - while he recovers from coronavirus, and is not officially back at work yet.

Meanwhile, government sources said the review of lockdown measures in three weeks would lead to modifications, rather than any widespread easing.

PM fears second peak from relaxing lockdown

 

[Amonet]

Sky News:

Clinical trials of a coronavirus vaccine will begin on people from Thursday, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said.

The COVID-19 vaccine is being developed by scientists at the University of Oxford, who have said it has an 80% chance of success.

Coronavirus: UK vaccine to be trialled on people from Thursday

 

[Amonet]

From Sky News:

Dogs are being trained to detect coronavirus in passengers arriving at UK airports.

Canines at the Medical Detection Dogs charity have previously been used to find cancer, Parkinson's disease and malaria and will receive similar training in order to help during the pandemic.


The organisation's founder believes the animals could detect COVID-19 in asymptomatic travellers arriving in the UL when lockdown measures are relaxed.

Coronavirus: Dogs being trained to find passengers with COVID-19 at UK airports

 

[Alyce]

Professor Whitty from today's conference


Coronavirus will affect everyday life for 'really quite a long time' Professor Whitty says

 

[Amonet]

Professor Whitty from today's conference


Coronavirus will affect everyday life for 'really quite a long time' Professor Whitty says

Sounds like a tough road ahead, but I personally think it's important for us to keep up with social distancing as much as possible, and continuing with the frequent hand washing and sanitizing etc to try and keep cases down even when the lockdown is relaxed.

What do you guys all think about this?

 

[Alyce]

Sounds like a tough road ahead, but I personally think it's important for us to keep up with social distancing as much as possible, and continuing with the frequent hand washing and sanitizing etc to try and keep cases down even when the lockdown is relaxed.

What do you guys all think about this?

I agree Amonet, the hand washing is a good routine to have...I have always been a regular hand washer but have upped my programme now.
I think the social distancing may be harder for people to keep to, although I do think it will be a huge benefit if we can maintain some measure of it...hopefully it will have become a habit by the time some of the lockdown rules have been relaxed.

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Sounds like a tough road ahead, but I personally think it's important for us to keep up with social distancing as much as possible, and continuing with the frequent hand washing and sanitizing etc to try and keep cases down even when the lockdown is relaxed.

What do you guys all think about this?

I honestly dont know what to think at the moment. Finding myself overwhelmed by the information/lack of info/contradicting info coming at us. Those common sense measures definitely make sense but people wont maintain them. We can only do our bit and hope others do too.

 

[Amonet]

Covid-19 testing is now being rolled out for essential workers and those they live with who have symptoms.

Here is the government information page on this testing, explaining who qualifies and how to request a test.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): getting tested

 

[Amonet]

BBC:

Human vaccine trials start in Oxford, UK.

First patients injected in UK Covid vaccine trial

PS I just heard an ice cream van outside! First one I've heard this year!

 

[HongKongPhooey]

BBC:

Human vaccine trials start in Oxford, UK.

First patients injected in UK Covid vaccine trial

PS I just heard an ice cream van outside! First one I've heard this year!

Kudos to the volunteers, they are braver than me and I'm v grateful for their dedication

 

[HongKongPhooey]

Covid-19 testing is now being rolled out for essential workers and those they live with who have symptoms.

Here is the government information page on this testing, explaining who qualifies and how to request a test.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): getting tested

This is brilliant. Mr HKP qualifies. Wish he had been tested weeks ago when we think he had it, but at least its a step forward.

We'll wait for the antibody test with fingers crossed

 

[Amonet]

BBC:

Two studies are starting soon to test a random sampling of the population for either signs of active infection or antibody tests to see if they've had the infection and how long the antibodies last for.

Virus study to track infection and immunity levels

 

[Amonet]

This is brilliant. Mr HKP qualifies. Wish he had been tested weeks ago when we think he had it, but at least its a step forward.

We'll wait for the antibody test with fingers crossed

No link right now, but I also read on the BBC that the Government is going to organise 18,000 contact tracing staff to complement the rolling out of testing to more people.

I think that's a very good thing, and I really hope that the extra testing, the contact tracing, and an app on top, along with people continuing to be careful (hand washing, covering coughs, staying home if you have possible symptoms, etc) can help keep cases to a minimum and keep as many people as possible out of hospital.

 

[tresir2012]

UK coronavirus deaths more than double official figure, according to FT study | Free to read

This article is claiming UK deaths are more like 41,000 than the 18,000 official figure.

 

[tresir2012]

'Traffic light' system to lift lockdown in Wales

Some restrictions in Wales could be eased at the end of the current three-week lockdown period.

First Minister Mark Drakeford said lockdown could be left in three phases "like a traffic light in reverse".

The red phase would see only "the most careful and controlled lifting of restrictions", he told BBC Radio Wales.

The amber zone would see more restrictions lifted and, if the virus is not re-emerging, Wales could then move to the green zone, he said.

• Ban using second homes, doctors urge Drakeford
• Lifting of Scottish lockdown 'likely to be phased'
• Welsh minister attacks Raab over target comments

This period "would look much more like the lives we had before the crisis hit," Mr Drakeford told Radio Wales Breakfast with Oliver Hides.

Asked when Wales might enter the red zone, the first minister said "I hope we will be in a position to do that at the end of the current three-week lockdown period".

However he warned this would only happen if Wales had met the tests set out in the Welsh Government's framework for exiting the lockdown, which will be published later on Friday.

"We will had to have had hospital admissions falling consistently for 14 days.

"They have been falling over the last week so it's not impossible that we will get to that point and in that case we can move into the red zone."

 

[tresir2012]

The 5 tests to get out of lockdown

Are the five tests for ending lockdown being met?

Test one: Making sure the NHS can cope
It has been clear for a number of days that the health service is in a good position to cope.

Last week, NHS Providers, which represents hospitals, said it was "increasingly confident" the NHS had capacity to get through the peak.

The distressing scenes in Italy where hospitals became overwhelmed are not going to happen.

This is because of the work done to free beds in hospitals - about a third of the 100,000 plus beds across the UK were emptied as routine work was cancelled and community services agreed to take care of patients recovering in hospital.

Operating theatres and recovery rooms were transformed into intensive care wards.

It means even with just under 18,000 coronavirus patients being treated in hospital, there are more than 12,000 beds available - and that's before you take into account the Nightingale field hospitals which are hardly being used.

What is more, over a quarter of intensive care beds are still available, with ministers saying no-one who has needed a bed has been denied one.

Test two: A 'sustained and consistent' fall in the daily death rate
For the past few weeks it has looked like the number of deaths in hospital might be slowing, but it has been hard to call.

However, a new analysis now suggests the peak may have been passed nearly two weeks ago - at least in England.

The daily figures released by government represent when deaths are recorded, not when they happened.

On Monday, the figure announced was under 500, but on Tuesday it jumped to more than 800.

However, some of those deaths happened weeks ago.

NHS England has started compiling deaths by the date on which they happened.

A clear trend emerges. The peak - in England at least - seems to have happened on 8 April, experts say.

Statistician Prof David Spiegelhalter, from the University of Cambridge, said we should expect the downward trend to be slow, but he was confident it was the direction of travel.

Test three: Rate of infection decreasing to 'manageable levels'

Fourth test: Ensuring supply of tests and PPE can meet future demand

Fifth test: Being confident any adjustments would not risk a second peak

See link for details of third, fourth and fifth tests.

 

[astheworldfallsdown]

Coronavirus: Another 684 patients with COVID-19 die in UK hospitals as growth rate slows

 

[Amonet]

Coronavirus: Another 684 patients with COVID-19 die in UK hospitals as growth rate slows

I'm glad the rate of growth in cases and deaths is slowing, but I do wish the deaths would hurry up and get a lot lower than they still are