Lockdown In NE

[Ianp66]

Just when life starts getting "normal". Feeling good, no AF, exercise going well and diet right, it looks like the NE of England in big swathes is going back into lockdown. Flu jab cancelled no doubt, and doctors still off limits, no checks have been made since January on my BP , bloods, anything.

Yet you can go to pubs until 10pm according to predicted changes, but not visit family in other households . What stupidity is this government working under? , sorry, but schools, especially pubs and anything which obviously is capable of increasing infection levels staying open is just plain stupid. Sorry I know its probably not the place, but my god how ridiculous is this whole debacle becoming.

The emotional stress and mental health issues caused by family being cut off, elderly members being isolated again , while idiots are allowed in pubs but just until 10pm seemingly covid it's OK up to 10pm in pubs 🙄, just all makes you wonder why anyone pays attention to the ever changing, ever ridiculous information being offered, and adding insult to injury, no testing available anywhere .

Sorry about the rant, just fuming at the stupidity of the few, and the lack of leadership in the current government, was a Boris fan but not so much now.

[Hidden]

You are absolutely right Ian, I guess all can do is do the best we can to keep safe and protect ourselves as much as possible from those who seem determined wreck things.

[Ianp66 in reply to Hidden]

Frustrating isn't it, just seems as you say the few determined to follow conspiracy theories and other stupid it's "only flu" mantras, makes me boil 😂

[Cally53 in reply to Ianp66]

I agree they make my blood boil too. What makes me laugh is that they 'follow' conspiracy theories, yet call the rest of us sheep! oh the irony!

[CDreamer]

I’m sorry you are so upset, whatever our political views and preferences we need to deal with COVID and if possible prevent a Nationwide Lockdown.

It’s very sad that the whole need to suffer for the stupidity or unconcern of a few who have not kept their distance, worn protective masks and washed our hands frequently. This is a life threatening virus and normal service will not be resumed until the infection rate comes down.

I don’t think this is the place to start a political debate - that will only get everybody’s BP cortisol levels sky high - but it is the place to sound off and have a rant so hope you now have got it out of your system. As my sister - ITU manager recently commented - we can’t fix stupid!

Deep breaths everyone!

[Ianp66 in reply to CDreamer]

Rant did it, just as you say not the place here for politics even though it boils me.

I just keep on with my small bubble, keep away from idiots and keep routine as much as possible.

Breathing deep as we speak 😉

[jeanjeannie50]

Hi Ian

Yes, I agree with you.

Thinking about it, I guess the pubs being open could be for the young to go out and do their courting. Now that's a powerful natural instinct that can't be suppressed and there's not a lot of other ways they can meet at the moment. Also it may be a place that people living on their own can meet with friends, I know a lot of men go there for the company and to talk about sport etc. Ok, so it doesn't suit us, but it may be a lifeline and escape from extreme loneliness for others.

Me - I'm staying away from people, other than family and a few friends. I won't be going anywhere near crowded indoor places, as to my way of thinking doing that is common sense.

Jean

[Ianp66 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Agree Jean, I'm exactly the same, kept to my own little routine since March, no indoor places, no shops, just the beach and walks n bike rides, it's actually quite nice not mixing, think I'm a bit reclusive now 😂

[CDreamer in reply to jeanjeannie50]

If you look on Devon Live Jean you will see the Uni students congregating in large numbers - including on our beach and ignoring all warnings and being quite rude. There a few in the town who intend to take it up with the Uni. I understand they need to socialise and we all remember the halcyon days of our youth, however, I do think young people in particular need to take great care as they are endangering family of their older generation.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to CDreamer]

Young people seem to have this belief that they won't catch the virus and it's not really that bad. As we grow older though we learn the hard way that bad things can happen in our lives. Yes, I do look on Devon Live every day.

[Ianp66 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Totally agree Jean , the idea that your invincible when younger has consequences, as you get older and bits fall off or fail it certainly makes you value life and those around you more. I think we were brought up to have more respect and responsibility than this "poor me" generation, seems its all about making statements and limelight without talent now, hard work and respect is something mocked .

[Jajarunner]

Blame the electorate , they chose a proven liar as PM!

[Auriculaire in reply to Jajarunner]

Absolutely. I have no sympathy at all for anyone who voted in this government of incompetents and crooks and now moans about how they are handling the pandemic. They had better be praying that there will be a deal because a no deal Brexit will just make things even worse. Keeping the pubs open is an economic decision as is urging people back into offices to which they will need to travel on public transport. If there was a proper test and trace system this might be manageable but the current one is more about profits for cronies rather than getting a handle on the situation.

[Jajarunner in reply to Auriculaire]

Exactly. Brilliantly put.

[Physalis in reply to Auriculaire]

Do you really think Jeremy Corbyn would have done better? Do we really want to start arguing again about Brexit?

I'm doing my bit by keeping myself to myself. The trouble has been that infections have mainly been passed on when people gather in their homes. People complained that the rules were too complicated, it gets reduced to only six people meeting and they are still complaining.

And the media! We don't need HM Official Opposition when we've got Kay Burley et alia. They love interviewing people who are critical of everything that is being done or not done. Good job they weren't around in 1939!

[Auriculaire in reply to Physalis]

I detest Corbyn. But the drive to "privatise " the pandemic by awarding contracts to crony companies for test and trace and procurement of PPE has made for a very bungled response. What is more millions of taxpayer money has been wasted on giving contracts to companies who have no expertise in health . Why would you want a gang of accountants in charge of setting up testing laboratories.?

The virus is all over the world. But there is a big difference in response from governments and that tends to reflect their political flavour. The UK is not in the same camp as Germany or New Zealand- countries run by sensible women ( indeed Scotland has had a more consistent and coherent approach than England)- but is nearer to the US and Brazil because like those countries it has a lying narcissist as leader. As for the media it is their job to call out politicians on their failures and frankly I don't think they are doing nearly enough to expose said failures. What they are doing which I think is reprehensible is whipping up too much fear over covid. Yes positive cases are going up but hospitalizations and deaths are not matching the rate of increase. As for people mixing in parks the transmission rates outside are much lower. Why should 7 people from the same family not be able to meet in a park but 30 people can go grouse shooting together? Is this coherent scientifically? What is coherent is one rule for toffs and cronies and another for the rest. Just like Dominic Cummings

[Physalis in reply to Auriculaire]

This time last year we were all wallowing in Brexit but the election showed that the public were fed up with it all and just wanted it over. This year we are all wallowing in the pandemic and everyone is saying how they would do it differently. There was a lot of talk about children going back to school and going by the media it looked as if half of them would be kept at home but that didn't happen.

Maybe something will pop up in the next few months to change everything, I do hope so!

If you had lived over here maybe you would have voted for Jo Swinson. She's female, wonder how she would have done?

How are things going in France?

[Auriculaire in reply to Physalis]

I'm afraid she did not impress me! I was pleased that our postal vote had been taken away as we have lived here too long to qualify. I would have found it hard to decide which way to vote. If we get it back ( as has been promised) there will be no dithering! Testing is over subscribed here too but we start from a much better base. Every small town has at least one testing lab as that is how you get a blood test for anything here. The doc gives you a prescription and you take it down to the lab. Tests were made free without prescription in early July and this has led to big queues outside labs in areas like Paris, Marseille and Bordeaux where there is a lot of virus . 20 new labs will be set up in the Paris region alone in the next month. Mask discipline is very good here ( the French are far more worried about their health than the Brits- to the point of hypochondria) but there have been bad incidents which unfortunately have been perpetrated largely by people of immigrant ie Maghrébine or Sahel origin. A bus driver was dragged off his bus in Bayonne and beaten so badly he died a few days later . He had asked a group of men to obey the rules and wear a mask on the bus. There have been similar incidents of people being beaten up for asking people to wear masks ( including a nurse on a bus) but no other fatal ones. Macron has ruled out another nationwide lockdown and is leaving it up to departmental prefects to take action where necessary. Why bring in stringent social distancing rules in areas where there is hardly any virus transmission? It just upsets people. There has been no curtailing of GP services in our area . It is not taking any longer to get an appointment with our GP than before, and the surgeon I saw last week to fix a date for my hip replacement does not think that it will be further delayed even if covid gets worse. I am having to wait 3 months which given he said there was a backlog because of the lockdown is pretty good. But having lived most of my life in the UK and nearly 20 years here I can say that the health systems are chalk and cheese. What's more friends and relatives report that things are worse in the UK than they were 20 years ago.

[Physalis in reply to Auriculaire]

Yes, I think the NHS has got problems. The trouble seems to me that they are trying to cure everybody of everything and there will never be enough money.

And, we all have to be kept alive regardless of whether it is what we want or not. I've told my family that if I lose my marbles then they must withhold treatment, antibiotics the lot. And before you ask, I've got a lasting power of attorney! I told my doctor that I had an advance directive and he typed in 'Do not resuscitate' on his computer. I think I'll tell my new doctor I don't want to go just yet!

Hopefully, the politicians will pass the 'Right to Die' legislation next time it comes up. That's another thing that MPs think they know better than us.

Fortunately, my bit of the NHS on the south coast is working very well for me but I know it is not the same everywhere.

Hopefully, you won't need to vote for another four years. What part of France are you in?

[Auriculaire in reply to Physalis]

The Limousin. This is an area with an aging population so services for the elderly are good. I think preventative healthcare is a lot better here. For example you cannot just put in for repeat prescriptions. A prescription has 6 months worth of drugs maximum. Each month you present it at the chemist. Then you have to actually see the doctor to get a new one. This gives him/her a chance to examine you ,ask questions about how you are sleeping , evacuating , digesting etc. Every year or so you get a battery of blood tests to check on lipids, blood sugar, liver and kidney function etc. Vit D deficiency is taken more seriously at least for women. If you complain about any problem at our doc's you are taken seriously and sent for tests to get to the bottom of it just in case. Once you are on "the books" of a specialist you can ring up for an appointment without going to the GP so you always see the same one. My surgeon for the hip replacement told me I would see him 1 month,2 months ,6 months ,1year and 2 years after the op! Things are 20 years behind UK when it comes to unhealthy eating habits. Though processed junk is expanding and with it obesity rates the French love of fine cuisine keeps it at bay. There are cheap restaurants everywhere where you can get simple but tasty real food .

[Physalis in reply to Auriculaire]

I suppose different things are important to different people. Being able to order my prescriptions online and getting them delivered is important to me! I feel that I've survived pretty well all my life without constant blood tests etc. I've no desire to see my GP unless it is absolutely necessary and I guess I've only seen him a handful of ten times in the ten years I've lived here but maybe I've been lucky.

I take Vitamin D tablets which I think are essential in this country.

I find the levels of obesity very disappointing here. Very few were overweight when I was young. Wartime rationing and shortage of money in the fifties and sixties kept people slim but now people have got much more money to spend. For a long time I've been saying that they should put VAT on food but leave it off fruit and vegetables and unprocessed food. Maybe they could set it at a level where it would pay for the diabetes NHS bill but it's unlikely to happen.

[Hidden in reply to Auriculaire]

Hiya Auriculaire,

Yeah an interesting one this public transport. Can't speak for rail but with the bus industry, it hasn't yet been fully understood by bus industry management and Dept for Transport. Its all very well getting people back into their offices .....BUT ! The company that I drive for has 4 types of buses, 3 of them are single deck buses, of the three they each have different carrying capacity of seated passengers., 37, 25 and 18.

Under CoVid regulations we can only carry in a bus no more than 60% capacity - so in a worse case scenario at 60% capacity - 37 @ 60% = 22; 25 @ 60% = 15; and 18 @ 60% = 11 ............. so, in every case, with 22,15 and 11 passengers on board they will all be sitting less than 2 m apart. The internal design configuration of modern buses just does not permit social distancing at a factor of 60%. At a guess, in my experience as a bus driver around 30 to 40% would be more consistent with social distancing. Under CoVid regulations no standing passengers are allowed in a bus, and only 1 wheelchair is permitted. Mind you that's all there is space for anyway.

Gonna be interesting to see as winter tightens its grip how all these office workers are gonna be conveyed from and back to home. There aren't enough buses around anyway, production of new buses while ongoing is seriously delayed due to Coronavirus and there aren't enough bus drivers to drive what buses are available anyway. Our company would have serious problems if we didn't employ 'Agency' bus drivers.

John

[Auriculaire in reply to Hidden]

People will have to use cars if they need to make longer journeys and car sharing might not be very popular. Roads will become more congested and there will be more pollution. Pollution is apparently a factor with covid - those who are subject to more pollution do worse due to hidden lung damage . Certainly there seems to be worse asthma in kids who live in cities. I do not think many people would be keen to cycle long distances in inclement weather! Those who can work from home should continue to do so. Many will be happy to not have 2/3 hour commutes ( with exhorbitant season tickets ) eating into their day , Their local businesses wil, benefit too. I just hope the kind of trouble we have seen here in France does not afflict bus drivers in UK.

[doodle68]

There will always be those selfish who break the rules and make things harder for the rest of us but let's not forget the many who don't and those are doing their best to help us stay safe.

A visit to the arrhythmia clinic in the local cottage hospital this week was handled with great efficiency, we were allowed 5 mins arrival time to telephone reception announcing our arrival or to ring the door bell then we were temperature checked hand sanitised and escorted to our appointment by a nurse. I usually have to wait hours, it was great to go straight in.

Likewise when I went to the Doctors surgery for a flu vaccination,it was organised like clockwork with just a few bookings at a time , cars arriving in their allotted time were marshalled into the car park then temps were checked and people walked through a small open sided marquee for the vaccination .The marshalling was carried out by the local community volunteers

I then went to the local fruit farm where lots of patient customers wearing masks were lined up outside an open barn waiting to collect goods and pay, all very organised and safe with hand sanitisers much in evidence.

I feel quite confident that if I obey the guidelines myself and stay away from busy areas I will be safe from the virus.

A lot of people are grumbling about the 6 person rule, everyone should be prepared to make small sacrifices for the good of all . I have 5 grandchildren (2 sets of twins) and their parents make 7 so for the foreseeable future I can't see all my family together but I can meet the children for a walk with one parent 2 or 3 children at a time.

The media is full of people eager to criticise rather than trying to make the best of a bad situation and doing the best they can to help where possible.

[Ianp66 in reply to doodle68]

Totally agree, mixed messages and media idiots making news out of nothing is half of the problem.

[CDreamer in reply to doodle68]

Just returned from sea swim about time School was out when a family with 6 children - 8 persons in total - crossed the road. They were obviously of the same family - what happens there then? Should 2 of the children leave or both parents - or 1 of each?

[Hidden in reply to CDreamer]

Friend reckons her grandchildren part of family of six. They’ll get rid of a twin as they have two of them!🤣

[Ianp66 in reply to CDreamer]

Dress one as a cat one as a dog, job done 😂😉

[CDreamer in reply to Ianp66]

😂laughter always best medicine👍

[Hidden in reply to doodle68]

Hiya doodle,

I must say I have read and re read your post and feel that you could almost be in the area where I live (which will remain nameless). Your comments pretty much echo my experiences in hometown.

However, I think there is one thing nobody has fully grasped is that the human animal is one of the most stupid and destructive to ever have plagued this planet. Yet it is deemed intelligent. Coronavirus ( at the risk of reading too much Sci-Fi, which I don't anyway) has its own particular lifeform, with its own particular intelligence ....... and it is an intelligence humans yet do not understand. Until we understand the Coronavirus Intelligence it will continue to laugh as it meanders through the world on its killing spree. So for now at least the only people I listen to are the scientists ...... because they are the only ones with any chance of sorting this new lifeform.

At risk of joining the politics - I am totally amazed and the suppression of freedom of information the UK media are getting away with. Everything is about the UK bubble, well actually, who really cares about the UK, in the context of our experiences we really ARE no different to any other country and if people stepped out of their bubble and looked at other bubbles around the world with a variety of nations, both English speaking and non English speaking - we can argue this that and the other coronavirus is winning, it is intelligent and it will find a way of breaking through whatever defences humans put up. Interesting how, in almost every case that a country got on top of it in the original spike with minimal impact, they are now suffering a dramatic 2nd spike.

For me I have much more pressing things to attend to, like enjoying the rest of my annual leave before returning to my bus driving escapades in and around hometown and at the same time juggling a myriad of medical investigation appointments in an attempt to allay the medical demons that are crippling my sleep with pain. So, if its pain, AF or Coronavirus ...... I'll take AF anytime.

Its 2 am now, and I'm gonna try and return to sleep, enjoy your day you lot when you all wake up. Looks like another sunny day here in hometown.

John

[Cally53]

I'm not a fan of the government either but children really do need to be educated. There are huge issues with children being educated/or in fact not being educated at home, with many children already falling well behind their peers. Working through printed worksheets which are sent electronically (for those who can and will do them) isn't a substitute for good teaching either, therefore even bright children won't be making the progress they should be.

I think that at the moment we have at least got some sort of balance to keep the economy going, if people would stick to the rules. Sadly though, those covidiots out there who won't stick to the rules could force us all into full lock down again!

[Ianp66 in reply to Cally53]

I agree, but children could of waited another few weeks until after work was continued so we knew the problem areas of spreading infection, they are definitely more important than Joey who goes to the pub, but it's a just all so up and down it's farcical.

[CDreamer in reply to Ianp66]

It’s interesting that the private schools have not had any issues. I have a friend with twins - 1 teaches at a state school = chaos whilst the other at a private school = order & no falling behind. I am not an advocate of private schooling but at least they have the resources & the parental support and ‘can do - let’s find a way’ attitude.

[Ianp66 in reply to CDreamer]

I think the line "parental support" is key CD, something lacking unfortunately in a lot of state run schools. My son went the private school route and personally I think it boils down to not just the money invested, but precious time by parents, essential to setting a good example that promotes such glaring inconsistencies in circumstances.

[Cally53 in reply to Ianp66]

Annex table 5: people newly testing positive for COVID-19 under pillars 1 and 2, by age and gender, 28 May to 26 August, England2

AgeFemaleMaleTotal

0 to 91,5141,5773,104

10 to 192,9592,7565,727

20 to 298,2266,38014,702

30 to 396,7536,16613,058

40 to 495,7534,73110,576

50 to 595,1114,1219,327

60 to 692,8222,7205,590

70 to 791,9161,9503,886

80 to 892,9101,9744,900

90+1,8526532,513

Total since Test and Trace launched39,81633,02873,553

The above table shows that most people testing positive are adults. (Of course that may change now that children are at school and mixing more though). The highest infection rates were amongst the 20 - 39 age groups, these are the age groups who are also most likely to have the young children. Considering the fact that children weren't mixing together (in general) at that point, I would suggest that they are more likely to have been infected by their parents!

[Desanthony]

We made our appointment for our flu jabs yesterday and we are having a drive through clinic where you have to stay in your car and keep your masks on and you roll your window down to be "jabbed" and drive off! So don't know why they made all the fuss about sitting down in the waiting room for 20 mins afterwards when now we are able to drive straight home! I am quite happy with this as is my wife but all other appointments are via telephone even with the cardio nurses next Wednesday morning so they will not be taking any blood tests or blood pressure readings. Also I hate telephone consultations as I am partially deaf and cannot always hear what they say so it is a trial for both them and me.

[Cally53 in reply to Desanthony]

I had a face to face appointment booked to see a hospital consultant last week, which unfortunately I have had to re arrange because I was in Wales on holiday. I had a physio appointment at the same hospital the previous week, which was over the phone, my next one in a few weeks time is over the phone too. These were both at the same hospital; I can't understand why one department is operating so differently to the other!

[Desanthony]

Sorry but a physio appoointment over the phone makes me laugh - I realise it can be done but it sounds funny. Skype would be better though. You are right some do face to face and some don't it just makes me laugh. I am quite close tot he top of the the list for my ablation so wondering if they are going to do most of that over the phone - ie pre-med etc? Same hospital as I am having the telephone appt next week.

[Cally53 in reply to Desanthony]

Actually, this one is possible to do over the phone, so far anyway. Seems to me they're doing them all like that though, which really will be difficult in some cases!

I had my ablation at the end of July and yes, they did the pre med over the phone. I also had to isolate for 16 days before, but that apparently depends on each hospital's protocol. Whether I'll get to see my ep for my follow up though is another question. I have to have a 10 lead trace before I see her and it seems wrong to me that I'll need to see a nurse to have that done but my ep told me she didn't know whether we would speak face to face! We'll see!

[Desanthony in reply to Cally53]

These are weird times. Got to make the best of things.