COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 30th December 2022

World COVID Statistics: 664,199,215 reported cases and 6,694,494 losses of life.

"I’ve worked in A&E for 22 years & seen nothing like this before.

The NHS is in a critical state. We need urgent action for sake of our staff & patients. Steve Barclay, Rishi Sunak, we need you to listen to those who know what’s happening.

Dear MPs

As an A&E Dr, I’m asking for your help. Please do a shift at your local A&E and see the reality of what’s happening to our NHS.

Not a photoshopped PR stunt but a chance to witness reality of our crumbling NHS.

Then demand change"

Dr Rob Galloway, Brighton. 

Ambulance response times are now double what they were 2 years ago. Several areas have currently declared Critical Incidents due to the sheer number of people waiting for an ambulance. Last week the Welsh ambulance service apologised for leaving a 93 year old with a broken hip screaming in agony on her care home floor for 25 hours before an ambulance arrived. It was another 12 hours before she was admitted to hospital. 

No-one I've spoken to seems to be able to access their GP. It took me 36 hours to obtain antibiotics for a 14 year old with a viral chest infection, bacterially infected wound and a high fever. Yesterday people in Greater Manchester were asked not to attend A&E unless you are actually at risk of death. (For goodness sake don't break an arm, and if you do, it's 111 online for advice, or call 111 if you don't have internet access).

The NHS doesn't fall over, it degrades. However you look at it, ignoring any strikes and strike days, the current delays in emergency care are causing a lot of extra people to die. It is visible in our excess deaths. 

The NHS has been chronically underfunded for years. It has been sold off in favour of very expensive renting of what we need from private companies, and staffing has been allowed to drop to bare minimum levels. We didn't invest in health, we then asked people to work solidly for 2-3 years, without reward or adequate incentive, and this is where you end up.

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 16th December 2022

World COVID Statistics: 656,579,733 reported cases and 6,668,126 losses of life.

Today's ONS random sampling (week ending 5th Dec for England, Wales and Scotland, week ending 3rd Dec for Northern Ireland) is as anticipated, showing an increase in positive test results:

"The percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) continued to increase in England, increased in Wales and Scotland, and the trend was uncertain in Northern Ireland."

- England, estimate 1,095,100, equating to 2.01% of the population (an increase from 1.73% in the previous week), or around 1 in 50.

- Wales, estimate 55,900, equating to 1.84% of the population (an increase from 1.43% in the previous week), or around 1 in 55.

- Northern Ireland, estimate 38,700, equating to 2.11% of the population or around 1 in 45.

- Scotland, estimate 100,700, equating to 1.91% of the population (an increase from 1.68% in the previous week), or around 1 in 50.

Tens of thousands of Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland were on strike yesterday for the first time in history. England’s Chief Nurse, Dame Ruth May, was herself on the picket line in London. 

Over 30,000 operations were cancelled last month due to shortages of staff. No medical professional can be expected to work without the correct support. The stress must be almost unbearable, and it costs lives. 

Scottish nurses in the unions Unite and Unison have voted to accept their pay offer of UP TO around 7.5%. Lowest awards are only around 2%... 

100 months is a milestone no-one wants to reach. 100 months since we lost Elspeth, and it still feels like yesterday and forever, all at once. Christmas is very hard for anyone who has lost someone who is important to them. 

December is a time when it's very hard to keep focus on what we have, because we are constantly reminded of that which is missing. Don't expect more than you are capable of, and that will vary by the day (by the minute). It's okay to look after your own health, to be kind to yourself, to take the time you need to be able to cope. We've had 3 rough years, and we're all exhausted and a bit COVID-battered from it. That battering, on top of normal life events, plus this Winter's specific problems, can leave anyone feeling overloaded without anything else. Know your own limits, and focus on what's really important. It's less than you think... 

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 9th December 2022. 

World COVID Statistics: 652,460,074 reported cases and 6,654,923 losses of life.

"Wages are too low to stop health workers quitting the NHS. As more and more hand in their notice, there are fewer staff left to care for patients. The public knows that's the reason behind lengthy waits at A&E, growing ambulance delays, postponed operations and cancelled clinics."

Unison's head of Health, Sara Gorton, speaking to Sky News.  

The UK's ONS Random COVID Survey says... that for the week ending 26 Nov for England, 24 November for Scotland and Wales, and 23 November for Northern Ireland:

"The percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) continued to increase in England, increased in Northern Ireland and the trend was uncertain in Wales and Scotland."

- England, estimate 941,700, equating to 1.73% of the population (an increase from 1.60% in the previous week), or around 1 in 60 people.

- Wales, estimate 43,400, equating to 1.43% of the population, or around 1 in 70 people.

- Northern Ireland, estimate 36,700, equating to 2.00% of the population (an increase from 1.57% in the previous week), or around 1 in 50 people.

- Scotland, estimate 88,500, equating to 1.68% of the population, or around 1 in 60 people.

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 25th November 2022

World COVID Statistics: 645,069,583 reported cases and 6,633,233 losses of life.

"My offer of formal negotiations was declined and instead ministers have chosen strike action.

Nursing staff have had enough of being taken for granted, enough of low pay and unsafe staffing levels, enough of not being able to give our patients the care they deserve."

Royal College of Nursing general secretary Pat Cullen, as quoted by Sky News. 

Today's UK random COVID sampling from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) is refreshing. It's week ending 15th November, so 10 days behind, but positive tests are declining or static. That's excellent news as Winter is beginning to make itself known, and far better than we are doing with RSV (chest infection virus) and Flu. 

- England, estimate 809,200, equating to 1.48% of the population (a decrease from 1.73% in the previous week), or around 1 in 65 people.

- Wales, estimate 45,400, equating to 1.49% of the population (a decrease from 1.84% in the previous week), or around 1 in 65 people.

- Northern Ireland, estimate 34,100, equating to 1.86% of the population (there was no change in the percentage which was 1.86% in the previous week), or around 1 in 55 people.

- Scotland, estimate 83,700, equating to 1.59% of the population (a decrease from 1.85% in the previous week), or around 1 in 65 people.

Today I have a featured article from a writer the USA, with hints for finding reliable heating, ventilation and cooling (air conditioning) suppliers and fitters - this general advice is useful wherever you are in the world...  

It may be difficult for many people to find a reliable HVAC firm to work on their homes

or businesses. It may seem daunting to try to locate a reliable HVAC company to handle

the dizzying array of options accessible today. By adhering to these guidelines, you may

choose a firm that hires only the most qualified HVAC repair specialists.

World COVID Statistics: 642,121,750 reported cases and 6,622,222 losses of life.

"We now have strong evidence that COVID medicines saved lives during the last COVID wave. 

Victorians aged over 70 who took COVID medicines were 26% less likely to be hospitalised and 55% less likely to die than those who did not."

Victorian Department of Health. 

(That's Victorians living in Victoria, Australia, not Victorians living in the past.)

Latest UK ONS random sampling (week ending 8th November) is an all round good news story. 

"The percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) continued to decrease across all UK countries."

- England, estimate 940,700, equating to 1.73% of the population (a decrease from 2.43% in the previous week), or around 1 in 60 people.

- Wales, estimate 56,000, equating to 1.84% of the population (a decrease from 2.38% in the previous week), or around 1 in 55 people.

- Northern Ireland, estimate 34,200, equating to 1.86% of the population (a decrease from 2.17% in the previous week), or around 1 in 55 people.

- Scotland, estimated 97,500, equating to 1.85% of the population (a decrease from 2.04% in the previous week), or around 1 in 55 people.

We could have expected numbers to be creeping up now with the colder weather, so everyone cross your fingers in case this is the real-world result of those new bivalent (2 pronged) Omicron-fighting vaccines... 

Talking of which... Moderna have announced official trial results showing that their bivalent booster jab is more effective against Omicron than their original jab. Data suggests it produces around 15 times as many Omicron-fighting antibodies - which is great (it has performed very well, but not quite that well, in smaller trials). Pfizer's bivalent booster has also proven to offer an increased level of protection, and we do have a good chance of some stability this Winter, although obviously neither booster will stop all cases.

At the weekend new UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said “I’m Scrooge who’s going to do things that make sure Christmas is never cancelled". Ermmm yeah. So how did he do? 

Well, I for one thought maybe someone in the Tory party benches was going to jump up and call him a raging communist. (They didn't.) The budget gives extra attention to the NHS and Social Care, it allowed for lots of discussion and input as to what exactly has been going wrong, it takes tax from some of the wealthiest and most stable people, and should help those folk who aren't in a food or housing secure position. Its not magic, you will still feel poorer, but I felt it went far better than I anticipated. Fingers crossed.

(Ps. Jez. Can we remove the artificial limits and train more doctors, surgeons, nurses, dentists, opticians, podiatrists etc. and fill those very big gaps. Thanks in advance, Jenny.)

The Guardian is reporting that GPs in England are going to be able to refer suspected Cancer patients for tests without having to send them to a specialist first.

This trial is a desperate attempt to speed up Cancer care, which is falling behind targets and risking the lives of people who could be saved. Alas we also already know that there are delays with accessing treatment once diagnosed, due to lack of trained staff, so I'm not sure how helpful this will be, although it should free up consultant and other staff time. Fingers crossed all round. 

The World Health Organisation have updated their Family Planning Manual to include information on "practical measures that support the continuity of family planning services during epidemics". The main recommendations include wider access to self-administered contraception, and direct distribution of contraception through pharmacies. 

National World have looked at the areas in England and Wales worst affected by COVID loss of life.

Around 1 in every 10 deaths that have occurred this year have been due to COVID in Luton, Ealing, Rushcliffe, Wandsworth, Harrow and Cannock Chase. 

Stafford, Nottingham, Nuneaton & Bedworth, and Kensington & Chelsea running closely behind at more than 1 in every 11.

Figures earlier this Autumn suggest England and Wales are losing around an extra 10-13% more people than we'd expect. That's clearly not a trajectory we want to continue forever, or average life expectancy will fall by several more years. 

The US Senate don't hang about. Just 1 week since the mid-term elections and a small swing of power, and they've voted to end the COVID19 Emergency Declaration.

With the declaration in place they were able to do things like pause student loans, offer free testing and vaccinations, cap treatment prices etc. This is a big move, and it's likely to have a visible effect. 

Ontario in Canada is "urging" the public to wear masks when out of the home indoors, as hospitals are struggling with the number of patients with COVID, flu and RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus - the chest infection virus). 

Famous People With COVID:

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen. He has just taken part in lengthy discussions with a host of world leaders (including 79 year old Joe Biden) at the G20 Summit in Bali. Oops. 

Luxury Cruise News:

Ahhh, how we've missed you.

Last Saturday the Majestic Princess Cruise ship docked in Sydney with around 800 COVID positive passengers on board. There's nothing like a cruise to share whatever you have with everyone else. Good news is that when it docked no-one was very ill. All passengers who chose to stay aboard the ship were required to isolate for 5 days.

Australia is facing a wave of infections at the moment, and people in Queensland have been asked to wear masks in public indoor spaces, including public transport and healthcare settings. 

A new study published in Nature (not yet peer-reviewed) looks at added risk from reinfections with COVID. Hopefully you guys all understand you roll the dice each time you catch this virus, and every infection can cause lasting damage to your body. It's not going to be a huge surprise to learn that reinfection carries a greater risk of severe COVID outcomes, and repeated reinfection even more so.

The researchers looked at the US Veterans data, which is proving to he useful time and again. They studied data collected from 1st March 2020 to 6th April 2022, including 443,588 patients with one SARS-CoV-2 infection, 40,947 with two or more infections, and 5.3 million non-infected people.

As Dr Eric Feigl-Ding nicely summarised:

"Compared to no reinfection, reinfection contributed additional risks of death (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.17, hospitalization (HR = 3.32) & risks of pulmonary, cardiovascular, hematological, diabetes, gastrointestinal, kidney, mental health, musculoskeletal & neurological disorders."

A hazard ratio of 2.17 means 'times 2.17' - more than double. And more than triple for risk of being hospitalised. 

Across the board, whether vaccinated, boosted or not, every group saw this increase. 

Dr Peter Hotez, the Dean of Baylor College of Medicine and Chair of Tropical Diseases at Texas Children's Hospital, thinks its time we stopped listening to crazy theories and started reacting to what we have. He is in no doubt COVID came to us via wildlife, and that we should be looking more closely at how this happened, and how we can prevent it happening again.

A paper out this weekend supports him. It's not yet peer-reviewed, but has some important people backing it, and gives explanations about why COVID came from animals and wasn't a bio-weapon made in a lab. The author talks lots about the genetics and how well SARS-COV-2, the virus which causes COVID, can attach and grow in different animals. In short he uses this as an example of why it wasn't created in a lab - if it was a weapon against humans, they wouldn't have made it infect everything from mink and deer to cats, rats and bats - it would be too difficult to engineer, and too risky to ever use. He also talks about lab leak theories and says if it had been present in lab samples, then wildlife and then human populations near to where the samples were originally collected would become infected, so one lab technician breathing in a few particles would be irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. 

As hard as they look, the first known cases all had links to Wuhan live animal market, and samples from cages and drainage covers tested positive, but conspiracy theories still persist. You can never prove a negative, you can only prove something DID happen, and in this case, we'll likely never have definitive proof of anything. 

The Bird Flu epidemic continues apace, with many dead birds appearing in parks in London and Glasgow among others. 

Do NOT touch dead or sick birds or pick up bird feathers.

If you are asked to keep dogs on a lead or keep to pathways, do so.

In affected parks do not feed the birds or approach them

If you find dead or sick birds in the UK, contact DEFRA. (One or more large birds or predators, 3 or more smaller birds.)

All farmed birds should now have been housed indoors for the last 2-3 weeks. Fresh free range eggs are not currently an option. 

The world's population passed 8 billion humans on Tuesday. This is 3 times the number of people we had in 1950, just over 70 years ago. That growth rate is slowing, and caused in large part by increased life expectancy as opposed to loads of new births. This causes its own problems, as less young people means there's no-one to take care of us when we are old...

The UK's Royal Mail have announced several strikes in the run up to Christmas, after being offered a 2% pay rise, which is less than 1/5th of inflation, along with unpopular changes to working conditions. 

They plan to strike on November 24, 25 and 30, and December 1, 9, 11, 14, 15, 23 and 24. 

Get your Christmas post sorted early to avoid disappointment. (Obviously delivery of a parcel doesn't guarantee there won't be any disappointment.)

Thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday last week - I had a very lovely meal out with most of our kids, and a cardboard "Birthday Princess" tiara, which made everyone smile. I also had 3 lazy days, which was an epic present to myself. It is the weekend again now, so I hope you've planned something nice for yourself - you really have earned it. Be kind to others, but always remember to be kind to you too. 

I'll be back next week. 

Let Fresh Air In Often, Wear A Cardi. Save The NHS. 

Some people. They are shown as numbers, but that's because I can't spell all of their names.

Countries / Cases / Losses of life YESTERDAY in the full 24 hours until midnight GMT:

World 641,927,262 (+352,137) 6,621,844 (+1,121) 

Japan 23,519,801 (+93,005) 47,959 (+133)

S. Korea 26,412,901 (+55,437) 29,862 (+67)

France 37,250,370 (+33,331) 158,089 (+87)

Brazil 35,009,176 (+29,102) 688,886 (+75)

Germany 36,180,077 (+27,587) 156,410 (+218)

USA 100,108,704 (+23,012) 1,101,843 (+158)

Taiwan 8,112,228 (+20,121) 13,790 (+76)

Australia 10,541,753 (+10,922) 15,953 (+15 )

Hong Kong 2,012,877 (+8,052) 10,569 (+12 )

Indonesia 6,590,113 (+7,822) 159,291 (+38)

Chile 4,859,241 (+6,904) 62,102 (+50)

Russia 21,520,021 (+5,680) 391,273 (+61)

Austria 5,506,809 (+4,509) 21,134 (+6)

Malaysia 4,960,179 (+3,457) 36,583 (+9)

Sources: 

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/

https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations

https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

https://twitter.com/VicGovDH/status/1593081344908988417?t=pIY6Llcfm14V8qgVAoCySQ&s=19

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/healthandsocialcare/conditionsanddiseases/bulletins/coronaviruscovid19infectionsurveypilot/18november2022

https://www.upday.com/uk/im-scrooge-with-a-plan-to-save-christmas-by-beating-evil-inflation-hunt-said

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/moderna-bivalent-covid-19-booster-shot-performs-ba5/story?id=93251807

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/nov/16/gps-england-send-suspected-cancer-patients-directly-tests

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1592414495074574338?t=jLPWsGa13t9pf9-Q6RhPQQ&s=19

https://www.nationalworld.com/health/coronavirus/covid-deaths-areas-england-wales-hardest-hit-coronavirus-deaths-2022-3919409

https://twitter.com/luckytran/status/1592738788534407168?t=D8M6QslG_qKWQWIvXNlAJg&s=19

https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/what-happens-when-covid-19-emergency-declarations-end-implications-for-coverage-costs-and-access/

https://twitter.com/seungminkim/status/1592325720210288641?t=GJKNPLV_Isn_pVY5NPqcKQ&s=19

https://twitter.com/picardonhealth/status/1591211053333245952?t=RQg0D7dQa63j4w_W0tI2vA&s=19

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-022-02051-3

https://drericding.substack.com/p/avoid-repeat-infectionsrisk-of-death

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/nov/11/cruise-ship-majestic-princess-to-dock-in-sydney-with-800-covid-cases-on-board

https://twitter.com/BNOFeed/status/1591201039847391232?t=wA0DAE1cHBYLO5H_CVPyDg&s=19

Image

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1592558817929154560?t=vvpj05CJCJdMMcpcgLfG-g&s=19

https://twitter.com/NHSEnglandLDN/status/1592789878869266432?t=XikNTFIEIa0iktkSyk8dvQ&s=19

https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1593135937902768129?t=3Td0r6XwSblIsF1Y_jAVsw&s=19

https://twitter.com/john_actuary/status/1593604163228811264?t=5Nwp4o3QhdnjTim13h5p2A&s=19

Wildlife

https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2214427119

https://twitter.com/PeterHotez/status/1591374214820687872?t=fRTzgRwExAJcvcZvY_7c3w&s=19

 

https://news.sky.com/story/world-population-to-hit-eight-billion-as-projections-reveal-where-is-growing-the-fastest-12747549

https://news.sky.com/story/cost-of-living-latest-autumn-statement-tax-rises-12615118?postid=4893032#liveblog-body

I love a clever toy, and even better if it has minimal plastic, smart and unusual design, and it makes your children think. Cheatwell Games have a range of truly 'Engenius Contraptions' - marble run sets with working motors, which you build yourself before you get down to the serious business of playing with them. We have been sent the Bounce Marble Run, which is just what it says - marble track with trampolines! 

When your children outgrow their existing bedroom décor, or simply want something fresh, you may be willing to support them in exploring their identity within their personal space. However, depending on what they have in mind, this may not be possible on your budget. Rather than completely shutting down their ideas, you may want to find different ways to allow their creativity to flourish, and create a room they will be proud of, without requiring a lot of expense.