Coronavirus in the UK - news, lockdown and discussion

[strung out]

It's not working for Chemistry. He's 39. Would really prefer him to be up to full strength as he's a fucking teacher.

That's annoying. I've just recommended it to friends who have had Moderna, AZ and Pfizer, who have all been able to book. Maybe have a play with venues? My closest venue still only had 12 weeks, but the main hub had 8 weeks.

 

[brogdale]

Hmmm

 

[souljacker]

How can you change the appointment? Manage my bookings doesn't offer the chance to move it on the NHS site.

I now know loads of people who are much younger than me who have had or are getting their second jab before mine! We are in a surge area too.

 

[quimcunx]

Cancel then rebook.

 

[souljacker]

Cancel then rebook.

Really? That doesn't seem to make sense.

 

[strung out]

Really? That doesn't seem to make sense.

Whether or not it makes sense, that's definitely how you do it

 

[souljacker]

Whether or not it makes sense, that's definitely how you do it

Only date I can have when I rebook is a week after my appointment I just cancelled FFS!

 

[souljacker]

I would strongly discourage people from using the cancel and rebook method. Rather than moving my second jab up, I've now got it a day later than my previous appointment at a time that means I'll need to take time off work.

 

[quimcunx]

try some different locations?

Sorry, most people have managed to bring theirs forward by a fair bit!

 

[souljacker]

try some different locations?

Sorry, most people have managed to bring theirs forward by a fair bit!

All the other locations were miles away. One was Gatwick lol.

 

[BassJunkie]

I cancelled mine on the 30th June and got it on the 9th of June instead. But yeah, doesn't make sense.

 

[glitch hiker]

I don't see how things can really change much in four weeks and am getting bloody fed up with the nauseating 'freedom day' culture. As soon as that happens the country is going to go nuts as people it seems believe that either side of that border is the polar opposite of the other. One day we go from having the vrus to everything's ok let's party!

As for masks. I completely agree with the comment above about masks in shops. Our local shops even had an outbreak. The butchers had to close for a couple of weeks and another shop was running half staffed because people were having to isolate. People rely on those shops, but the bakery inbetween still had all the blokey blokes not wearing masks (not all of them obv.) and another shop, on the main road, which has mainly passing trade, continually has people rocking up not bothering.

If staff can wear a mask all day, then ffs...

 

[kabbes]

Cheers — the kabbess managed to bring her second jab forward 9 days, to 6 Aug. 43y/o, Pfizer.

 

[Elpenor]

All the other locations were miles away. One was Gatwick lol.

I was looking at Pfizer options in the Reading area out of curiosity and could see only see a chemist in Wokingham and Basingstoke fire station.

 

[elbows]

Quite likely, the school/university holidays will be on by then and that always seems to lessen transmission

They even acknowledged that a couple of times in the press conference.

 

[xenon]

That's annoying. I've just recommended it to friends who have had Moderna, AZ and Pfizer, who have all been able to book. Maybe have a play with venues? My closest venue still only had 12 weeks, but the main hub had 8 weeks.

You still in Bristol?
Mine is 26th July, pfizer, I’m 45. Don’t want to risk rebooking. It’s already changed twice, not at my behest.

 

[elbows]

My prediction for this morning is they won't roll back restrictions between now and July, and they will loosen things on the July date (with possibly some token things staying), and then that'll be it - with their excuse that the vaccine offers good protection and that everyone's been offered a dose and we need to 'live with the virus'.

Yes they have made no secret of the fact that 'learning to live with the virus' very much includes 'learning to die with the virus'.

I cannot offer a prediction about them being forced to reimpose some restrictions that have already been eased, because it depends on the numbers. There are scenarios where especially bad data will force them to act, just as happened in the past. But I dont know if things will deteriorate that quickly or not.

 

[elbows]

It sounded like in two weeks, they were thinking things might be better so they'd pull the July date back but maybe I misunderstood.

Thats why they included the earlier review, yes. They've done this before, eg first lockdown - they initially made it pretty clear it would last at least 12 weeks but then had to add some bullshit about reviewing it after 4 weeks, even though they knew there was no real prospect of things looking better within that timeframe.

This time Johnson rather diminished any hope that could be pinned to the earlier date by saying stuff like 'like be realistic folks' when mentioning it, downplaying the prospects that things will be rosier by then. Because they expect things to be worse by then, not better.

 

[LDC]

Really? That doesn't seem to make sense.

It does from a booking admin perspective that is trying to reduce the number of missed and fucked-up appointments. If people book and then are expected to cancel a certain amount will never cancel wasting slots and reducing overall numbers that can get appointments.

 

[littlebabyjesus]

It does from a booking admin perspective that is trying to reduce the number of missed and fucked-up appointments. If people book and then are expected to cancel a certain amount will never cancel wasting slots and reducing overall numbers that can get appointments.

It's still a crap way of doing it, making people gamble. A bit of coding that automatically cancels one appointment when you book another could have been possible.

 

[LDC]

Yeah I think it's clear the 2 week review think was something he stuck in for his backbench or something similar. It's clearly bollocks, although I've already heard some people talk about how the restrictions might get lifted in 2 weeks when things 'look better'.

 

[elbows]

It's the papers - see cupid_stunt's post - a large majority of people support the delay. And in general throughout the whole situation people have been far more supportive of lockdowns and other restrictions than the papers, loudmouths and politicians.

Several things motivate the papers - all their usual shit, but also the effect the pandemic has had on their sales. Even without this factor the likes of the fucking Daily Mail would still have ranted about the disgrace of people working from home last summer, but all those office workers etc not buying their shitty paper on the way to work gave them additional impetus to pursue this deadly angle.

 

[LDC]

It's still a crap way of doing it, making people gamble. A bit of coding that automatically cancels one appointment when you book another could have been possible.

Have you come across the NHS IT systems before? Cutting edge 2004 technology. We're lucky we can do it online and not by fax.

 

[killer b]

My prediction for this morning is they won't roll back restrictions between now and July, and they will loosen things on the July date (with possibly some token things staying), and then that'll be it - with their excuse that the vaccine offers good protection and that everyone's been offered a dose and we need to 'live with the virus'.

I'm sure they'd love to do this - would always have loved to do this. The only issue is 'can this be done without hospitals being overwhelmed', which is something that's actually out of their control. If it looks like it can't be - then the brakes will be back on again.

 

[sojourner]

Only date I can have when I rebook is a week after my appointment I just cancelled FFS!

That's why I didn't chance it, and just stayed with the appt I had. Sorry to hear that.

 

[platinumsage]

Hmmm

Neither of you read the foot note or noticed the alternative figure 2? It's because the original figure contained data that might be used to identify individuals.

 

[elbows]

Hmmm

I will spend a chunk of today looking at the modelling.

I'm not that shocked that they've redacted some of it - same reason that Vallance was dodging questions about how many hospitalisations their modelling implied in yesterdays press conference.

In the past waves I didnt see such redactions, but thats in great part because they tended not to release stuff like that to the public within a reasonable timeframe at all. And the stuff that was available tended to be vaguer, eg modelling certain scenarios of what would happen if we did not act at all, rather than what was expected to happen if we did act according to the governments plan.

It would be nice to think that there will be a big stink about this that forces them to release the hidden info, but having seen how prepared the press were to overlook certain things previously in this pandemic, I have my doubts. I'll do some digging when I get a spare hour.

 

[wemakeyousoundb]

Cancel then rebook.

Have you come across the NHS IT systems before? Cutting edge 2004 technology. We're lucky we can do it online and not by fax.

Fax would probably have worked better...
Tried to rebook for a friend, at the "manage your appointment" part where you are to cancel it took me straight to "book an appointment" and when at the end I had selected a new one and validated the choice it magically brought me back to the start page of the process, 3 times in a row...
Never got the confirmations I had asked for either so gave up on it, will take her to her original appointment.

 

[elbows]

Neither of you read the foot note or noticed the alternative figure 2? It's because the original figure contained data that might be used to identify individuals.

I havent read any of the released documents yet, I'll be sure to let you know whether I think your explanation covers everything when I've had a chance to read stuff for myself.

 

[LDC]

I'm sure they'd love to do this - would always have loved to do this. The only issue is 'can this be done without hospitals being overwhelmed', which is something that's actually out of their control. If it looks like it can't be - then the brakes will be back on again.

Yeah, I have massive concerns with NHS capacity in a number of areas. Even if deaths were low, but infections were at a high level things could get very messed up very quickly in a number of areas and hospitals are only one of those.

People I know working in various other areas of medicine are very busy with confirmed covid, likely covid, not likely covid but needs checking, people avoiding hospital due to fears but then presenting to other services inappropriately, people suffering from things that have got worse as they've not been able to see their GP, people anxious after vaccine, people anxious generally, etc.

I also know that plenty of staff are off sick, both with symptoms, post-covid symptoms, other illnesses, stress, and also being fucking fed up.