As we navigate our way through the post-Covid world, it's important to consider the link between infections and outcomes.
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TLDR :
๐ซ Try to avoid catching / spreading infections
๐จ Clean air will help
While you may well start off healthy, anyone can become Clinically Vulnerable at some point in their life, making them more susceptible to severe infections.
Take it from us, it isn't particularly fun - and frequently, our lives feel less valued.
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Covid infections or repeat infections of healthy people can lead to Long Covid*, where people experience prolonged symptoms and conditions including: fatigue, brain fog and respiratory issues.
* Some data suggests that up to 1 in 10 infections result in long-term symptoms.
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Also, people with Long Covid can become Clinically Vulnerable if they acquire conditions including:
You might have noticed people who have developed a persistent cough.
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According to the final ONS Covid Survey data, Clinically Vulnerable people have a 5.4x increased risk of Long Covid following Covid infections.
๐ Catching Covid isn't healthy
๐ It doesn't promote 'natural immunity'
๐ Living with Covid = constant reinfection
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Vaccination has been a crucial tool in breaking the Covid cycle and protecting lives.
Highly vaccinated countries are experiencing lower mortality despite the virus not actually being milder.
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However, we mustn't forget that Covid continues to claim far too many lives.
Anyone can be at risk, and we are all 3 years older and 3 years more vulnerable.
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To further break the Covid cycle, we need clean air as Covid spreads in aerosols.
We mustn't simply accept ~6 peaks a year as new variants continue to rip through the global community. It places a continuous burden on struggling health services. It is not 'flu.
No one wants to see more people suffering from Long Covid or losing their lives.
While the Covid cycle may be here to stay, we can't simply accept current rates of infection and reinfection.
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Going forward, we should consider the following:
๐จ #CleanAir
๐ท #WearAMask in high-risk, poorly ventilated indoor settings inc. healthcare
๐ฅ Testing / isolation if symptomatic
๐ ๐Supporting equitable access to vaccines around the world
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...and for anyone who thinks that young children can't or shouldn't be tested, there are saliva 'lollypop' tests that are accurate and trouble-free.
Parents in our Facebook group have been very happy with them.
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๐จClinically Vulnerable Families - closing
** Shared in full**
Thanks to the @covidinquiryuk staff & team
"The vast majority of people who died [.] were Clinically Vulnerable [.] including people who caught Covid-19 in hospitals, which were supposed to be places of safety."
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"Most urgently, we need to make healthcare safe for Clinically Vulnerable people."
"And by making it safe for them - by improving ventilation and putting in place other protective measures - we make it safe for others too."
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๐กShielding
CEV people are a diverse group with varied personal circumstances.
It provided a passport:
๐ Right to work from home
๐ท SSP entitlement
๐ Food & medicine deliveries
๐ Priority vaccine access
"aging estates meant that infection control measures could not always be fully implemented."
- Large open bays
- Inability to distance
- Lack of side rooms for isolating patients
- Lack of ventilation
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"The inquiry proceedings have laid bare the catastrophic consequences that are destined to be repeated without fundamental change."
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"healthcare workers were at higher risk of contracting Covid-19."
"The Health and Safety Executive [failed] to challenge adequacy of the IPC guidance, to act on concerns raised by [the BMA], and to ensure that employers compied with their health and safety responsibilities."
Who will get a Covid booster in 2025? Far fewer than before...
The JCVI decision means that Clinically Vulnerable people u70 and who aren't immunosuppressed lose access.
โCost-effectivenessโ prioritised over protection.
NEW CONCERNING STUDY ๐
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Until now, Covid vaccine policy prioritised protecting 'at risk' groups.
Their approach focuses on โcost-effectiveness,โ raising age thresholds. Not providing vaccine protection to younger Clinically Vulnerable. Itโs a deeply worrying change.
This data may have been used. 2/
Younger Clinically Vulnerable people e.g. those with chronic heart failure, COPD, or diabetes could be excluded.
The study admits data for our group is limited, meaning the most at-risk could fall through the cracks.
*It is unclear if the study was used in decision-making.*
Rosemary Gallagher MBE (Professional Lead for Infection Prevention and Control at the Royal College of Nursing) supported non-IP specialists e.g. aerosols experts "shaping guidance".
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"If Covid-19 was, in fact, airborne [.] it had implications for infection prevention and control guidance [.]"
"What was the NHS estate going to do to make it safe?"
"Improving the ventilation or looking at other technologies [.]." 2/
Next, possibly the best quote from Baroness Hallett this week: