COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 17th March 2023

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 17th March 2023

World COVID Statistics: 682,255,152 reported cases and 6,817,431 losses of life.

"Over 3 years into the COVID19 emergency, too many lives have been lost. Too many people are still suffering, including from Long COVID. We'll never stop demanding equitable access to life-saving tools.

"Understanding COVID19’s origins and exploring all hypotheses remains:

-a scientific imperative, to help us prevent future outbreaks

-a moral imperative, for the sake of the millions of people who died and those who live with Long COVID"

Dr Tedros, Head of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

On 11th March it was 3 years since WHO declared COVID a pandemic. It wasn't actually their job, but by 11th March 2020 it had become clear no-one else was going to do it and everyone was waiting, so Dr Tedros made the announcement. In some people's minds this made him responsible for the entire thing. 

"Around this time three years ago, the world woke up to the seriousness of COVID19, to stay at home orders, to life - as we had known it - changed…

We have all been impacted by the COVID19 pandemic, we are all different, and we cannot go “back” to the way it was, we need to make our futures better…

I know the world wants so desperately for the COVID19 pandemic to be over. I do too. But we aren’t done yet and this virus isn’t done with us yet. It is here to stay and we can do more to protect everyone, everywhere…"

Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, COVID-19 Technical Lead, Emerging Diseases and Zoonoses Lead, WHO Health Emergencies Programme.

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 10th March 2023

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 10th March 2023 - the Matt Hancock Lockdown WhatsApp edition. 

World COVID Statistics: 681,301,970 reported cases and 6,810,359 losses of life.

"Since April ‘20, the COVID-19 Infection Survey has gathered & analysed more than 11 million swab tests & 3 million blood tests from households.

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the survey… your contributions have provided invaluable data that has helped develop our understanding of COVID-19 & helped shape decisions made throughout the pandemic."

Prof.Steven Riley, Director General of Data, Analytics and Surveillance, UK Health Security Agency.

 

Almost 3 years since the first UK press conferences, so hands up if you've got COVID! Yeeeay... noooo... booo. My youngest is testing positive again (4th or 5th time). Most of us are ill, but he's currently the only one with a positive test to prove it. Should be a fun weekend ahead...   

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 3rd March 2023

COVID-19 Coronavirus and other virus UK and World News Update 3rd March 2023

World COVID Statistics: 680,435,744 reported cases and 6,803,287 losses of life.

"Hospital admissions with COVID in England have fallen by 6% in-week.

Our R estimate has fallen to 0.95.

Admissions rose slightly in NE&Yorks and were flat in the Midlands, but fell everywhere else. The largest fall was 22% in the East.

Bed occupancy has fallen by 7%."

The COVID Actuaries Response Group

(Join in Yorkshire, and then we might get all good news to start with next week... )

Hospital-acquired COVID (which generally works as a canary in a coalmine, to tell us early which way it's going to go), fell by 12% in the latest weekly counts. Adele Groyer:

"There were 1,903 likely hospital acquired cases in the 7 days to 27 February vs 2,160 the previous week."

Sadly not quite a full house. The ONS random sampling is a bit more out of date, so expect it to show improvement next week. Week ending 21st Feb: 

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

- England, estimate 1,298,600, equating to 2.31% of the population (2.18% in the previous reference week), or around 1 in 45 people.

- Wales, estimate 68,100, equating to 2.21% of the population (1.79% in the previous reference week), or around 1 in 45 people.

- Northern Ireland, estimate 20,800, equating to 1.14% of the population (1.62% in the previous reference week), or around 1 in 90 people.

- Scotland, estimate 117,100, equating to 2.22% of the population (2.18% in the previous reference week), or around 1 in 45 people.

Look for These Things in a Good HVAC Company (Featured Article)

Today I have a post from a contributor in the USA, with helpful tips for anyone looking to hire a company to fit, service or repair Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning - HVAC

Look for These Things in a Good HVAC Company

If you want to live in the warmest or coolest climate possible, your heating and cooling systems need to work effectively. The servicing, repairing, or replacing of a system is not a task for the typical "Do it Yourselfer," since it is rather complex.

In such a case, locating a reputable HVAC firm to carry out the essential repair becomes imperative. Name recognition and fame alone are not enough. In order to help you choose the most qualified professional, I have included some suggestions below.