When will this shit end?

[Homer]

1 hour ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

Yeah that's kind of where I am. I'd like to see people and get back to the gym mainly. I would love to go to a festival but can't really see it.

That said I do have some holidays booked, including one abroad now in the autumn, but just made sure they are all fully cancellable! 

Well, I got accosted by a slightly mad woman yesterday, so I'm now officially too scared to go to the park that is literally right next to our flat. So that's my one hobby (walking around in circles) out of the window too!

[Zoo Music Girl]

1 minute ago, Homer said:

Well, I got accosted by a slightly mad woman yesterday, so I'm now officially too scared to go to the park that is literally right next to our flat. So that's my one hobby (walking around in circles) out of the window too!

Oh no! That sounds thoroughly unpleasant.

[steviewevie]

 

[st dan]

Reading between the lines - I think it’s basically for those some of those who are clinically/morbidly obese and/or have a very high BMI. But they can’t come out and say that directly as would maybe be classed as ‘body shaming’. 
If it is related to weight then it’s a good move - people in this category are extremely vulnerable, whatever the age. 

Edited February 16, 2021 by st dan

[zahidf]

Not just us using Mass testing

 

 

Germany is to offer free Covid-19 antigen tests for all from March, the health minister, Jens Spahn, has said, as the country cautiously began allowing some children to return to schools.

 

[steviewevie]

 

[Guest]

Covid in Scotland: Youngest pupils to return to classrooms https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-56087581

[Leyrulion]

I get the sense that behind the scenes the St John ambulance vaccine programme is utter chaos. At least in Greater Manchester.

Not impacting on the provision of frontline volunteer vaccinators but the adminstration is absolutely shocking. 

I've been waiting a month to access the shift booking system and we've now all been added to an official GM Facebook group and looks like many others have problems gaining access. Even those that have access to the system have been unable to book shifts.

I think they've over recruited people, which I guess is a good thing.

[Zoo Music Girl]

17 minutes ago, Leyrulion said:

I get the sense that behind the scenes the St John ambulance vaccine programme is utter chaos. At least in Greater Manchester.

Not impacting on the provision of frontline volunteer vaccinators but the adminstration is absolutely shocking. 

I've been waiting a month to access the shift booking system and we've now all been added to an official GM Facebook group and looks like many others have problems gaining access. Even those that have access to the system have been unable to book shifts.

I think they've over recruited people, which I guess is a good thing.

This is interesting to hear as I've just finished my training (to be a patient advocate rather than a vaccinator). Have you not started yet then? I finished my training on Sunday and DBS is done so now just waiting for access to the website you mention for shifts. Thinking it could take a while! Especially as it seems vaccine supply is slightly down for a couple of weeks so maybe they won't need anyone extra yet.

It's a shame as kind of raring to go now but just waiting. But definitely better to over-recruit than under-recruit.

I'm also signed up to the GoodSam app thing but there never seem to be any shifts on there. I know a couple of other people are - @Quark I think? - have you had any joy with that?

 

[efcfanwirral]

1 hour ago, Smeble said:

Not a big deal, many countries around the world require proof of a yellow fever vaccination before you can enter the country. 

Totally fine for that, I'm just concerned about the public support for needing it to get into a pub

[Paul ™]

3 hours ago, xxialac said:

Government has announced that if you test positive during quarantine £1,200 is added on to the £1,750 bill making it fifty quid shy of £3,000.

Remember these people have been not allowed to fly directly so are having to make an extra journey via a third country. And then the (non-existent) systems at the airport have them congregate with all sorts of people from different flights for hours before they get on a bus to the hotel.

Total shambles.

Curious to what the procedure is if you have been on a red list country, but it was say 8-9 days ago.

Would they still want £1750 to quarantine for 10 days or would they allow a 1-2 day quarantine?

[Homer]

2 minutes ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

This is interesting to hear as I've just finished my training (to be a patient advocate rather than a vaccinator). Have you not started yet then? I finished my training on Sunday and DBS is done so now just waiting for access to the website you mention for shifts. Thinking it could take a while! Especially as it seems vaccine supply is slightly down for a couple of weeks so maybe they won't need anyone extra yet.

It's a shame as kind of raring to go now but just waiting. But definitely better to over-recruit than under-recruit.

I'm also signed up to the GoodSam app thing but there never seem to be any shifts on there. I know a couple of other people are - @Quark I think? - have you had any joy with that?

 

I tried to volunteer for the NHS then with my local authority last spring but didn't get anywhere. Offered to do some errands on a Facebook group and didn't get anywhere. Gave up at that point. Pleasingly it would appear they have been inundated!

[Quark]

3 minutes ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

This is interesting to hear as I've just finished my training (to be a patient advocate rather than a vaccinator). Have you not started yet then? I finished my training on Sunday and DBS is done so now just waiting for access to the website you mention for shifts. Thinking it could take a while! Especially as it seems vaccine supply is slightly down for a couple of weeks so maybe they won't need anyone extra yet.

It's a shame as kind of raring to go now but just waiting. But definitely better to over-recruit than under-recruit.

I'm also signed up to the GoodSam app thing but there never seem to be any shifts on there. I know a couple of other people are - @Quark I think? - have you had any joy with that?

 

Nada. Although bizarrely I've just had an email congratulating me on completing my first shift!

I was chatting to one of the plasma donation team and she said she had done hers through contacting local centres and commissioning group rather than the SAM app, but to be honest I'm not going to go through the process of applying through multiple channels, as I do have to first any sessions in around work.

[Quark]

1 minute ago, Homer said:

I tried to volunteer for the NHS then with my local authority last spring but didn't get anywhere. Offered to do some errands on a Facebook group and didn't get anywhere. Gave up at that point. Pleasingly it would appear they have been inundated!

One of the reasons I've started down with the homeless service. I'd rather be using my time somewhere than waiting on a call to use it and not getting anything!

[xxialac]

3 minutes ago, Paul ™ said:

Total shambles.

Curious to what the procedure is if you have been on a red list country, but it was say 8-9 days ago.

Would they still want £1750 to quarantine for 10 days or would they allow a 1-2 day quarantine?

They want the full £1750.

Similarly if you come to the UK for 1 or 2 days, they will quarantine you, allow you to then go back to the airport...and still have to pay the full £1750.

The same with the 2-test package. All paid upfront.

[Zoo Music Girl]

2 minutes ago, Homer said:

I tried to volunteer for the NHS then with my local authority last spring but didn't get anywhere. Offered to do some errands on a Facebook group and didn't get anywhere. Gave up at that point. Pleasingly it would appear they have been inundated!

Yeah it's good that they've been inundated. I will be a bit disappointed if I don't get to do anything for SJA as so far I've done a DBS check, hours of online training, an interview and a face-to-face training session! I even have a t-shirt!

2 minutes ago, Quark said:

Nada. Although bizarrely I've just had an email congratulating me on completing my first shift!

I was chatting to one of the plasma donation team and she said she had done hers through contacting local centres and commissioning group rather than the SAM app, but to be honest I'm not going to go through the process of applying through multiple channels, as I do have to first any sessions in around work.

Yeah there never seems to be anything on there when I look at the app. Oh well. Like you I'm not going to get into the process of applying to multiple things as I'm also fitting it around work and am hopeful SJA will come to something.

[JoeyT]

Valid point...

 

[incident]

4 minutes ago, Homer said:

I tried to volunteer for the NHS then with my local authority last spring but didn't get anywhere. Offered to do some errands on a Facebook group and didn't get anywhere. Gave up at that point. Pleasingly it would appear they have been inundated!

I think it is just that they're inundated.

I've tried to volunteer at local vaccination centres directly via a local CCG (as they don't seem to be using the national systems around here), and got a message back saying words to the effect of "we've got too many people at the moment so have put you on a waiting list". I know that more recently they've been outright turning people away.

[Paul ™]

4 minutes ago, xxialac said:

They want the full £1750.

The same with the 2-test package. All paid upfront.

That's ridiculous, does it state that anywhere? 

Apparently you can apply to defer it for repayment over 12 months if you are currently receiving income related benefits. 

[Havors]

48 minutes ago, zahidf said:

Not just us using Mass testing

 

 

Germany is to offer free Covid-19 antigen tests for all from March, the health minister, Jens Spahn, has said, as the country cautiously began allowing some children to return to schools.

 

For me rapid tests that you can do at home is something we should have been doing for a long time. Some of them are very cheap (apparently cost pence to make) using these say every 3/4 days would have caught infectious people and they could have isolated... instead of waiting for a PCR result and infecting everyone prior to symptoms or the test. 

Rapid tests in the coming autumn will help control things greatly imho. 

[steviewevie]

3 minutes ago, JoeyT said:

Valid point...

 

well govt are worried enough to be quarantining people from certain countries and mass testing in areas where variants have been detected.

[Quark]

5 minutes ago, incident said:

I think it is just that they're inundated.

I've tried to volunteer at local vaccination centres directly via a local CCG (as they don't seem to be using the national systems around here), and got a message back saying words to the effect of "we've got too many people at the moment so have put you on a waiting list". I know that more recently they've been outright turning people away.

Hopefully!  I'm not fussed about doing it so I can say I've done it, but I'd hate the thought that bodies were needed but the system wasn't working to source them.

[Havors]

3 minutes ago, steviewevie said:

well govt are worried enough to be quarantining people from certain countries and mass testing in areas where variants have been detected.

The government are just finally not taking any chances now we are so close to getting out of this. Something they have never done previously. 

[hodgey123]

3 minutes ago, Havors said:

For me rapid tests that you can do at home is something we should have been doing for a long time. Some of them are very cheap (apparently cost pence to make) using these say every 3/4 days would have caught infectious people and they could have isolated... instead of waiting for a PCR result and infecting everyone prior to symptoms or the test. 

Rapid tests in the coming autumn will help control things greatly imho. 

I think I broadly agree with this but the risk of the false negatives may have then sent symptomatic people who would otherwise have self-isolated out into the general public? 

[Havors]

1 minute ago, hodgey123 said:

I think I broadly agree with this but the risk of the false negatives may have then sent symptomatic people who would otherwise have self-isolated out into the general public? 

testing twice or three times a week negates any potential false negatives. 

Edited February 16, 2021 by Havors