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CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER Dr Tony Holohan has urged people to reduce their contacts, advising them not to socialise or meet indoors with other households and to avoid crowded places.
In a statement, he pointed out that the Omicron variant of Covid-19, which is now the dominant variant in Ireland, is more transmissible than Delta.
“As such, please do not socialise or meet indoors with people from other households,” he advised.
As the number of daily cases increased in the past week, Holohan issued similar advice on the evening of 23 December, telling people it was imperative “that all of us, to the greatest extent possible, make every effort we can in the next two to three weeks to only meet with members of our own households”.
“Consider you plans over the Christmas period and into the early part of the New Year and try to keep your contacts as low as possible,” he added in that earlier statement.
Last Monday, responding to an increase in the level of the disease among young adults, Holohan advised that if you had not yet received a booster shot “you are best to avoid unnecessary contact with people outside your household”.
Ireland recorded its highest daily total of Covid cases on Christmas Eve at over 11,000. That was surpassed yesterday, when 13,765 cases were reported.
1,984,818 booster doses of the Covid-19 vaccine had been adminstered as of Christmas Eve, with over 300,000 jabs administered over the course of three days this week.
The numbers in hospital and in ICU have been falling in recent weeks, but experts have warned that the high daily case numbers associated with the now-dominant Omicron variant have yet to translate into hospitalisations and ICU admissions.
Some initial studies have shown that the latest variant of the virus is often less severe than previous ones – but experts have warned that the increased volume of cases could still result in health systems worldwide being put under pressure.
Writing for The Journal last week DCU Professor of Immunology Christine Loscher noted that while she was hopeful the variant may cause milder illness which may translate into less incidence of hospitalisation and ICU admissions, “the sheer volume of potential cases might make this completely irrelevant and we may see hospitalisations and ICUs climb regardless of it being milder”.
“A small percentage of a big number is still a big number,” she added.
In his statement released this morning Dr Holohan also urged the public to avoid crowded places, “including retail environments”.
The advice comes as many department stores and other shops begin their winter sales.
Holohan advised people to shop online where possible, to queue outside stores and leave any retail environment that does not feel safe and that is not adhering to the public health guidance.
“If you are yet to receive a booster dose of Covid-19 vaccine, then you should take every measure you can to protect yourself until you are eligible to receive it,” he said.
This includes avoiding risky environments and keeping your contacts as low as possible. All of the available evidence indicates that a booster vaccine will offer good protection against infection with the Omicron variant.
The CMO also reminded those who travelled to Ireland from overseas that it is important that they take an antigen test every day for five days.
“If anyone experiences any symptoms of Covid-19, however mild, then it is important to self-isolate and arrange a PCR test,” he said.
Our test centres are very busy at the moment due to the high incidence of Covid-19 across the country; however, it is important that you continue to self-isolate until you receive the result of your PCR test and further information from the HSE.
- With reporting by Daragh Brophy
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It astounds me that during entire course of this pandemic, not a single person in public office, except Simon Harris of all people for a very brief moment in Summer 2020, ever acknowledges that asking people to live like troglodytes for this extended length of time genuinely makes life not worth living for a huge, huge, huge number of people. Thankfully at this stage most people are having common sense and taking reasonable precautions without following NPHET’s unrelenting requests for us to inflict solitary confinement upon ourselves – without any reference whatsoever to the well established and scientifically proven dangers this brings to both psychological and physical health.
There comes a time at which asking people to do this is no longer an acceptable response to dealing with the pandemic. That time came and went early this summer, in my view. Five months of level five completely destroyed so many peoples’ general well-being that most people never went back to 100% compliance with these frankly impossible and irresponsible requests – and rightly so.
Being around other humans is literally the primary reason for many people to want to keep going. It is simply unacceptable and unreasonable to ask people to surrender this very basic human need indefinitely. The longer such a request persists, the less and less it can be justified, regardless of the reason.
@Patrick FitzGerald: spot on rant
@Patrick FitzGerald: We’ll said Patrick. This is a balanced and reasonable comment. I’m right where you are now. The stakes are getting too high now from a mental health perspective. I don’t blame NPHET that’s their job. Many of us know instinctively that the cost is getting too high now- particularly if you’re a parent watching your kids lose so much.
@Joe_X: I applaud your obnoxious retort. Which part do you find so laughable? This virus isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. How many more years do you expect people to put their lives and the lives of their children on hold based on arbitrary restrictions and a guessing game?
@Hugh Morris: really? try not locking down at all like the frontline staff and essential staff like my self. Still had to go out and no support. Here is another fact for you. Only reason there are still any restrictions at all is to protect those who refuse to get vaccinated (as opposed to those who cannot get vaccinated) . You think I”m being obnoxious now. I’m tired of being held back to protect that selfish pack. Make those who chose not to take the vaccines sign a waiver and open up and let them take their chances.
@Patrick FitzGerald: Simon Harris never acknowledged nothing.
@Lucy Legacy: it’s not well said in regards to his comment about Harris.But the rest of @ Partick Fitzgeralds comment is well said
@Joe_X: I’m also front line staff, and still agree with everything the original poster said! We are not still in this position because of the very small number of unvaccinated adults, who are not allowed indoors other than to go to work anyway (i am fully vaccinated)! We are in this position because a) we are still in unknown territory to a large degree; b) we have an absolute shambles of a health system pre and during covid with little to no improvement in the last 2 years and c) terrible govt inaction/advice with regards to stopping school contact tracing and allowing vaccinated people who were close contacts to go about their business with no restrictions at all for months.
@Patrick FitzGerald: well said Patrick.
@Patrick FitzGerald: Reads like what my cat brought up after Christmas
@Lucy Legacy: Unbalanced and misinterpretation of facts
@Joe_X: Couldn’t agree with you more Joe, speaking as a front line worker. This pandemic has exposed so much selfishness and a general lack of patience in people. But what gives me hope is that so many people have come forward for the booster, and are doing their best to keep their social distance and masks on. We’ll get through this if we play the long game, and I am really hopeful for that.
@Patrick FitzGerald: i am starting to believe you are a Simon Harris PR agent that keeps on referring to him in most of your posts.
@Joe_X: ummm. Yea…i think you will find people who have chosen to not take a voluntary vaccine would be more than will ao sign any such waiver…bloody hell, they’re 2nd class citizens now, with members of the Dail suggesting that they should now not be allowed into supermarkets or use public transport…& honestly…you think the only reason there are still restrictions etc is because of 7 percent of the population…really…not maybe the schools being open…like…how many of the 7 percent of people unvaccinated do you think A have covid…B…Have spread Covid..C are not actually human beings who think just like you…they’re not spiteful…they’re not deliberately not washing their hands, hugging & coughing on people….
@Hugh Morris: spot on…wait…did we just agree on something…I’ll alert the media!
@Patrick FitzGerald: You could meet friends outdoors, meet the same small group of people one week , then another small group all of the next week.
@Patrick FitzGerald: For many people the vaccine was the way out of these problems. Now apparently it’s not and there’s seemingly no other goal or long term solution to put our hope in.
It should be a basic expectation of leadership in any capacity that they’d offer this but instead we have a government terrified of making promises for next week let alone any sort of vision of the future.
It has to change, we need leadership.
@Hear me now: 24% of population( including kids)
@Jo H: spot on
@Hear me now: you’re only human I guess
@Hugh Morris: morning longread!!!!
@Patrick FitzGerald: Spot on
@Patrick FitzGerald: You were going fine until you said that most people are taking reasonable precautions. The problem is that many, many people are not.
@Jo H: yet the vaccines as far as I can see have delivered as they promised, a look at the figures is proving that. In fact the only reason we even need the daily case numbers any more is as an indication of how well the vaccines are performing. You are right though, we have been in largely unknown territory, and as I said already, those 2nd guessing the authorities who are basing their decicions on fact, thinking they know better are laughable.
@Sohoma Roanie: To tell the truth, I still find most people are willing to do the right thing, it is just the small few that won’t do the right thing are also being the loudest. That is why I’ve kept arguing with the anti everything crowd after 2 years because despite being such a small few, they sound louder. Refusing masks, santizing, vaccines, a basic no one tells me what to do attitude. You think I’m bad, I’m only considered essential services. You should see what my sister, a nurse, a true frontliner, has to say about the selfishness of that small few.
@Patrick FitzGerald: I agree with a lot of your comment but I think it’s clear that a lot of people are not taking sensible precautions if you go by our case numbers which are among the highest in the world at the moment. The advice that Tony is giving is the correct advice as per his job discription. What do people expect the chief medical officer to say at the time of a global pandemic? “Get a few cans in lads and invite the neighbours over”?
@Rochelle: By now you should have realised that this and all other governments are not making promises as they cant be sure they will keep them.
We react to the virus not the other way around.
You can only plan for so much as the virus can take off in an other direction and ,make the plans useless.
Unless you have a solution that nobody else has worked out.
Nobody wants the lockdowns etc but at the moment they are the only things that seem to work
@John Johnes: I’ve referred to him twice and both in the last fortnight or so, I generally have no time for him and his party but compared with his colleagues he’s been far more realistic about the limits of inflicting social isolation on people than anyone else. Everyone else in the cabinet seems to be more than happy to tell people to live as hermits indefinitely, I haven’t seen anyone else openly acknowledge that at some stage this strategy will run out of steam.
@SheepleDog: I’ve never denied the seriousness of covid, but I do deny that indefinitely telling people not to socialise with other people is an acceptable or reasonable response to the virus. It hasn’t been in any other country, compromises have been reached or lockdowns have been more severe but far less long lasting each time they’ve been introduced.
Barring a few months here and there, Ireland has now endured almost two full years of “don’t socialise with other people”. That is not an acceptable response to this and it certainly cannot be sustained indefinitely with no end game in sight. The vast majority of humans cannot live that way without utterly falling apart, physically and psychologically.
@JG: How many of that 50% are unable to take the vaccine?
@Sohoma Roanie: https://twitter.com/john_mcguirk/status/1471855599734378504?s=20
Am I missing something? Hospital numbers are down right?
@Jim Buckley Barrett: Theres a lead time. The variant is low impact but highly transmissible. If we hit say 20,000 or 25,000 cases a day, it only needs a tiny percentage to convert to serious illness for the hospitals to be overwhelmed again. Don’t forget, the lower hospital figures of today are drawn from case numbers ten days to two weeks ago of 4-5000. Case numbers of this current weekend will likely mean hospital figures of the order of 800/200 in early January. Anything higher than our current case numbers and we are in uncharted territory.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: yep, either really do your stats or get back to your dinner
@Jim Buckley Barrett: Hosiptal numbers lag behind. Some people indeed in the numbers testing positive over the last few day may in the coming week or two may have to make a hosiptal visit as the virus runs its course. So the numbers in hospitals now are a reflection of cases from 7 – 14 days ago. Hopefully the downward trend continues regardless.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: hence importance for people to avoid risky environments. Its only in last few days we’ve started to see a large increase due to Omicron, and there has always been a 10-14 day lag between new cases and hospitalisations.
@Jim Buckley Barrett: for now. Give it 7-10 days
@Jim Buckley Barrett: for now, with the other variants it took about 10 days to see hospital admissions go up, so next week is when people who have Covid for 7 to 10 days with adverse affects will need hospital care, hopefully the icu numbers won’t go up then!
@Eoin Roche: thanks Eoin
@Siobhán McKenna: grow up
@Stephen Kearon: I go to work everyday in public transport are you saying to stay at home.
@Siobhán McKenna: don’t be so rude
@Siobhán McKenna:get a life
@Siobhán McKenna: Cabbage
@Eoin Roche: except the scientific evidence from countries ahead of us like Israel shows the booster jabs are very effective at reducing need for hospitalisation – so it not really that unchartered territory (much as your scaremongering would like to portray) we have almost 2.milluon boostsred – and they dropped the ball and should be cririsises for delaying the rollout for boosters from July until Oct as the science shoes the current icu numbers would have been even lower if they had been boosterd sooner – that’s the facts – happy new year
@Mick Dunne: from someone who posts the same nonsense on every covid article…maybe take a bit of your own advice there lad.
@Dave Hammond: None of that is fact Dave, its just a rant. If we have 2 million boosted, as you say yourself, it means we have 3 million that aren’t yet. Again, it only takes a tiny percentage of widespread illness to convert to serious infection to fill the hospitals. Thats not scaremongering, the fella asked the question, I demonstrated the maths.
@Eoin Roche: what if the tiny percentage you are talking about is a tinier percentage which looks like what is happening with this new variant. A miniscule percentage of a reasonably big number can still be a very small number.
@Eoin Roche: yeah you of course dismiss somebody else’s opinion as just being a rant once it disagrees with your narrative – nonsense – there are plenty of studies this past week with evidence that hospitalisation is much less likely requirement for this variant – but you still wanted to scaremongering that high cases coulda would shoulda nonsense – the system can’t cope we better be scared more nonsense – the facts are pointing to omicron requiring less hopaitalisation and this coupled with the booster protection for the old and vulnerable will very very likely mean we shouldn’t be anxiety ridden about the weeks ahead no matter how many times you want to claim we are heading into ‘unchartered territory’ – whick is scaremongering language no matter how many times you want to deny it
@Jim Buckley Barrett: Yes. A very basic understanding of data analysis
Go away Tony
@Brid Ni Dhubhlaing: Well said.
@Brid Ni Dhubhlaing:
So you don’t like what he is saying, doesn’t deflect from the truth… Tony has been right this time last year…
The new variant is the big thing the last few days.. Everyone is hoping that the early data shows this is not as severe.
Personally I think this Government has done a good job, it is not easy but they are fighting for everyone one in our society… We have a tough few weeks to see where we are with this… The booster does work and the numbers back that up. Get it, it makes a difference for all of us.
Be sensible.
We are going to get to very high case numbers over the next two weeks, hopefully we then start to see a drop, that is not guaranteed…
@Cowboy Ted: well said!
Hospital and ICU numbers dropping every day, hopefully that will continue into the new year.
@Football in the Groin: that drop is related to the last varient and vaccinations. This varient has not yet reached it’s peak(100% of all cases) . As explained a few times in the article “the now-dominant Omicron variant have yet to translate into hospitalisations and ICU admissions. “
@Marie Broomfield: it’s time to wait and see.
It’s ironic that people have such a short memory that the forget that hospitals were overwhelmed every winter with patients with the flu. Record after record of patients on trolleys ,bed crisis, nurses threatened strike due to govt inaction and staff shortages….Now it’s covid is the problem how about people look back to 2018 and refresh their memory,or better still go right back to when Mary Harley was health minister and read about bed crisis and patients on trolleys , or how about when meehole and the leak were health minister and read about their tenure as health minister and their attempts to break patient on trolleys. This year media ,govt,hse, nphet have spun it that the system can’t cope because of covid and of course media fail to remind us of the trolley numbers prior to covid.Think of this fact , Belgium with a population twice ours has 2000 icu beds we have 480, yes not even the expected half of icu beds you would expect us to have compared to a country twice the population of 26 counties.So we’re has the billions that have been thrown at hse gone , let me guess inflated salaries for the like of reid and the rest of the job for life health service pen pushers.
@Martin Smith: Belgium ran low on ICU beds a few weeks ago due to a COVID-19 surge and Germany offered to help.
https://www.vrt.be/vrtnws/en/2021/12/05/germans-offer-belgium-icu-beds/
@Martin Smith: this is it… people are swallowing the fffg line that covid is why we have a hospital crisis…. fffg will not mention the health service pre covid, people have short memories.
I’m getting kinda sick of the media.. and I think the time to remove news based apps is wise..
@Vincent Bickerstaffe: don’t forget your coat
@Vincent Bickerstaffe: I had a conversation the other day along those lines. I’ve no problem with reporting on covid etc but does it have to be every hour on the hour and constantly in our faces. We know it’s there, we know the dangers, statistics and all that goes with it and we don’t need this constant barrage of covid this and covid that. Maybe covid updates should just be limited to 09:00, 13:00, 18:00 and the main evening news just to give us a little break
@Rostyballs78: or allow you to filter out anything that doesn’t contain sunshine and lollipops
“Avoid crowded shops”…..I think that message has come eight weeks too late no?
@Ciaran McCann: I think that message shouldn’t even need to be said.
Oh please give it a rest.
Is this guy for real.This is the same guy who stopped the cancer screening
Tony the grinch
@Joe Mulhern: the realist
@Teddy: He’s a realist in that he well knows that people won’t avoid crowded areas when pubs and other retail are open after their double and triple vax buy-in.
Also, don’t. Eat too much sugar or fatty foods,smoke or drink alcohol…deep thinkers…. How muxh are these lad being paid for this advice?
@Markonline: I obviously failed on the alcohol advice…
@Markonline: I ated the purple berries
@Markonline: lol you’re not the only one today :)
Who cares anymore
So meet people outdoors during winter. Avoid crowded shops during Christmas…so effictevly lock ur asses down without actually saying it…vaccines were supposed to give us more freedom…that’s what we signed up for!!!! What nx eh…these boosters gonna help or more of the same BS!!!! W TF!!!!
@Hear me now: yes
@Hugh Morris: No…& the cosmic ballet goes on.
@Hear me now: uhuh
@Hugh Morris: non committal grunts…touchè…lol
@Hear me now: meh
@Hugh Morris: I’ll get your jacket
@Hear me now: thief
@Hugh Morris: highway man
@Joe_X: you think the unvaccinated are the problem? Seriously? 7% are causing all the problems? What about countries that have 100% vaccination, how are they doing? By the way, before you start accusing me of being an anti vaxer I have all 3.
Sounds like more restrictions are incoming before the New Year with Tony making these comments.
Awh sure give up life so
Everyone already has it. He can head off now we don’t need him comin out tellin everyone to hide away indefinitely, we already had or have it, and the rest will get it over the next few weeks.
I will not be taking a lecture from the cao of a misleading organisation who would not know the truth or wouldn’t organise a piss up in a brewery
Tony is right …. This new variant is incredibly transmissible. Relative came home last weekend, stayed four days. Everyone she came into contact with in my family and my extended family tested positive for Covid EXCEPT three of us. My elderly parents (who she stayed with) and myself …. We got negative PCR tests. Why ??? We were the only three boosted.
@Skipper Mac: the vaccine doesn’t stop you from getting the virus
@IamEggBot: but it does reduce the chances if getting infected and help prevent the virus reproduction and helps prevent someone from becoming infectious. It is of course true that the vaccine does not prevent you getting the virus as the vaccine is inside the body and primed the body to fight the virus should you get the virus.
@Tom Kelly: How many of the 50% are, due to medical conditions, unable to take the vaccine?
There’s a reason no real covid scientist has responded to the amazing journal commentary team.
@Siobhán McKenna: There is no commentary team, we are individuals who read and comment on a news app/website. What is a real covid scientist? Who asked anyone to respond and to respond to what exactly?
No thank you.
I can forsee everything being shut down again within a week. Get a quick pint in before 8pm while we still can.
If this is his advice to people then he is undoubtedly going to advise Government to shut hospitality…fully…again
Well you know what you can do now tony…don’t ya?
Tis you we should be avoiding not the shops
Nphet on there “advise” issuing to public again when that info should be given to government to issue as that is the line of communication.
As at the min… the gov say one thing and say it’s coming from nphets advise and then nphet issue something else. it’s a circus and not a laughable one.
Keep using antigen tests folks and do what you feel is right in your situation. Just be careful and please god you remain healthy and well for you and your loved ones.
Have a lovely st Stephen’s day
Pandemic endgame. Come march it’ll all be a bad memory.
Good man Tony
Are people still listening to this plonker
It’s all a bit too late for that I’m afraid
What day is it? I’m now lost
Oh hes back its a bit late now the jenie is out of the bottle
Why are we not being given the three cures for covid?
Tony,please go back to the day job,
So Dr Tony wants people who live on their own to meet with no one and stay at home alone at the most difficult time of the year for people who live alone already and have suffered the most since this pandemic began. You really haven’t a clue as to how single people in this country live/survive on a day to day basis. Isolating will kill me quicker than covid ever will.
Exactly
Rage Against the Machine
People are getting excited that this variant seems to be milder, which is good news.
the fact that more people will catch it and be left with Long Covid is not being mentioned at all.
Here is a NHS page on Long covid and it makes for tough reading. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/long-term-effects-of-coronavirus-long-covid/
Tony has no life
100% right
have your say