Dcubed Posted January 8, 2021 Posted January 8, 2021 (edited) 22 hours ago, Pestneb said: yup. If they can give 200 jabs over x time, they can give either 200 people 65% immunity or 100 people 95% immunity. So it's simple maths, 200*.65 = 130 100*1=100.(technically 100*.95 but theoretically boosting the vaccine to 100% immunity still leaves it falling short to any vaccine that gives above 50% immunity) greater effect short term by giving one dose to more people. the risk involved is that it's unknown how long the 65% will last, and if the 100% comes with the second dose after a larger gap. It's an educated guess, but right now given the time of year and stress the NHS is under, even if the vaccine proves ineffective and a third booster is needed, it probably is going to save more lives by taking this gamble. the 65% is I understand 100% protection against severe disease, so the main benefit is relieving pressure on the NHS. If it works out well (we won't know for some time yet) they can continue, if it goes very badly (we may find that out much sooner) then they back track and follow the original schedule. I think the fact it is winter and the NHS is annually heavily burdened at this time figures quite heavily into making a single dose approach a reasonably wise one.time will show if it was the correct one. Sadly that’s not how things work... We don’t know how long that initial protection lasts, we don’t know if a second dose is even effective at all if it gets delayed. We simply don’t have the scientific evidence to support what the Tories are doing here. They’re making a complete mockery of the trials that gave us the evidence we needed to actually use these vaccines. Quite frankly, their use of the Pfizer vaccine is completely Off Label; and is not based on any scientific evidence at all. It does not work like a traditional vaccine, we do not know how long the initial immunity lasts for. They are using us as lab rats; and all just to boost their numbers up and make themselves look good. What they are doing is incredibly dangerous. It’s quite possible that it could even result in the development of a viral strain that is resistant to the vaccine, as it gets into immunocompromised people that aren’t fully protected. Edited January 8, 2021 by Dcubed 6
MindFreak Posted January 8, 2021 Posted January 8, 2021 The Danish government has just announced that everyone who wants to get the vaccine here in Denmark will have got the second dose by June 27th at the latest. That's great! Soon we will have a normal country again (with a new massive debt to mink farmers and other people).
Pestneb Posted January 10, 2021 Posted January 10, 2021 On 1/8/2021 at 7:29 PM, Dcubed said: Sadly that’s not how things work... We don’t know how long that initial protection lasts, we don’t know if a second dose is even effective at all if it gets delayed. We simply don’t have the scientific evidence to support what the Tories are doing here. They’re making a complete mockery of the trials that gave us the evidence we needed to actually use these vaccines. Quite frankly, their use of the Pfizer vaccine is completely Off Label; and is not based on any scientific evidence at all. It does not work like a traditional vaccine, we do not know how long the initial immunity lasts for. They are using us as lab rats; and all just to boost their numbers up and make themselves look good. What they are doing is incredibly dangerous. It’s quite possible that it could even result in the development of a viral strain that is resistant to the vaccine, as it gets into immunocompromised people that aren’t fully protected. So, if you have two friends who are vulnerable, in the next 2 months they will contract covid. Without the vaccine they will suffer from the worst of covid. (ie die, long term health issues). You'd rather have one vaccinated and covered for however long it lasts (hey, guess what, we still don't know how long even the double dose is effective for!), over having both receive a single dose and at worst suffer a cold? This vaccine isn't that radically different from other vaccines, the immune response it provokes is unlikely to stop working at all after 43 days, and the efficacy of the second dose may be affected, but it could be improved for all we know. What we do know is that using the single dose approach at this point WILL protect the NHS and save lives. If in a few weeks time data becomes available that suggests the gap is too long to give the best effect from the vaccination program, then is the time (when strain on the NHS will hopefully have been greatly reduced) to change tact. Short term, if they insisted on giving the two doses at the recommended gap it would, at this stage with low supply, result in avoidable death and suffering. I sincerely hope your intention isn't to influence things toward that outcome?? 1
Dcubed Posted January 10, 2021 Posted January 10, 2021 (edited) 24 minutes ago, Pestneb said: So, if you have two friends who are vulnerable, in the next 2 months they will contract covid. Without the vaccine they will suffer from the worst of covid. (ie die, long term health issues). You'd rather have one vaccinated and covered for however long it lasts (hey, guess what, we still don't know how long even the double dose is effective for!), over having both receive a single dose and at worst suffer a cold? This vaccine isn't that radically different from other vaccines, the immune response it provokes is unlikely to stop working at all after 43 days, and the efficacy of the second dose may be affected, but it could be improved for all we know. What we do know is that using the single dose approach at this point WILL protect the NHS and save lives. If in a few weeks time data becomes available that suggests the gap is too long to give the best effect from the vaccination program, then is the time (when strain on the NHS will hopefully have been greatly reduced) to change tact. Short term, if they insisted on giving the two doses at the recommended gap it would, at this stage with low supply, result in avoidable death and suffering. I sincerely hope your intention isn't to influence things toward that outcome?? The Pfizer vaccine is NOT like a traditional vaccine at all. It is the first ever mRNA vaccine ever produced. We have robust scientific trial data that shows that the vaccine (after having the double dose administered within the 21 day window, as tested) remains effective more than 6 months after it is administered. This modified regimen that the Tories have come up with? We know fuck all about if it works or not! And yes, I would rather the government sticks to the regime that has actually been tested, the regime that we know actually works! ”Vaccinating” 2 people with a half dose means fuck all if that protection runs out in weeks, or (God forbid!) results in the development of a viral strain that is resistant to the damn thing! This is why you do these trials in the first place! You establish what works BEFORE you start using it! You do not deviate from what is tested because you have no idea what kind of effect a change in dose, or dosing regime might have on the efficacy of a drug before you test it! Short term gain for long term pain though. That’s the Tory way as per usual. Edited January 10, 2021 by Dcubed 1
Pestneb Posted January 10, 2021 Posted January 10, 2021 (edited) seriously though, once you're dead, long term effects don't really matter so much do they? Do you realise how close we are in certain parts of the country to the NHS hitting 100% capacity? So imagine you're in a vehicle/walking along a path to do food shopping. A car hits some ice, loses control, hits you. You need medical attention promptly, but your injuries are survivable. Oh. wait, no they aren't.. the 2 vaccines in two weeks approach was taken. NHS staff ill, large numbers of the elderly in covid wards, no beds available. The ambulance that ought to have taken you to a hospital is queued up waiting to drop a covid patient who's dying in the ambulance.. no beds for that poor sod either. Still, at least the tories followed the guidelines on vaccination. That's the situation we are in, which people don't seem to understand. the R number is 1-1.4 IN this lockdown. that means cases are going up. If we can't cut down the numbers being hospitalised then the above scenario is possible. In regards to the vaccine being different, the immune systems they are working on are not. the immune response may in fact be better/prolonged with this method. as you say we don't know. So as we don't know, is it worth the gamble of assuming that the 6 weeks is fixed in stone, when we know, with things going as they are, if we follow the 6 weeks it is sure that people will die? It's pretty much like paying £5000 for a lottery ticket where you may win £6000, or you may win £0. The risk/reward ratio is wrong. Yes in 6 weeks we are unsure if these people will continue being covered, but we are sure that other strains on the NHS will be diminished so the NHS will be better able to deal with covid. Supply of the vaccines will be higher which will mean that getting the second dose (or a 3rd boost maybe) for vulnerable people will be feasible. Edited January 10, 2021 by Pestneb
Dcubed Posted January 10, 2021 Posted January 10, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, Pestneb said: seriously though, once you're dead, long term effects don't really matter so much do they? Do you realise how close we are in certain parts of the country to the NHS hitting 100% capacity? So imagine you're in a vehicle/walking along a path to do food shopping. A car hits some ice, loses control, hits you. You need medical attention promptly, but your injuries are survivable. Oh. wait, no they aren't.. the 2 vaccines in two weeks approach was taken. NHS staff ill, large numbers of the elderly in covid wards, no beds available. The ambulance that ought to have taken you to a hospital is queued up waiting to drop a covid patient who's dying in the ambulance.. no beds for that poor sod either. Still, at least the tories followed the guidelines on vaccination. That's the situation we are in, which people don't seem to understand. the R number is 1-1.4 IN this lockdown. that means cases are going up. If we can't cut down the numbers being hospitalised then the above scenario is possible. In regards to the vaccine being different, the immune systems they are working on are not. the immune response may in fact be better/prolonged with this method. as you say we don't know. So as we don't know, is it worth the gamble of assuming that the 6 weeks is fixed in stone, when we know, with things going as they are, if we follow the 6 weeks it is sure that people will die? It's pretty much like paying £5000 for a lottery ticket where you may win £6000, or you may win £0. The risk/reward ratio is wrong. Yes in 6 weeks we are unsure if these people will continue being covered, but we are sure that other strains on the NHS will be diminished so the NHS will be better able to deal with covid. Supply of the vaccines will be higher which will mean that getting the second dose (or a 3rd boost maybe) for vulnerable people will be feasible. We are not at the point where we are vaccinating the general public; we are still getting through the first set of people, and are only just now starting to include health & social care workers outside of care homes. The “doubling” of the vaccine numbers will not get us to the point where it will have an effect on the R number any time soon; so that is absolute bollocks. All it means is that you’ll have more NHS staff half protected, unable to get the full protection that the vaccine is supposed to offer. We don’t know if the second dose will even work at all, because we have no data available. The vaccine is completely untested outside of the 21 day window. This measure they are taking is not based on any scientific data whatsoever. It will not solve the issue of vaccine availability for the general public either. This measure is being taken for one reason only, to improve the Tory government’s optics. That’s it. There’s no virtuous motive here, instead they’re playing pretend scientist and are messing around with things that they SHOULD NOT be messing with! Medicine is not basic maths; you can’t just give a half dose and have half protection! That isn’t how medicines work! The real way to get the R Number down is to put strict lockdown measures in place and actually strictly enforce them! That’s what the Tories needed to do months ago, and they are STILL fucking this up! Messing around with the vaccine dose regime (with NO evidence!!!) only puts us at risk of making the vaccine ineffective; which is the worst case scenario imaginable! Edited January 10, 2021 by Dcubed 1
Pestneb Posted January 10, 2021 Posted January 10, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, Dcubed said: We are not at the point where we are vaccinating the 1) general public; we are still getting through the first set of people, and are only just now starting to include health & social care workers outside of care homes. 2) The “doubling” of the vaccine numbers will not get us to the point where it will have an effect on the R number any time soon; so that is absolute bollocks. All it means is that you’ll have more NHS staff half protected, unable to get the full protection that the vaccine is supposed to offer. 3)We don’t know if the second dose will even work at all, because we have no data available. The vaccine is completely untested outside of the 21 day window. This measure they are taking is not based on any scientific data whatsoever. 4) It will not solve the issue of vaccine availability for the general public either. This measure is being taken for one reason only, 5) to improve the Tory government’s optics. That’s it. There’s no virtuous motive here, instead they’re playing pretend scientist and are messing around with things that they SHOULD NOT be messing with! Medicine is not basic maths; 6) you can’t just give a half dose and have half protection! That isn’t how medicines work! The real way to get the R Number down is to put strict lockdown measures in place and actually strictly enforce them! That’s what the Tories needed to do months ago, and they are STILL fucking this up! Messing around with the vaccine dose regime (with NO evidence!!!) only puts us at risk of making the vaccine ineffective; which is the worst case scenario imaginable! 1) General public - what's your definition? I would say that a segment of those being vaccinated now fall into that category, or if you want to argue specific groups being targetted means it isn't the general public then tbh I don't think any vaccine is ever given to the general public, it's always specific age ranges or risk factors (ie tetanus if you haven't had a booster in 10 years and get a qualifying injury) 2) I never said single dosing would significantly (or even slightly) lower the R number - please read the section you bolded. The individuals being injected at the moment are those most likely to develop severe symptoms and require hospital treatment. So yes, it is absolute Quote bollocks to suggest the R number will be significantly affected - equally from my understanding the R number isn't necessarily a reflection of the current situation, but it does strongly suggest very short term we can expect a 6% or so increase in covid related burden in the NHS and that likely requires some sort of timely mitigation 3) afaik they are testing outside the 21 day window, there is no public data available (though possibly some unpublished) however it is possible to use experience and knowledge of other vaccines to extrapolate and make an reasonably educated guess how this will affect immunity. It is worth bearing in mind that with the SA variant, it is possible that a later booster that is less narrow in its protection will be necessary even if the second dose is given at the recommended time. 4) Again I didn't say this would solve vaccine availability, it is buying some time while vaccine ability issues are resolved. It's absolutely a sub optimal approach, but until the infrastructure is in place and coincidentally non covid issues ease in the NHS, it does make some sense. 5)Yes, it is fairly bad optics for any government if the health service is allowed to collapse. I would also suggest it's less than ideal for the affected populace as well. 6)I couldn't agree more, you are quite right, a single dose isn't half protection, it gives greater protection than that for the initial tested period. Protection offered beyond that is unknown, but hopefully adequate. 7) I agree a strict lockdown would be my preferred solution, and imo far less destructive at all levels than these repeated "gentle" lockdowns that damage society, the economy, health system.. the uk in generally really, far more effectively than they hamper the spread of the virus. Schools certainly should not be physically open imo, shops shouldn't be open to the public, deliveries should be made in full ppe etc. but equally I can't see that passing parliament. Anyway, I am sure we won't agree on the single vaccine dose in general, but I imagine we can agree that the sooner they begin giving second doses (ideally in the recommended time frame) the better. For me I think that once they have vaccinated over 70's and those who are clinically very vulnerable, they definitely need to be following the recommendations, because the NHS caveat loses it's potency the less vulnerable the target population becomes. I also hope that the second dose efficacy doesn't become reduced when received later, and basically that covid can become a thoroughly unpleasant memory sooner rather than later. https://www.itv.com/news/2021-01-06/is-the-uk-right-to-extend-period-between-covid-vaccine-doses Quote Prof Stephen Evans, Professor of Pharmacoepidemiology, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, says: “This is not a simple problem. The idea that there is a definite clear-cut answer is not true because respected scientists differ in their views. He adds that it is "simply not true to say that there is evidence that using the vaccines in a different way will have dramatically reduced efficacy". "We have some evidence that the efficacy is quite good, and there are no reasons to believe it will show a sudden decline between three and 12 weeks." Quote Dr Stephen Griffin, Associate Professor in the School of Medicine, University of Leeds, said: "Given the tremendous effort and investment required to mount clinical trials on this scale, it feels unwise to alter the Pfizer protocol – put simply, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it… “The Pfizer vaccine has been judged by JCVI to confer 90% protection following the first injection, yet there is no data to support how long this might last and what may or may not happen if the second dose is delayed. "This is also difficult to reconcile with data showing that robust antibody responses are coincident with the second Pfizer injection at day 21 – without data on appropriate patients, we should not merely assume that these will be the same if second doses are delayed." Think those two are more qualified than both of us DCubed, I'd say I sit pretty much with Prof. Evans on this, while you're more Dr Griffin? Edited January 10, 2021 by Pestneb
Happenstance Posted January 12, 2021 Posted January 12, 2021 Every time I get furloughed I seem to rearrange my room out of boredom. Just finished dismantling my desk, shifting everything around and getting ready to order a smaller desk. Didn't help that this time because I've barely done anything over Christmas with my muscles in my side being fucked I basically had no strength and am now knackered 😆 1
Raining_again Posted January 12, 2021 Posted January 12, 2021 7 hours ago, Happenstance said: Every time I get furloughed I seem to rearrange my room out of boredom. Just finished dismantling my desk, shifting everything around and getting ready to order a smaller desk. Didn't help that this time because I've barely done anything over Christmas with my muscles in my side being fucked I basically had no strength and am now knackered 😆 maybe your room will end up the same way it was by the time covid is over
Aperson Posted January 15, 2021 Posted January 15, 2021 Not really sure which thread a post like this should go in but it really feels like the state of government is the worst it's ever been right now. This global pandemic has seen so many bad calls by the government as they only seem to care about improving profitability and productivity of those already in employment and those higher up the food chain, they are showing a complete lack of understanding in how properly to handle trying to contain a global pandemic and not listening to the people who actually do know, aka scientists and health professionals. The worst part of all of this is that I feel they are being unchallenged in many of their decisions because the Labour party are not providing the counter balance and not looking after the general population of the UK as they are supposed to be doing, instead just letting everything go without question. The one person who could have actually handled this global pandemic well was Jeremy Corbyn but the people in charge of our local newspapers just scared people off voting him but bigging up anti semitism. At least there's a vaccine available now but I feel like the pandemic is masking bigger problems with the country and they're only going to become more apparent when everyone has received the vaccine and this crisis is over.
Jonnas Posted January 20, 2021 Posted January 20, 2021 I'm frustrated, mostly with myself. My family and I were in close contact with someone who has since then tested positive for Covid. We're now in quarantine until any of us can get tested (meaning I'm taking a sudden break from work too). The reason I'm so annoyed is that, after so many months of caution and social distancing, we've grown sloppy. I guess this is what it means to live in a "new normal", we just stop taking the threat as seriously as in the beginning. This quarantine is a situation that could've been avoided, and yet we cut corners and rationalised them. I figure this mentality issue is at the root of the steady increase of global cases from the recent months too, but it's no excuse. 1
Raining_again Posted January 21, 2021 Posted January 21, 2021 5 hours ago, Jonnas said: I'm frustrated, mostly with myself. My family and I were in close contact with someone who has since then tested positive for Covid. We're now in quarantine until any of us can get tested (meaning I'm taking a sudden break from work too). The reason I'm so annoyed is that, after so many months of caution and social distancing, we've grown sloppy. I guess this is what it means to live in a "new normal", we just stop taking the threat as seriously as in the beginning. This quarantine is a situation that could've been avoided, and yet we cut corners and rationalised them. I figure this mentality issue is at the root of the steady increase of global cases from the recent months too, but it's no excuse. honestly, i think everyone is, its getting really tough. I hear that they are bringin in army medics here because our health system is on its knees (northern ireland) which is just impressing on me how important it is to be careful. Stay safe buddy 1
Cube Posted January 21, 2021 Posted January 21, 2021 Got a wonderful letter from my health board regarding their plan about vaccines. I'm in what they dub the second phase. The plan for the second phase is....they don't have one. They haven't decided if they'll be doing any more vaccinations by then.
Glen-i Posted February 3, 2021 Posted February 3, 2021 Just reporting in to tell you all that I received my first dose jab this morning. It was Astra Zenica and with that news that it might reduce transmissions, I have every right to post the following GIF. Even more so because I'm petrified of needles. 6
drahkon Posted February 4, 2021 Posted February 4, 2021 New infections are going down here in Germany, but they're still quite high (10k per day on average). There's already talks of planning to ease the lockdown. Watch our government make the same mistake again...
drahkon Posted February 9, 2021 Posted February 9, 2021 On 2/4/2021 at 11:29 AM, drahkon said: Watch our government make the same mistake again... Tomorrow's the day...our government will decide. Numbers are way down compared to December last year. Lockdown needs to continue for (at least) another two weeks, though, in my opinion. Give us a perspective for the time in March and beyond, but until then: keep pushing the numbers down, please.
Happenstance Posted February 22, 2021 Posted February 22, 2021 I see the government are just reopening all schools on 8th March and not a phased return that makes more sense and would be safer. #Lockdown4 is already trending on Twitter with people thinking this will just send us straight back into a summer lockdown. I assume this is what Chris Whitty was so unhappy about last week.
drahkon Posted February 22, 2021 Posted February 22, 2021 2 hours ago, Happenstance said: I see the government are just reopening all schools on 8th March and not a phased return that makes more sense and would be safer. Ah, I see we're not alone. 10 of 16 federal states in Germany have reopened schools today.
Glen-i Posted February 22, 2021 Posted February 22, 2021 4 hours ago, Happenstance said: I see the government are just reopening all schools on 8th March and not a phased return that makes more sense and would be safer. #Lockdown4 is already trending on Twitter with people thinking this will just send us straight back into a summer lockdown. I assume this is what Chris Whitty was so unhappy about last week. I mean, there's only so many times I can post that screenshot of the Secret of Mana intro. It wouldn't be as bad if the suggestion from Labour of vaccinating Teachers was taken up, but we can't be having suggestions from the opposition actually being considered now, can we? Makes me sick... We can only hope that the combination of the vaccine and this more cautious easing will be effective enough to prevent another ridiculous spike. But of course, some Tories are pulling a Sonic and constantly spamming the "You're too slow!" taunt in Smash Brawl.
Happenstance Posted February 22, 2021 Posted February 22, 2021 2 minutes ago, Glen-i said: I mean, there's only so many times I can post that screenshot of the Secret of Mana intro. It wouldn't be as bad if the suggestion from Labour of vaccinating Teachers was taken up, but we can't be having suggestions from the opposition actually being considered now, can we? Makes me sick... We can only hope that the combination of the vaccine and this more cautious easing will be effective enough to prevent another ridiculous spike. But of course, some Tories are pulling a Sonic and constantly spamming the "You're too slow!" taunt in Smash Brawl. Not just teachers but all school staff should really be moved up the list. 1
Raining_again Posted February 26, 2021 Posted February 26, 2021 I'm still shielding, still bored, nothing to update 2nd vaccine on tuesday 2
Glen-i Posted February 26, 2021 Posted February 26, 2021 29 minutes ago, Raining_again said: I'm still shielding, still bored, nothing to update 2nd vaccine on tuesday It's weird, ever since I got my first dose, I've been slightly looking forward to April where I'll get my second, despite hating needles. My guess is it's a feeling of actual progress happening. 1
Raining_again Posted February 26, 2021 Posted February 26, 2021 15 minutes ago, Glen-i said: It's weird, ever since I got my first dose, I've been slightly looking forward to April where I'll get my second, despite hating needles. My guess is it's a feeling of actual progress happening. Yesssssss I definitely am looking forward to my second dose, if a little nervous. I had a terrible reaction first time. Will be interesting to see if my reaction is any different this time with some level of immunity, but I suppose thats not always how it works. I will only really be able to rest easy when my immediate family get theirs. But progress is progress. My dad (65) and sister (dental nurse) have both had one, but my mum's that bit younger (59) so she has to wait a bit yet. 1
nightwolf Posted February 28, 2021 Posted February 28, 2021 My Dad got his first dose yesterday, hoping that my mother will have it some time soon. The irony is that my parents are fairly young (mid-50s) and I have a list of illnesses as long as my arm. It absolutely makes sense for my dad to get it because he's been in hospital recently with an illness. So realistically my brain has gone "well I'm very ill, more so than my dad so where is mine?". Likely due to my age compared to my relatively healthy low 50s mother, she'll get it first. Honestly the whole system baffles me, speaking to other fairly chronically ill folk it seems the same way for them too. I am however glad my parents are getting it el pronto. They really want to see my sisters second baby when she is born, I'm not entirely sure they will be able too near birth, but at least they'll be relatively safe to fly when the time comes. (Which may be before I even get my first jab, who knows)
Raining_again Posted February 28, 2021 Posted February 28, 2021 7 hours ago, nightwolf said: My Dad got his first dose yesterday, hoping that my mother will have it some time soon. The irony is that my parents are fairly young (mid-50s) and I have a list of illnesses as long as my arm. It absolutely makes sense for my dad to get it because he's been in hospital recently with an illness. So realistically my brain has gone "well I'm very ill, more so than my dad so where is mine?". Likely due to my age compared to my relatively healthy low 50s mother, she'll get it first. Honestly the whole system baffles me, speaking to other fairly chronically ill folk it seems the same way for them too. I am however glad my parents are getting it el pronto. They really want to see my sisters second baby when she is born, I'm not entirely sure they will be able too near birth, but at least they'll be relatively safe to fly when the time comes. (Which may be before I even get my first jab, who knows) Your dad must be in group 6? I know NI hasn't got anywhere near to the level of mid 50s "healthy" people. My mum is in that category and is waiting anxiously. My dad is 65, i think he falls under group 5, he just had his first vacc last week. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-vaccination-care-home-and-healthcare-settings-posters/covid-19-vaccination-first-phase-priority-groups#fn:1 clinical risk isnt determined by severity of disease or pain unfortunately, its immunology risk. I consider myself fairly significantly disabled now, but 3 years ago i wouldn't have appeared to be at all disabled but still CEV. You should check the criteria and see if you fall under the moderate risk group.
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