Read on Twitter
The retospectoscope and hindsight in COVID cases @DonnellyStephen @HSELive @merrionstreet @SusanMitchell_
1/ I am disappointed that so many here are now giving out about the government decision to ease restrictions in December, and for ignoring. NPHET’s advice. Hindsight is 20:20 it seems.
2/ The rhetoric seems to be circular. Many of the most vocal opponents of the decision to ease restrictions were also the most vocal opponents of the previous restrictions. Damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
3/ There were many that suggested that we shouldn’t lower our guard, that we shouldn’t see loved ones, and I debated this suggestion with many balanced and sensible people whose opinions I fully respect
4/ We could disagree cordially, we could share opinions, and avoid any falling out. That’s what reasonable discourse is.
5/ Do you not recall the anger vented when one individual suggested “postponing Christmas to mid January”. “Spend Christmas alone”. “Don’t see your parents or grandparents”
6/ I kinda felt at that time that this wouldn’t be possible, that the further distancing of the light at the end of the tunnel would just be too much for too many.
7/ But the whole purpose of the 6 weeks lockdown was to suppress the virus, so that all of the nation’s sacrifices might allow for some sort of December economy and Christmas.
8/ I think collectively most people wanted this. Most people needed this. We had the lowest incidence per million in Europe at the time,52 per million I recall, which was 80% lower than countries like Germany/UK/Poland/Italy and in fact Lithuania has over a 1000 cases per million
9/ The advice in December remained cautious - limit contacts, we are not out of the woods- basically “don’t go crazy and ignore the simple advice”. So did we all hand on heart follow this.
So why do we blame government.
So why do we blame government.
10/ If all restrictions had remained, it’s absolutely certain that our case numbers would be superb. But would we not then once more be engaging in our debates about the non Covid consequences re the health of our nation, and the economic devastation.
11/ Anyone who has read my threads in the last 9 months knows I am not a fan of lockdown after lockdown. I have hoped for months that we could find some compromise.
12/ That we could be measured and sensible as individuals so that some sort of balance re keeping cases under control, protecting our health services, but keeping some parts of our economy alive.
13/ I had hoped we could have used the time to improve our hospital and ICU capacity, to resource our public health systems, to live with the virus.
14/ But we must take a long look at ourselves, what choices did we make in the last 4 weeks, did we hand on heart adopt a measured approach to December re contacts, distancing, etc.
15/ Have I witnessed first hand people playing tennis while a child awaits a Covid test result at home - yes, or a guy in a gym whose test he was waiting for comes back positive the next day - yes
16/ or a person who is a close contact having repeated testing for Covid, but yet is a close contact 5 times in December - clearly not restricting his movements for 14 days as a close contact - yes
17/ or a friend who contracted COVID from his work colleague, but that said colleague didn’t tell him he had symptoms and had tested positive 48 hrs after they’d been in work together, and hence my pal infecting up to 14 others.
18/ I’m not into the blame game, but I absolutely know that there would be anger and daggers thrown at government and/or nphet regardless of what decisions were made.
19/ And maybe the 6 weeks lockdown from mid October led to a pressure cooker effect in December. Who knows. I don’t.
