Danny B

There is some depressing news coming out of Israel this morning, might have to have a shot every 6 months at this rate...

The effectiveness of the Pfizer vaccine in preventing COVID-19 infections in Israel has dropped by nearly a third due to the spread of the Delta variant, figures suggest.

BristolUK

Why is everything for you about 'fear' or being 'afraid' instead of precautions?

Do you fear crossing the road or do you take steps to prevent you being turned to mincemeat if you get hit by something? Are you afraid of knives or do you just use them carefully when you cut something?

Can you not see that it's not simply one patient at the office that's being considered but a waiting room, an enclosed space, that would have been full of people potentially spreading a virus? Among people who may be at greater risk than others?

scrubbedexpat099

Only place I have been in of late that requires a mark is the Dentist,

Bit odd when the first thing you do is take it off when you get into the chair.

caretaker

The good news is it's not a surprise, and we have the mechanism in place to get everyone their booster if necessary. Line up the supplies of vaccine as soon as
we know which are needed and get on with it. If another shot is required in the Spring repeat as necessary.

Danny B

CEO of Pfizer be like "works for me"

scrubbedexpat091

Pfizer CEO did say a couple months ago, it was very likely a 3rd shot would be needed this year.

He did also say the initial pricing will not be permanent and the discounted pricing will eventually go away but didn't specify when they plan the price increase.

BristolUK

Cheap.

Group of people (patients) small enclosed area, for an extended period in the part of the office before you see the dentist.

You'd make 5 out of 2+2 wouldn't you.

scrubbedexpat099

Reception area quite large and I have only seen one person in there and never had to wait more than a few minutes. They seem to have several treatment areas and get you in those asap ready to go.

Treatment areas small and at one point there were 3 of them, Dentist seems to prefer chin style, the two assistants were properly wearing theirs.

BristolUK

Well it's a good job the dentist didn't need to fiddle around in the mouths of the assistants isn't it.

printer

Have you been to my doctors? There is ample space for socially distanced people and before COVID it was never anywhere near half full anyways. We are or were required to wear masks that people keep telling us work so wear one yet even with everyone including the staff wearing one it's still thought to be a risk unless its absolutely necessary. My CT scan result was supposed to be talked over by him but i couldn't make a prior appointment because apparently the results may take longer than before so they will call me to discuss when in. That was in March, I'm still waiting on the call.
I have been to our hospital 3 or 4 times in last few months either for me or my wife and it's also full of patients and staff. More so i have also been to Walmart along with many many others and now many without masks too as well as any other retail establishment you care to name since July 1st yet i still cannot simply get an appointment at my doctors.
What has me crossing the road or using a knife got to do with this, i am not the one living in fear and those precautions you mention are now getting less. Our daily counts in BC are less than 50 and that's cases, some of which may be false positives in a province of 5 million. Even UK which you seemed to think were doing poorly may have rising cases but deaths and hospitalizations are still low. I think some have lost sight of the original mandate "protect the health service, save lives" it never said "Eradicate ALL cases"
You made a point that fear is not the issue its being cautious, taking things slow and that's good but when the rules are relaxed in stages we still get a whole bunch of "experts" coming out of the woodwork telling us its too much too soon, keep the masks, don't mix, 4th wave is coming etc....

BristolUK

No I haven't. Have you been to mine? His waiting room is big enough for 3 socially distanced patients and then a narrow corridor to the consultation rooms.
Pre-covid all seats were usually taken with some patients having to stand.

His office is in a building shared with half a dozen other doctors with the same sort of space. In my time here I have been in three similar buildings and the various doctors I have seen with offices in the city hospital are in similar sized rooms with normal numbers of patients rendering distancing impossible.

I don't know if I'm the unlucky one or you're the lucky one. But I'm pretty sure it makes them fairly impractical under pandemic conditions rather than the doctors being afraid.

Siouxie

You are not the only one... and most doctors are being cautious and staggering their patients rather than having a ton in each time (I remember the days pre-covid of being at my GP's waiting room with 9 others, despite an appointment system!).

My GP's previous surgery was up a flight of stairs, through a tight corridor (used by other offices and 2 washrooms); her waitng room was small, seated 9 people - possibly 3 'socially distanced'.. a tight corridor from the waiting area led to 2 consultation rooms and a secondary 'treatment' room. Her current surgery (which she has moved to since the pandemic started) seats 6 and possibly 2 socially distanced.. it's a converted lower level of a house, with 2 further rooms other than the waiting room. I have seen her once in the past 18 months, and only because I had an ear abscess that was excrutiating and I needed medications and an urgent referral to my ENT specialist, although I had one phone appointment with her prior to that. She only takes 1 patient every 30 minutes, to ensure that nobody has to be around another patient... so of course there aren't going to be a ton of appointments available - but she ensures that anyone who needs to see her urgently is fitted in.

My cardiologist shares his surgery wiith 2 others who are also cardiologists in a converted house with a waiting room that seats 10 (it was always packed, pre-covid) - possibly 3 socially distanced (but I wouldn't want to), several consultation rooms off a central vestibule, offices at the back and upstairs; then 1 testing room (EKG) and narrow corridors. The consultation rooms are small - holding a small computer desk (with computer and phone), 2 chairs and a treatment bed and blood pressure machine - you would be hard pressed to take 3 steps. They are still seeing patients, I've chosen not to attend and have cancelled 2 appointments, mostly due to the logistics of getting there and home and the higher risk of contracting 'something' while waiting.. the last time I was there it took nearly 2 hours. I'm adverse to unnecessary risk; I've had 1 phone appointment.

printer

Sounds like an aircraft or crowded train which by the way you can still enjoy (not sure that's a good word) so long as you are wearing a mask, because masks work right? Or do they only work in a crowded aircraft and not a doctors waiting room? You see this whole debate on "precautions" or "restrictions" seems a bit odd to me. Crowded doctors waiting rooms a no go even with mask, crowded planes, trains and buses ok with a mask!

caretaker

In which place would you expect to encounter sick people?

printer

All of them possibly, who knows. There was a huge hype about asymptomatic spread, so "feeling sick" is not necessarily the only factor. How many times have we seen lists produced from possible infected passengers on flights? Then of course there is the possibility that you don't have to be "sick" to be at the doctors, there are many possible reasons why one is attending a doctors office.