Pulaski

Exactly! We are functioning perfectly well, isolated at Pulaski manor. Mrs P and I both WFH, little Miss P has online (middle) school. I go for groceries alone once per week, early in the morning, and once per month, late in the evening for DIY supplies. Other than occasional medical appointments, we pretty much just stay home.

Jerseygirl

Yup that’s pretty much the same we I feel.

thegolfer

But if we are now in a second wave as you suggest the level of mortality does not in any way reflect the levels during the peak of the first wave.

Pulaski

That appears to be an accurate observation based on the available data, however you should bear in mind that fatalities numbers trail infections data by about six weeks - it typically takes that long for someone to get ill and die.

bons

One explanation -

https://www.ft.com/content/c011e214-...c-2bd87ebb29d7

thegolfer

Quote from the FT article posted above negates your theory.

" In Britain, as across Europe, coronavirus infections have been increasing for several weeks — but the resurgence has so far proven notably less deadly than the original pandemic. Since the beginning of July, when the decline in newly confirmed cases from their April peak stalled, infections have increased gradually back to levels last recorded in mid-June. Although hospitalisations and deaths lag infections, neither indicator has shown a corresponding increase even six weeks after the number of cases began to rise. Rather, hospital admissions and deaths attributed to Covid-19 are at record lows in Britain and several other European countries. In the week ending August 21, British hospitals admitted an average of just over 84 people a day with Covid-19 — less than at any stage during the pandemic."

suiko

Second wave hasn't really happened yet, I don't think. Think October?

toots sweet

Well I suppose it might be that the powers that be( not including our pitiful UK government) know more about the virus and how to cope/treat it.There are less cases so treatment is better and hospitals less overloaded.PPE is available so less medical staff are vunerable to the virus.Care homes have now been recognised as places that were woefully ignored. Information is more widely given(although sometimes badly contradictory and confusing)
There is also thankfully many people who treat the virus with the knowledge of its dangers and are not putting themselves about thinking it can't happen to them and ignoring the consequences of their actions.

fergus

With regard to fewer deaths now than at the beginning I also think that the way the numbers are counted has an impact. Just like when the unemployment went over 3 million they changed how they counted it and low and behold, it fell, the same has happened with Covid. They now only count people that die within the first 4 weeks of being diagnosed. But, I believe that for many unfortunate people it may be between 6 and 10 weeks before they finally lose the fight.

bons

They were also calling it a Covid death wihen people were in their 90s and ill anyway. One guy called a radio show and said his mum was admitted to a home in February when she was 93, and was very ill with old age. She must have contracted Covid in there, died in March and it was put down as a covid death. The son was adamant that his mum was dying anyway. Another caller, a care home worker, also said they were doing that and making the numbers look worse than they were. She said it was a aking to someone undergoing cancer treatment, dyhing in a car crash, but putting cause of death as cancer. Who knows, the whole thing is just a nightmare.

thegolfer

Spain shows a most definite Second wave.....but with very minimal deaths resulting from it.

bons

I thought Spain had more than 29,000 deaths.

thegolfer

Well these are WHO statistics, not media speculation....so I guess you thought wrong

bons

I don't trust the WHO at all, they only called it a pandemic when half of Italy's case were recorded. It just felt like Spain had more deaths as we were shown pictures of patients lying on the floor in A & E.

Rosemary

One possible explanation for the lower number of deaths resulting from the second wave is that this time it appears to be infecting many more young people who are physically stronger than the elderly and less likely to have other underlying health issues therefore surviving.

Rosemary