What is your stance on a Covid-19 vaccine ?

[dark_castle1]

I have already seen protests from people saying if there ever is a vaccine for Covid-19 they will refuse to have it ! This I do not understand because this vaccine (if it ever transpires) could help save your life and possibly save all the brave workers already having put themselves in harms way from doing so again.

I have my own opinion on what should happen but it might be too controversial for this forum.

I will gladly have the vaccine if it transpires and at least gives me some protection.

[theelench]

Although I have my doubts (but agree I might have a distorted view due to the bias of the news I've looked at) some plagues have been oddly selective in their victims.

The 1918 Flu pandemic killed many younger people but often left their older relatives to recover.  Another ("The Sweats" if I remember rightly) seemed to target the rich and well nourished during the 16th and 17th centuries.  The opposite of what you would expect, that the poorer less well nourished would be more vulnerable.

With the Flu it's been theorised that what killed the young was their healthier Immune Systems killed them by over-reacting.  The Sweats completely disappeared from W.Europe so is a bit of a mystery.

[fallen-archie]

I don’t believe that we would be any further forward without vaccines and that this one should also be welcomed, I always have a flu and pneumonia jab and would welcome an addition to wipe out this crazy virus. I wish there was an injection that would rid us of cynicism and one that prevented people from
Seeing only the worst in people, would it be so hard to achieve? All I know is that as a lad the sight of people with a club foot was relatively common, nowadays it is not, does anyone on here believe that to be a conspiracy or could it be down to a polio vaccine?

[cee-dee]

What did I say in #19? :-

"................ it's right to say that some people will have been "listed" of dying from the virus when really, although they had the virus, it was another thing (like a heart attack) that actually saw them off."

Now look here:-

https://www.cebm.net/covid-19/why-no-one-can-ever-recover-from-covid-19-in-england-a-statistical-ano...

[bankhaunter]

The thing to bear in mind is that the effects of the virus can be to cause other problems such as lung damage, blood clots and kidney damage, those effects can linger for months.

A person may die of a heart attack, or another condition they were otherwise living with but it would have been triggered by the virus.

As for the vaccine, a lot of the nonsense spewed out on social media is the product of living in an age when ignorant opinion and wild fancies are considered to have the same value as experience and knowledge.

[dark_castle1]

Ah yes bank ! the effects of this virus re other problems which could cause death further down the line that are exacerbated by Covid-19 which this government want to discount to enable them to ahem massage the figures to make them look better in their favour !

If you catch Covid-19 and do not die within a specified time then you did not die of Covid-19 according to the government even if the problem that brought about your demise was brought on by Covid-19.

[cee-dee]

This "massaging" is somewhat open to debate.

For example, if you were involved in a minor road traffic accident and suffered minor head injuries but a week later suffered a heart attack, what killed you? The HA or the RTA?

[dark_castle1]

I read somewhere that they want to make the limit of using Covid-19 as the cause of death 28 days after you have been diagnosed and tested as having it ! You could spend longer than that on a ventilator and pass away. They also only want numbers that have tested as positive and passed away in hospital to be used, no other deaths attributed to be used.

In the case you are speaking about CD obviously the heart attack would be cause of death but who is  too say that was not brought on by the trauma and stress of the accident but you cannot put that reason on the death certificate.

If you want it taken to the finite cause of death I as a professional driver can diagnose every death from this day forward ! ---- stopped breathing. 

[fallen-archie]

This is all well and good but I would prefer it if we could all agree on how to measure the impact of Covid both here and elsewhere! Why do we chastise ourselves for having some oft he worst statistics in terms of COVID-19 deaths when the rest of the world do things differently? It has been the cause of serious concern throughout the world and yet it pales into insignificance when compared to other major causes of deaths! Should we mourn those who have succumbed or celebrate their lives, life is cruel, it took my super fit brother at 50, cancer is a real killer! Many of those who have died in nursing homes had lived good long lives, they may have been frail and counting down the days but if Covid didn’t take them something else would have, that may sound callous but it is not meant to be, life is fragile and if every time a new virus comes along we all act responsibly, rather than claiming the gift of hindsight then we will all benefit!

[suzieseaside]

Yes, and lets get this virus in proportion. I read somewhere just 2% of deaths currently are due to covid.
As far as I know there have been no deaths from covid in my town and yet the health centre seem to do what they can to prevent you seeing a doctor face to face, fobbing you off in a useless phonecuall. Unfortunately my old doctor who respected me has retired and my new one doesn't seem interested. They will not let anyone into the surgery without an appointment or even arrange anything over the intercom, and although the long phone message says they do a sit and wait in emergencies, they don't because you can't get in!
I know I need to see a doctor but it seems to be impossible. One option is a private consultation at £1200 - why should I pay that when I have paid my NI and tax all my life, although if life saving I agree it is worth it. The other option I suppose is to ring the non emergency number 111? and hope the paramedics will come round. Still, I cannot understand why the doctors are being so unhelpful when coronavirus is not the only health problem around.

[cee-dee]

They're starting that phone in lark for A & E too at a hospital in SW, did you know?

£1200 for a private consultation seems a bit steep? Have you actually been quoted that? Initially they do a phone triage. 

Your surgery should also do a phone triage if you phone your surgery with something needing a doctors consultation. Didn't they ask what was "wrong" with you?

[suzieseaside]

Yes my new doctor did ask when I rang before but didn't seem to take any notice. She just arranged a blood test which is not what I need, at least not just that. I will ring again and ask for a different doctor to speak to as my symptoms are getting much worse (difficulty breathing even to talk., exhausted etc).
The £1200 is for a heart and lung check in nearby town.
I gave up smoking a while back and feel far worse since! I have no covid specific symptoms (had those in January but that was too early perhaps)

Am just looking to get a new phone as Sod's Law no-one can hear me now on my phone although I can hear them. Only 2 years old too. The local phone fixer couldn't do anything yesterday and I must say I don't like to be without a phone in case of emergency.

Anyway, it's my problem to sort but my comment was really that there does appear to be a lot of resistance to seeing patients, perhaps out of proportion to the risk now that some aspects of lockdown have eased, and not least because no doctor, nurse, or receptionist there has had the virus (I asked when I had a blood test). Pubs, hairdressers, and even dentists are open

[suzieseaside]

so a locked surgery door seems a bit extreme to me.

[cee-dee]

Phew, I think you've been quoted a rip-off price there, possibly for a full blown assessment. An intial examination should only be £200 - £250.

As a matter of interest, what's your heart rate like? Have you counted it? Is it "even"? ie, not irregular. Any idea what your blood pressure is?

I think a lot of surgeries have done the same as yours but you should still be able to access a doctor. Also, they should at least be able to do an ECG at the surgery.

[suzieseaside]

Hi CD, don't want to hijack the thread, but to answer you, breathing got so bad I had to call the emergency services tonight. Just arrived at the hospital. Oxygen low. Hope they can sort me out. I'm not ready to check out, things to do, places to see!

[cee-dee]

I've sent you a PM. Good luck at hospital.

[dark_castle1]

CD, I would be grateful if you could pass on my best wishes for a speedy recovery to suzieseaside, thank you.

[astrologica]

Suzie...sorry to hear that you are not well...I hope you'll soon be feeling better. Look after yourself....❤️❤️❤️

[cee-dee]

Suzie is in hospital and is being checked out so far. 

[suzieseaside]

Hello people, thank you for your good wishes. One doctor was going to send me home at 9am without even checking heart stuff apart from BP and a quick ECG, which I thought important given my symptoms. I can't think that he had read my notes or digested what I told him. Anyway have just had a CT scan and an efficient day doctor told me she is checking for pulmonary embolism too.
I was not happy about being sent home after only a chest x-ray with my breathing getting worse by the day. You have to be assertive - quite hard for some people especially if they feel very unwell

[m25jet]

Hi Suzie,

Sorry to hear that you've been unwell - I wasn't aware that you'd had to go into hospital until I clicked on this thread a few minutes ago and started reading some of the latest posts.  Hope you start feeling better soon - if your breathing gets any worse then get straight back to the doctor about it, and if your GP won't help you then just present directly to A&E.  It's best to be forceful sometimes in order to get what you want - sometimes it's the only way to get results, especially when it comes to doctors and receiving the necessary treatment required in order to resolve the problem.