Professor from Royal College of Surgeons calls for Emergency Cabinet to deal with Covid-19
The Irish Patients Association says people need to stop blaming others when it comes to Coronavirus.
The IPA Director, Stephen McMahon, said some are taking to social media to post negative and hurtful comments, about people who have contracted the virus.
McMahon says anyone with Coronavirus is a patient who needs care, not online abuse.
He said: "Once they are a patient they are on our turf."
"And they need to be treated with dignity and respect.
"It's not their fault that they have caught this virus."
McMahon added: "It is not a question of fault, its just nature being nature.
"And we have to be caring in the way that we actually look after those who are falling victim tot this."
Visitor bans remain in place at a number of Irish hospitals due to concerns over the coronavirus. while elective surgeries and outpatient appointments on Monday and Tuesday at six hospitals across Limerick, Clare and north Tipperary have been cancelled.
There are now 18 confirmed cases in the Republic - seven in the west, seven in the east and four in the south.
Stephen McMahon from the Irish Patients Association says people need to know that hospitals will be able to cope.
He said: "We have people with heart conditions, with diabetes, with cancer, and a whole range of other chronic illnesses. And they still need their treatment and care ongoing."
A doctor from the Department of International Health and Tropical Medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons has said he thinks Covid 19 has become a national emergency.
Professor Sam McConkey said an Emergency Cabinet involving all parties should be set up to take stronger action.
It comes as five new cases were confirmed in the Republic of Ireland, bringing to 18 the number of confirmed cases in the country.
On Newstalk Breakfast with Susan Keogh this morning, Professor McConkey said Ireland’s response so far “has been like a small mouse facing an elephant.”
“We haven’t got into the really sweeping, all of society, all of industry, all of Government response that is needed to deal with this,” he said.
He said he views the outbreak as “the biggest challenge to the functioning of our State that we have ever seen.”
This is a very, very big national emergency and there are a suite of about 20 or 30 very dramatic actions that we could take as a people to fix it.
“China has done that and we have not even touched on that yet. Otherwise, it is just going to spread through our population like the cruise ship, the Diamond Princess.”
He said the response requires a “strong, powerful central government”
“It will require cross-party support,” he said. “As in the leaders of five or six of the biggest parties coming together in an Emergency Cabinet to lead us through this Covid-19 emergency.”
Major tracing operation underway as five more Covid-19 cases confirmed
A major tracing operation was under way last night as the Government revealed a further five new confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland.
It brings to 18 the number of confirmed cases in the country.
Of the five new cases, two are females in the south of the country, one of whom is associated with travel from northern Italy, and the other is a healthcare worker who had close contact with a confirmed case.
The third female is in the west, with her case linked to close contact with a confirmed case.
Of the two males, one is in the south of the country, with the case simply described as “associated with travel”.
The other male is in the east of the country, and he is also associated with travel from northern Italy.
A test result presumed to be positive for the virus has also been confirmed in the North. The result is from an adult who had recently travelled back from Italy and is linked directly to someone who has previously tested positive.
It will be sent to the Public Health England Laboratories to be verified.
The HSE is working rapidly to identify any contacts the five new cases may have had, to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.
Meanwhile, an expert in emergency medicine has warned that the State may have to consider locking down public buildings, schools, stadiums, and even towns and cities to control the outbreak.
“The way this disease unfolds in this country will hinge entirely on the way the population behaves at home and on the street,” said Chris Luke, consultant in emergency medicine and adjunct senior lecturer in public health at University College Cork.
It comes as the HSE has identified some of its buildings in Cork City as possible coronavirus isolation units.
Two vacant buildings on its St Mary’s healthcare campus in Gurranabraher are being considered for use as isolation units, or for the “decanting” of patients in the event of a flood of new cases.
It is one of the many options being considered as part of the emergency response to the first confirmed case of community transmission of the corona-virus in a patient in Cork University Hospital (CUH).
“You don’t want to be overly alarmist but there is no doubt there is every possibility we are facing into an epidemic which is a rapidly evolving situation where an infection spreads,” said Dr Luke.
Ronan Glynn, deputy chief medical officer at the Department of Health said: “The past number of weeks have been challenging for everyone in our healthcare system.
“This challenge is going escalate as the number of cases here rise.
“We must prioritise the protection of our frontline healthcare staff and as part of this, the National Public Health Emergency Team has established a sub-group to identify and implement appropriate measures to protect them.”
Some 60 healthcare staff at CUH continue to self-isolate following confirmation of the coronavirus in a male patient on Thursday, and more than 20 hospitals across the country have introduced visitor restrictions as a precautionary measure to minimise the spread.
Simon Harris, the health minister, attended an emergency meeting of the European health ministers in Brussels yesterday.
Ministers discussed the ongoing outbreak and the effects on health services.
“It is essential we plan ahead, protect our healthcare workers, and do our best to provide accurate, evidence-based, and timely information to our people,” Mr Harris said.
It was revealed yesterday that the HSE is using a former garda station in Co Clare as a pop-up facility to test people for Covid-19 as part of ongoing contact- tracing procedures.
Meanwhile, as a result of the virus, there has been an 80% drop off in corporate bookings for restaurants, and while St Patrick’s Day celebrations can go ahead, Cork towns Youghal, Cobh, and Midleton cancelled parades.
There are now almost 100,000 cases of the virus identified globally, with almost 3,500 deaths.
- The HSE have developed an information pack on how to protect yourself and others from coronavirus. Read it here
- Anyone with symptoms of coronavirus who has been in close contact with a confirmed case in the last 14 days should isolate themselves from other people - this means going into a different, well-ventilated room alone, with a phone; phone their GP, or emergency department - if this is not possible, phone 112 or 999 and in a medical emergency (if you have severe symptoms) phone 112 or 999
