Self-isolate with a cold
Restrictions loom for anyone with respiratory infection or fever while PM says coronavirus containment ‘extremely unlikely’
THE public should prepare to self-isolate with any respiratory infections or fever in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Professor Chris Whitty, the UK Government’s chief medical adviser, said: “We are now very close to the time, probably within the next 10 to 14 days, when the modelling would imply we should move to a situation where everybody with even minor respiratory tract infections or a fever should be self-isolating for a period of seven days.”
The plan was revealed on the day two more people died in the UK after contracting Covid-19, taking the death toll to five.
Both were patients in their 70s with underlying health conditions.
Yesterday, the number of people with the virus in the UK stood at 321, up from 273 on Sunday.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted that containing the coronavirus outbreak “is extremely unlikely to work on its own”.
He said: “That is why we are making extensive preparations for a move to the delay phase.”
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We remain in the contain phase but it is now accepted that this virus is going to spread in a significant way, and that is why officials have been working at speed on further steps we can take to delay the spread of the virus.”
Moving to the next delay stage would involve social distancing measures, such as restricting public gatherings and more widespread advice to stay at home.
In Scotland, there are 23 confirmed cases, including two in the Shetland Islands.
These cases join one each in Tayside and Ayrshire & Arran, two each in Forth Valley and Fife, three each in Greater Glasgow & Clyde and Lanarkshire, four in Grampian and five in Lothian. Four health board areas remain clear of the virus – Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Highland and Orkney.
The 23 patients diagnosed in Scotland are not seriously unwell and all have links to other confirmed cases or are traceable to travel rather than community transmission.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warned there is an “increasing inevitability” of a Covid-19 outbreak across the UK.
She said changes to the delay phase of the Scottish Government’s plans could include advising people with more mild symptoms to stay at home.
Sturgeon said Scotland “may be a few days behind” some other parts of the UK in severity but added: “Over time, I expect that to flatten out.”
Sturgeon was speaking at St Andrew’s House in Edinburgh after taking part in the UK Government’s Cobra meeting and before chairing a meeting of the Scottish Government’s resilience committee.
But she said there are no plans to close schools, despite the rise in the number of coronavirus cases.
She said although the UK remains in the containment phase, Government discussions are focusing on moving to the delay phase to slow down transmission to relieve pressure on the NHS and protect the vulnerable.
“It is likely that we move into that phase, at least in a phased way, sooner rather than later,” she said. “Final decisions about timing about that haven’t been taken yet, they are being driven by the best quality scientific advice because it is important that any measures we introduce to delay the spread of the virus are taken at the right time.
“We don’t want to leave it too late, that is obvious, but doing it too early can also reduce the effectiveness of these measures.”
Sturgeon said the trigger would include the number of cases and level of community transmission but there is no particular number that would spark the change.
And she urged people to “be sensible, and not to rush out to buy things because you are worried about shortages”. She added: “It’s often that kind of behaviour that causes the shortages, not any underlying issue.”
Some supermarkets have been forced to introduce limits in some of their lines to prevent stockpiling.
Meanwhile, it was confirmed yesterday that one person at the University of the West of Scotland’s (UWS) Hamilton campus had tested positive for coronavirus.
The university and NHS Lanarkshire said the individual is being treated in hospital and is giving no cause for concern.
They said the person had “limited contact” with a small group of individuals at the university who have all been contacted, are well and have no symptoms.
All UWS campuses remain open and students and staff have been asked to attend as normal.
Elsewhere, 142 Britons stuck on a coronavirus-hit cruise ship off the coast of California were expected to be allowed to leave the vessel yesterday.
Crew will remain on board the Grand Princess as it departs San Francisco Bay.