Over-70s warned: Don’t visit grandkids
MONDAY RUSH SLOWS TO A TRICKLE AS SCOTS STAY AT HOME
GRANDPARENTS are being urged not to look after their grandchildren as part of extraordinary measures to protect the elderly from the coronavirus.
Over-70s are being advised to avoid any form of ‘family gatherings’ from today onwards and keep in contact by Skype or telephone instead.
But the guidelines will have massive implications for childcare arrangements – particularly if a decision is taken to close schools.
Up to a quarter of working families rely on grandparents to look after their children, although the proportion who are over 70 years old is not known.
Many families will also be forced to cancel plans for this weekend’s Mothering Sunday on March 22 as grandparents and other high-risk groups are being urged to avoid restaurants.
Although children themselves are at low risk of COVID-19, they are often ‘super-spreaders’ of infections and liable to pick it up at school or from friends.
Grandparents on the other hand are at very high risk and the death rate for those aged 70 to 79 is 5.1 per cent, rising to 9.3 per cent for those who are 80 and older.
By comparison, the mortality rate across the normal population is 1 per cent – and less than 0.2 per cent for under-18s.
A spokesman for Downing Street said yesterday that grandparents should not look after their grandchildren nor volunteer to do the school run, in order to protect themselves.
The advice issued by health chiefs last night was very clear that the over-70s should be ‘particularly stringent’ in adhering to social distancing measures.
It states: ‘Avoid gatherings with friends and family. Keep in touch using remote technology such as phone, internet and social media.’
‘Avoid non-essential use of public transport, varying your travel times to avoid rush hour, when possible.
‘Avoid large gatherings, and gatherings in smaller public spaces such as pubs, cinemas, restaurants, theatres, bars, clubs.’
The guidance also says: ‘For those who are over 70, have an underlying health
condition or are pregnant, we strongly advise you to follow the above measures as much as you can, and to significantly limit your face-to-face interaction with friends and family if possible.
‘This advice is likely to be in place for some weeks.’
The latest Government figures show one in four working families and one in three working mothers use grandparents for childcare.
An additional 63 per cent of all grandparents with grandchildren under the age of 16 help out with childcare, either very regularly or from time to time.
Dr Michael Head, a senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton, said: ‘The UK has significantly increased the social distancing measures.
‘Policy has evolved to include significantly greater emphasis on isolation and protection of particularly vulnerable populations.’
Dr Zania Stamataki, viral immunologist at the University of Birmingham, said: ‘The Government recommendations will have profound implications for people’s lifestyles.
‘Travel and shopping restrictions and working from home recommendations will affect the majority of the UK population.’
Dr Stamataki added: ‘The Government has the power to enforce restrictions, but they trust citizens to make sensible decisions.
‘This is a serious but measured response for this stage of the epidemic.’