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There needs to be a “significant improvement in Dublin” in terms of Covid-19 case numbers in the coming days, Acting Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn said.
He spoke at an Oireachtas Covid Committee hearing on Wednesday morning that was attended by members of the National Public Health Emergencies Team (NPHET).
Dr Glynn said that while he would only hope that the measures implemented for the capital would have an effect now, “we need to see a significant improvement in Dublin in the coming days, we are not seeing it yet.”
When asked later in the session by Dún Laoghaire TD Jennifer Carroll McNeill if she would recommend extending the current restrictions if they expire tomorrow, Dr. Glynn said she would. “The optimist in me would say that Dublin appears to be stabilizing, but that is an optimistic note. We need to see what happens in the next three or four days in particular, ”he said.
Dr Glynn said the disease is still widely dispersed in the capital, in a number of different settings, which he says is positive in one sense, as there are no major major outbreaks. “On the other hand, it makes it harder to control because there is no obvious target,” he said.
He added that, in the first instance, he wanted to see the number of cases in Dublin not increase day by day, strongly emphasizing that people throughout the capital should cut back on discretionary social activities and not go to work unless essential.
Dr. Glynn said that it was the role of every sporting, cultural and business organization to do everything possible to reduce activities that lead to mixing of people, but added: “I don’t think we’re seeing enough evidence for that.
“As an anecdote, look at the amount of traffic on the roads – it’s hard to believe people have taken seriously the message that they shouldn’t go to work unless it’s absolutely essential.”
The committee also heard evidence from Health Minister Stephen Donnelly; the director of the national virus reference laboratory, Dr. Cillian de Gascun; and the chair of the Epidemiological Modeling Advisory Group of Ireland, Prof. Philip Nolan.
When asked about the travel strategy changes, Donnelly told Labor’s Duncan Smith that NPHET’s advice was that random testing at airports was not the best use of Ireland’s testing capacity.
However, he said there is “significant progress” due to Ireland’s decision to move towards the European Commission’s traffic light system. “If we fully adopt it, and when we do, there will be a liberalization in foreign travel,” he said.
If such a system was adopted, the Minister said that Ireland would be divided into three separate regions under the policy. “Airport testing should be viewed within that context,” he said.
Professor Nolan said that while he was not convinced the tests alone were effective, he said it could be combined with other measures, such as isolation for those arriving from some countries.
“A well-developed international regime for safe travel is a way forward,” he said.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly appears on Oireachtas’ special committee on Covid-19
Earlier in the hearing, Donnelly announced that he will create public health consulting positions and double the number of public health professionals working in the health service.
The minister said that the Executive of the Health Service will initiate a recruitment campaign of 255 doctors, nurses, scientists and public health support personnel in the next two weeks.
“I’m also creating consultant positions for public health physicians,” he said. “Yesterday, the Cabinet approved the necessary legislation for this, and now I will be advancing it in consultation with the unions.”
The minister also confirmed that he has sanctioned 30 million euros for the continuation of aid to the nursing home sector, the Temporary Assistance Payment Plan.
“This will extend this much-needed supports to nursing homes through the end of this year. More supports will be examined in the context of the budget process. “
At the beginning of the meeting, several members of the committee expressed great concern that the four of them would appear together.
Sinn Féin health spokesman David Cullinane said having the NPHET members and the Minister at the same time “creates practical problems but also issues related to conflicts of interest.”
The co-leader of the Social Democrats, Roisin Shortall, said the situation is “completely unsatisfactory. . . it is absolutely reasonable for us to expect to have at least one session with NPHET, there are endless questions pending about the decisions that are being made.
Michael McNamara, chair of the committee, called the situation “very unfortunate” and criticized the fact that he only learned that NPHET members were joining the committee through the media.
Several members suggested that there was a “block” to their attempts to listen to the NPHET evidence, with Richard Boyd-Barrett saying, “Someone is acting obsessively in control and they should give up.”
NPHET on Tuesday reported another 363 Covid-19 cases, including 154 in Dublin. One more death from the disease was confirmed, with a total now of 1,803.
Figures released Tuesday night show 35,740 cases of the disease have been recorded in the state, with the first confirmed seven months ago on February 29.
Of the latter cases, 154 cases are in Dublin, 40 in Cork, 23 in Donegal, 16 in Wexford, 15 in Roscommon, 14 in Galway, 14 in Monaghan, 11 in Kildare, 11 in Meath, 11 in Wicklow, nine in Limerick , six in Clare, five in May, five in Tipperary and the remaining 29 cases divided among nine counties. Women accounted for 191 of the infections and men 172.
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