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The new strain of Covid-19, which is believed to be easier to contract and one of the drivers of the rapid spread of the virus in Ireland, may be more infectious among younger people and children.
If so, it could have implications for the reopening of schools.
Scientists do not have all the answers yet and are investigating the virus, which is believed to be one of the reasons behind the increase in adults.
The HSE has told GPs that there may be a reduced number of tests for close contacts of infected people and that they could be offered one test instead of the normal two.
He said testing capacity could be overwhelmed during the holiday period.
World Health Organization envoy David Nabarro highlighted the possibility of easier spread among younger age groups this morning on Sky News.
He said from initial reports that it appears to be more easily transmissible between youth and children.
However, he stressed that more work needs to be done on the new strain to confirm if that is the case.
He said we must be more cautious when practicing physical distancing and wearing masks.
Expert opinion
Professor Neil Ferguson, who is a member of the UK’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group, also said that there is a “sign” of a “higher propensity” to infect children.
This has not yet been fully established and he emphasized that more data is needed. But the new variant was statistically more infectious in children under 15 than the more common strain.
Scientists investigating the new variant said they have no evidence yet that it is more infectious in children.
Implications for schools
If it is found to be spreading further among children, it will lead to questions about the reopening of schools here after the Christmas holidays. Under new government restrictions announced yesterday, schools are exempt and are scheduled to resume.
Scientific uncertainty
The new variant has yet to be detected here, but several school outbreaks have been seen in recent weeks, although they remain low. The schools have continued to operate without interruption since September, including during the last spreading escalation in October and the six-week closure.
Beating the hatches
Around 30,000 people have traveled here from the UK in the last two weeks and health authorities here are putting them in the spotlight. GPs have been alerted and anyone arriving from the mainland UK in the past 14 days has been told to isolate themselves, stay in their room and not mix with any other members of the household , get out of the house or see visitors for a full time. 14 days after arrival.
This is because they could be incubating the new strain of coronavirus.
All these people will be contacted by the HSE through a text message with the contact information that they put in their passenger location forms. They will also be advised to contact a GP or after-hours service to arrange a free Covid test, regardless of whether they have symptoms on day five after arrival or as soon as possible thereafter. .
Even if their Covid-19 test is negative or undetected, they must self-isolate for the full 14 days. In particular, the HSE is concerned about intergenerational mixing during the holidays and should not interact with anyone who is medically vulnerable in its circle.
Many will have already undergone a private test and regardless of whether it is negative or undetected, they must now go into self-isolation.
They were told to be on high alert for symptoms if they had returned from the UK and to be very vigilant about infection prevention and control measures. If you are referred to an emergency department or hospital, notify the travel history service.
Getting ready
GPs were told last night that during the latest Covid-19 wave, HSE’s contact tracing system was overwhelmed.
The GPs had to intervene and refer asymptomatic close contacts for testing. As the numbers rise, HSE said it has put in place a number of initiatives to mitigate this from happening again.
Contact tracing capabilities have been significantly increased.
Close contacts can book their own test online during the Christmas period.
Contact trackers will keep calling people, but a significant percentage of people will be happy to book their own tests and this will take the pressure off the system.
There may be a reduced number of tests for close contacts to a single test, as it appears that testing capacity could be overwhelmed during the holiday period.
Proving thatThe three will remain open and the contact trackers will work for the entire holiday period.
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