Ireland has six weeks to save Christmas as tougher lockdowns ahead to enjoy December

IRELAND has six weeks to save Christmas, it has been claimed that the country saw a record number of Covid-19 cases last night.

The Health Department announced its highest total number of Covid-19 cases yet, with 1,205 new cases and three deaths related to the virus.

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As NPHET admitted to seeing “little evidence” of improvement, the government was advised that it had “two blocks of 3-week periods to save the holiday season.”

Tighter closures have been claimed to be heading our way in a matter of weeks, but they could be enough to save Christmas.

A national ban on all social visits to homes or gardens took effect at midnight and Cavan, Monaghan and Donegal counties face Level Four restrictions as the second wave of Covid-19 threatens to overwhelm the health service.

Dr Kim Roberts, an infection specialist at Trinity College Dublin, told the Irish Sun yesterday that the reopening of businesses and universities and a drop in outside temperatures have combined to accelerate the spread of the virus.

ADDITIONAL ‘NECESSARY’ RESTRICTIONS

She said: “It is going to take a few weeks to find out if the new restrictions are having a significant effect on reducing transmission.

“There is a lot of community transmission, so it is vital to reduce our contacts as much as possible, but I think people should be prepared for the possibility of additional restrictions in the weeks and months to come.

“I hope that additional restrictions are necessary.”

She added: “Without an elimination strategy, without trying to keep the virus off the island, it is inevitable that transmission will increase and, therefore, the opening of the country allows more possibilities of transmission of the virus, which we have seen in the last months. .

“Openness to tertiary education and things like that are probably contributing. Any environment where groups of people come together for long periods of time increases the chances of transmission.

“In recent months, as the country has opened up over the summer, we have allowed those potential transmission environments to occur and the virus has taken off.

“The weather is also likely not helping. It’s colder, people stay further inside, and it’s not so nice to hang out in the park when it’s raining outside. So all of those things play a role in this second wave. “

STRATEGY NECESSARY TO SAVE CHRISTMAS

Labor leader Alan Kelly has insisted that starting next Monday, the government has two blocks of three-week terms to save the Christmas season for angry employers, employees and the public.

Tipperary’s TD said: “After everything the Irish people have been through this year, it is absolutely imperative that families can have as festive a Christmas as possible under the circumstances.”

He continued: “The Government must put in place a strategy to save Christmas in order to give hope to the Irish public. Businesses also need hope right now, this is the busiest time of year for retail and they need assurances that they will be able to do as much business as possible before Christmas.

“If that strategy requires the whole country to move to a higher level in the very near future, then that is what we will have to do. Time is running out on this, so the government must act together quickly.

“We have a very limited time frame to get this right for our people. It is imperative for the mental health of our country that we have a Christmas. “

About 238 people are currently battling the virus in hospitals across the county, an increase of 24 patients in just one day, with 100 additional suspected cases awaiting diagnosis.

A quarter of the people admitted to the hospital with Covid-19 in the last two weeks were under the age of 35, with 27 percent between the ages of 35 and 64 and 47 percent over the age of 65.

HSE Executive Director Paul Reid yesterday called on the Irish to help protect our hospitals by complying with public health restrictions until the growing number of cases is brought under control.

The head of the health service said hospital leaders are extremely concerned about what lies ahead in November as the virus continues to spread rapidly across the country.

The ban on social visits that took effect today has raised concerns that people’s mental health is being affected by four weeks of isolation and loneliness.

Clinical psychologist Dr. Eddie Murphy told the Irish Sun that he has seen an increase in referrals during the pandemic for all age groups, from children to OAPs, as the pandemic affects the country’s mental health. .

RTE’s Operation Transformation doctor said the new social restrictions will lead to further loneliness and isolation and urged people to ONLY contact the charity on 0818 222 024 for help when they need it.

‘LONELINESS IS FAIR FOR EVERYONE’

He said: “The impact of this will be increased levels of social isolation and increased loneliness. It will have a negative impact on the mood of people. I’m not just talking about older people in rural Ireland.

“Loneliness cuts through everyone with this, including students who have relocated and can’t go home. We have seen an increase in referrals in recent months from people with anxiety and other mental health issues related to the pandemic, from children to adults of all ages. “

And Dr Murphy added: “We do not fund our mental health services in Ireland.

“Of the general health budget, six percent goes to mental health compared to 12 percent in other countries. If you look at my mom and dad, we can’t visit them in the garden and we can’t visit them at home, so we have to make a judgment about it. So we have to say that we make a visit in an outdoor area so that we have a chance to meet.

“We can’t wait for Big Brother to enforce things; we need to take personal responsibility for these guidelines to work.”

NEW CRITICAL RESTRICTIONS

Meanwhile, the government’s new restrictions have come under fire, and people wonder why they are allowed to meet friends and family in a park but not in their garden.

Dr. Roberts explained that the public health council is based on evidence that people who gather in his garden are more likely to spend more time together than if they went for a walk in the park.

She said: “It’s about encouraging people to limit the time they spend with other people. In your backyard, it’s easy for that 30-minute coffee to turn into two hours, turn into people needing to get into the house to use the bathroom, or the weather changes and people move inside.

“My understanding of saying ‘don’t meet people in your backyard, but you can go and meet people in the park’ is part of trying to reduce the amount of time that we are interacting with people.

“As we spend more and more time with people, the risk increases and that increases, whether you are indoors or outdoors. Obviously, the risks are much greater inside than outside.

“When we are outside, we still have to think about maintaining those distances of two meters and we still have to think about limiting the time we spend with other people, so it is important to keep it below 90 minutes.”