Government scientist accuses minister of throwing people with long-term Covid ‘under the bus’

One of the government’s top scientific advisers accused him of failing to protect the public from the effects of prolonged Covid.

Professor John Drury, a member of the Pandemic Behavior Science Panel (SPI-B), a subcommittee of the Scientific Advisory Panel on Emergencies (Sage), said he remains frustrated by the government’s failure to take the recommended basic precautions to prevent the spread. virus.

He is particularly concerned about the impact of long-term Covid on the population and accuses ministers of ignoring SPI-B recommendations, which he says would result in fewer people suffering long-term illness if they were followed.

Professor Dury, who is also a social psychologist at the University of Sussex, points to SPI-B’s recommendation to the government to call on ministers to launch an education program to help people protect themselves and vulnerable family members from protection from Covid-19.

He said the government’s failure to do so has thrown more than two million people currently suffering from chronic Covid “under the bus.”

Prof Dury said: “Even after SPI-B told the UK government about the need for an awareness program – about Covid transmission, about ventilators, about the quality and use of masks – the government took no action.

He added that the government has held the public responsible for its own “risk assessment and protection” against Covid.

“The government has abdicated responsibility. The public could assess the risks and take steps to protect themselves if they were properly informed,” Professor Drury said.

After many Covid restrictions were lifted in April 2021, SPI-B advised the government to continue with “policies that encourage protective behavior for Covid-19.”

The report calls on ministers to continue campaigns urging people to practice physical distancing, continue to wear face coverings in public places, and make ventilation in homes and workplaces part of the government’s communications strategy to limit the spread of the virus and prevent its growth. long wicked deeds.

The report also recommends continued financial support for people living with Covid-19 so they can stay at home and avoid transmitting the virus to work colleagues.

The latest official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for December showed that 2.2 million people, or 3.4 per cent of the UK population, are now believed to be suffering from long-term Covid. Of these, approximately 1.2 million people have been ill with Covid for more than a year.

“If the recommendations were implemented, there would be fewer people with Covid and therefore fewer people with long-term Covid,” Prof Drury says.

“People care more about ventilation than before, but at the same time, too many people think ‘Covid is over’ so they think they don’t have to worry about ventilation now.”

He adds that the government “should do more” to prevent Covid infections.

“Unfortunately, right now the government’s strategy is to have no strategy,” he says. “They seem to be hoping that many people won’t notice what’s going on, won’t talk about it, won’t call for further action.

“They threw the clinically vulnerable under the bus and came to the conclusion that it is normal that two million people have Covid for a long time. For a significant minority of those two million, this is a very debilitating condition that has ruined their lives.”

Pulmonary Covid is also affecting the UK workforce, the ONS reports, with continued exposure to the virus reportedly affecting the daily activities of 1.6 million people, with three out of four affected by pulmonary Covid.

Of these, 370,000 say their ability to go about their daily activities is “severely limited,” the ONS notes.

A spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services said: “We recognize that Covid has a long-standing debilitating effect on people’s physical and mental health and are supporting our world’s leading scientists with more than £50m to better manage the long-term challenges.” effects understand understand this virus. and available procedures. Immunocompromised patients also remain a priority for other treatments, free Covid testing and vaccinations.

“The National Health Service has also committed £224m to support people with persistent symptoms of long-term Covid, with over 90 specialized clinics providing services for adults, as well as another £90m for 2023-24.”

Professor Adam Finn, a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunization (JCVI) and professor of pediatrics at the University of Bristol, agrees that not enough is being done to protect the public from the virus and advises families not to freeze in the winter. Gather together Remember vulnerable and older generations.

“I think we should all continue to try to minimize transmission where possible,” says Professor Finn. “If I had elderly relatives, I would take a rapid test for myself and confirm that it is negative before visiting them.

“It also makes sense to try to flatten the epidemic curves of SARS CoV2 and other winter respiratory viruses by wearing masks when in close contact with strangers. For example, in public transport. At least that’s what I do.”

For other scientists who led the government at the peak of the pandemic, the virus that has killed more than 214,000 people in the UK is still a clear and immediate danger, even if the immediate threat of death has been drastically reduced thanks to a vaccination program now in its fourth stage.

JCVI Vice Chair Prof. Anthony Harnden continues to believe it is critical that the elderly and those most at risk of becoming seriously ill with Covid continue to take the threat of infection seriously.

“It is inevitable that we will continue to see further waves of Covid infections,” he says. “The elderly and infirm are still at serious risk of illness and should take advantage of the opportunity to receive a booster vaccine when it becomes available.”

Experts say the threat of a more deadly variant of Covid spreading through society remains. One that can still cause serious illness, even in those who have already received their doses of the vaccine.

Professor Jeremy Brown of University College London, who is also a member of the JCVI, said he believes the chances of further lockdowns are “virtually nil”.

“The only time a blockage could happen is when a new variant comes along that causes a lot of serious disease and eludes vaccine-induced immunity, which is very unlikely,” he added.

Professor Graham Medley, who sits on Sage and chairs the Pandemic Influenza Modeling Science Group subcommittee, said: “I think a new wave of infections is very likely. A new, more pathogenic variant could turn this wave into one that challenges public health and causes more death and disease.

“It’s a real possibility, although I think every wave we have doesn’t make a really bad wave any less likely.”

He also believes that a large number of people will remain infected with Covid, but the vaccination program has done its job of protecting the vast majority from serious diseases.

“So far in 2022, we have had three or four waves of infection associated with new variants that can overcome pre-existing immunity,” says Professor Medley. “Health impacts have been greatly reduced by vaccination and previous infections, although the number of those infected is very high.

“There is no reason why this process should not continue. Personally, I expect this to happen.”

One of the key figures behind the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is also anticipating new waves of the virus.

Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, Director of the Oxford Vaccine Group and Chairman of the JCVI, believes that while COVID-19 will not go away, there are still many uncertainties about the long-term effects.

“We definitely look forward to continued transmission of Covid-19 variants in the future, but we are not sure that they will eventually become annual, like the flu. For example, only one winter season or there will be several peaks throughout the year, as it has been since all this began,” he says.

“The problem today is a virus that easily spreads infection when there is a spike and is a contributory factor to hospitalization of the weak and vulnerable, just like seasonal flu or RSV does every year.

“The problem for the NHS is that Covid-19 is now joining these other viruses as a cause of winter pressure on the healthcare system.”

However, like many of his peers, Sir Andrew adds positivity.

“It’s not 2020 and it’s not the beginning of 2021, and almost the entire population is immune to the very severe form of Covid disease that played out so horribly in intensive care units of our hospitals at the time,” he said.

“The initial vaccine launch put an end to this dreadful disease and the current or emerging options won’t get us back there and so we won’t have any lockdowns this winter.”