The following text is an excerpt from the linked article, posted 2023-09-10:

We don’t really talk about coronavirus at all... This has only been encouraged by the government, which has honed the message “Covid is over”, as if saying this somehow makes it so... the result is a kind of mass denial – an agreed forgetting. The subject crops up from time to time. A breaking news banner announces a new variant. A friend texts that she’s stuck in bed “with the worst summer cough”. Then we carry on – until we are forced to remember once again...

...the daily number of positive coronavirus tests in England has been increasing since the end of June – a trend that is likely to grow in the coming weeks, as we socialise more indoors and children mix at school... at last count, 1.5 million people [in the UK alone] were experiencing long Covid symptoms that adversely affected their daily activities, and the virus still poses a significant risk of death to many people...

While some healthcare workers are taking precautions at their own discretion, NHS staff in England don’t have to wear a mask, and the majority who have respiratory symptoms are no longer asked to test for Covid. That means a patient with lung disease could be forced to get treatment from a nurse with a Covid cough...

The trouble is, denial is not a long-term plan. Coronavirus is effectively a fire. Ignoring it doesn’t stop the virus – it just lets the damage spread. The paradox of the pandemic has always been that the only way to “move on” is to actually engage with it...

But it also means confronting our impulse to believe that all of this is unnecessary and arduous. Even the phrase “Covid restrictions” – a term used by almost every media outlet – is loaded, suggesting low-key mitigations are heavy burdens rather than simple ways to free clinically vulnerable people. That the virus primarily “only” affects those with underlying health conditions has always been the unspoken excuse for indifference.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/sep/10/covid-coronavirus-disabled-vulnerable-people

#COVID #COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing

"HEPA filtration is beneficial in reducing bioaerosols, including SARS-CoV-2, as well as other respiratory pathogens in the hospital environment. It should be used in combination with other prevention strategies, including improved ventilation; appropriate isolation; and, during periods of high community transmission, widespread testing and N95 masking...

In BC, public health policies such as universal masking and universal admission testing are no longer in effect. We know from other jurisdictions that discontinuation of universal admission testing was associated with a significant increase in hospital SARS-CoV-2 transmission and that nosocomial transmission remains common in the Omicron era, with infections that carry a 3% to 13% mortality risk. Updated, evidence-based, and precautionary provincial guidance is urgently needed to improve indoor air quality..."

https://bcmj.org/premise/hepa-filtration-reduces-transmission-sars-cov-2-and-prevents-nosocomial-infection-call

#COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisAirborne #Mask #Masks #Masking #WearAMask #MaskUp #COVID #COVID19 #SARSCoV2

Article published August 15, 2023:

"New COVID-19 hospitalizations have accelerated for a fourth straight week, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data now shows...

Emergency room visits for children ages 0 to 11 years old have also climbed steeply. Measured as a percentage of all visits in the age group, nationwide COVID-19 rates in these kids are now tied with seniors for the first time in a year. Other CDC data suggests visits from the youngest kids, ages 0 to 1 year old, are seeing the steepest increase.

In some parts of the country — like the region spanning Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas — the share of COVID-19 ER visits involving children ages 0 to 11 have already far surpassed older adults."

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-hospitalizations-rise-fourth-week-eg-5-variant/

#COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisAirborne #COVID #COVID19 #SARSCoV2

https://www.burnabynow.com/local-news/warning-signals-protect-our-province-bc-calls-for-action-on-covid-19-now-7210289

“Our leaders have really sent the message that it’s inevitable you’re going to get COVID, everyone has COVID, this is going to be here forever,” [Chantal Moore] said. “And we really have to push back on that narrative and really challenge it because it’s not a very hopeful message, and the reality is there are concrete things we can do that are proven to reduce our infection risk and prevent us from spreading the virus to our loved ones.”

#COVIDisOngoing

#DoctorCrusher #StarTrek #MaskUp #pandemic #coronavirus #covid19 #LongCOVID #COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #COVID

Source: https://www.tumblr.com/spacedocmom/718744446337957888/doctor-beverly-crusher-spacedocmom-you-should-no

"I never thought leopards would eat MY face," sobs person who opposed measures preventing the spread of the Leopards Eating People's Faces Disease.

#COVID #SARSCoV2 #pandemic #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisAirborne

I don't know if memes will make a difference, but, literally, what is there to lose with trying?

Here is the audio: https://www.tumblr.com/pipzeroes/716312910023016448/all-your-breath-are-belong-to-us

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #COVIDfloatsLikeSmoke #SARSCoV2 #COVID #COVID19 #pandemic #mask #masks #MaskUp #LongCOVID

On this year's Day of Mourning for workers killed or injured on the job, let's remember

WORKERS KILLED AND INJURED BY COVID INFECTION ACQUIRED IN THE WORKPLACE

...and "fight for the living".

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID

About 70 per cent of people in Hong Kong infected with the coronavirus had at least one symptom of long Covid five months after they became ill... A total of 38 per cent reported a variety of symptoms, including poor memory, difficulty in concentrating, insomnia, anxiety, bad moods, reduced motivation and changes in their sleeping patterns.

Symptoms lasted for more than three years in some patients.

https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3217737/70-cent-hong-kong-covid-victims-experience-long-term-after-effects-survey-10000-patients-finds

#COVIDisNOTover

#COVIDisNOTmild

#COVIDisOngoing

#COVIDisAirborne

#COVIDOGE

#COVIDisAirborne
#COVIDisNOTover
#COVIDisOngoing

#COVID #SARSCoV2 #MaskUp
#DoMask
#COVID19 #pandemic

COVIDOGE.

#COVIDisAirborne

#CovidisNOTover

#COVIDisOngoing

The first Omicron wave has left us numb to the continuing presence of the virus...

But while COVID hospitalizations this year and last have proven less erratic, they have remained at significant levels.

The virus was the number one illness-related cause of hospital admissions for all of last year. And the trend appears to be continuing in 2023.

https://www.ourwindsor.ca/news/why-aren-t-we-hearing-about-covid-waves-anymore-because-covid-is-at-a-high/article_121d9df7-33db-5ae1-a0c6-8b6617d12457.html

#COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisAirborne #COVID #SARSCoV2

The second year of the pandemic saw a surge of hospitalizations for COVID-19 and other infections among Canadian children age 0 to 4. Data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) shows that COVID-19 was the sixth most common reason kids in this age group were hospitalized in 2021–2022. This represents an increase of more than 600%

https://www.cihi.ca/en/news/hospitalizations-for-covid-19-among-canadas-youngest-surged-by-more-than-600-in-the-second

#COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisAirborne #COVID #SARSCoV2

Meanwhile, #COVIDisOngoing

("In AD 2023, plague was continuing!")

I had the idea to make All Your Base Are Belong To Us memes about #COVID, as "breath" easily substitutes "base" and is a big part of what many people have not yet realised: COVID is not transmitted solely by droplets, or touch; COVID spreads via infected breath.

I modified "The Invasion of the Gabber Robots" with COVID references (that part is finished), and gradually have been making memes as ideas come and time allows.

Thinking about what Ignaz Semmelweis might think if he could see how handwashing may a part of "belief perseverance" for various people these days.

Just as it's foolish to focus on "miasmas" when a disease is spread by surface contact (e.g. puerperal fever from cadaver cross-contamination), it's foolish to fixate on handwashing with a disease that spreads in the air like smoke/fog/mist (e.g. #COVID).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignaz_Semmelweis#Conflict_with_established_medical_opinion

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisOngoing #COVIDisNOTover #SARSCoV2 #MaskUp

Slide 17, Quest of the Virosols

How to stop airborne transmission?

- Ventilate and filtrate air

- Wear a well-fitting effective mask

- Keep physical distance

- Avoid clustering

Source: http://aerosol.nsysu.edu.tw/en/scopes/108

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID #SARS2

Slide 16, Quest of the Virosols

Physical barriers may trap higher concentrations of aerosols!

Physical barriers (such as table/desk shields, which are designed to block droplets) can impede airflow and even trap higher concentrations of aerosols, increasing the risk of airborne transmission.

Source: http://aerosol.nsysu.edu.tw/en/scopes/108

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID #SARS2

Slide 15, Quest of the Virosols

Surface cleaning does NOT stop airborne transmission

Although it is important to keep surfaces clean, surface cleaning does NOT suppress the risk of airborne transmission. Clean the air!

Source: http://aerosol.nsysu.edu.tw/en/scopes/108

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID #SARS2 #DropletDogma

Slide 14, Quest of the Virosols

Why do people still get infected despite wearing masks?

- Virosols can sneak in if there's a gap between the mask and skin

- Effective masks greatly reduce the risk, but, cannot guarantee prevention of airborne transmission

- This is why it is important to take several precautions at once (e.g. filter indoor air AND wear effective masks)

Source: http://aerosol.nsysu.edu.tw/en/scopes/108

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID #SARS2 #MaskUp

Slide 13, Quest of the Virosols

Clustering is a key element for superspreading events

Commonalities among superspreading events include indoor settings, crowds, exposure durations of 1 hour or more, poor ventilation, vocalization, and lack of proper mask-wearing.

Source: http://aerosol.nsysu.edu.tw/en/scopes/108

#COVIDisAirborne #COVIDisNOTover #COVIDisOngoing #SARSCoV2 #COVID #SARS2 #superspreading #superspreader #superspreaders