A leading expert on evidence-based medicine has warned that we could 'talk ourselves' into annual winter lockdowns.
Professor Carl Heneghan, director of evidence-based medicine at Oxford University, also suggested it is time to "treat people like adults"
Professor Heneghan told the Today programme “we are in deep, deep trouble of potentially talking ourselves into annual lockdowns”.
He said: “This time last year, there were over 2,000 people being admitted. So we’re in a very different place with the presence of vaccines, the presence of the boosters, antivirals on board, and you have to reflect on that information.
“We’re in deep, deep trouble here of potentially talking ourselves into annual winter lockdown. Because what happens is this is as good as it gets.”
The Professor said the question is “When are we going to treat people like adults?”
He told the Today programme the behaviour of people in England has “already changed” and added: “It’s already changed in response to the messages.
“If you’re in Greater London now, (population in) the workplace is down by 40%, public transport down by 40%.
“In the city of London, it’s up to 60%. So people are able to respond to information or adapt their behaviour accordingly. The question here is when are we going to treat people like adults?
“People will moderate their behaviour accordingly. That’s what we need to trust people to do going forward because that’s the only sustainable policy.”
However, Patricia Marquis, England director at the Royal College of Nursing, said it is looking like a “very bleak picture” for nursing staff over the next few weeks.
She told BBC Breakfast: “Across the system, the pressures have been there now for a long time. Before the pandemic, there weren’t enough staff to deliver what was needed.
“As the pandemic has gone on, people have become more and more physically exhausted, but also mentally exhausted by what’s happened over the last 18 months, two years. So, staff are looking forward now thinking, ‘Oh my goodness, what is coming?’
“In many places they’re already under immense stress and pressure, and so they are starting to go off sick themselves with Covid, but also mental and physical exhaustion.
“It is looking like a very bleak picture for them over the next few weeks.”
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2021-12-20 08:34:51Z
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