serious coronavirus thread

Also work in a retail/grocery and I must say, it is intense. We've adjusted our hours so there's time for us to clean properly and restock. For the first week we had lines outside the front door before we opened and dealt with customers until we locked them out at closing time. The first day we opened two hours late it was a really foggy morning. If anyone has seen the movie The Mist, it was EXACTLY like that. All you could see was dark shapes of people waiting outside the windows haha... Then when you open the doors its like the zombie apocalypse.

I work in the deli, which is mostly run like a fast-food restaurant, but all of our food venues are closed down, so there's very little to do. They sent me to help with the dairy delivery since butter/milk/etc... were all wiped out. Ho boy. People were grabbing things out of boxes before I could put them on the shelves. Felt like I needed flyswatter to keep people out of my space. Fun times.
 

EV

Banned deucer.
My workplace closes this Friday. We're classified (partially) under Washington's essential businesses list, but we're just not doing enough business to stay open. Next week I'll work two more days to help close out accounting. And then...?
 
Has anyone here taken a test for the virus within the US? I know of a place where I can possibly get a test (they might run out soon); it seems ludicrously expensive relative to how much it should be (like $250) but the potential respiratory damage itself might be worrying enough for me to take it (plus I might be around old people even in quarantine). It doesn’t feel worth the risk to go into a medical center and making things worse though, lol.

also I think it’s a possibility a relief package gets passed within the week in Congress, personally it’s not the biggest deal to me but I know a lot of people are in dire need of it so hopefully they don’t keep dragging their feet on this
 
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I work in a frozen food factory, my day-to-day life has barely changed, which sounds depressing, but I'm grateful. However my partner is working from home and his whiny ass clients are STILL pestering him on an hourly basis about not being able to come into the office. I can't stand how dumb some people are. My greatest challenge during this ordeal will be not yelling obscenities during one of his conference calls at someone's stupid bullshit and ruining his career.
 

ManOfMany

I can make anything real
is a Tiering Contributor
Has anyone here taken a test for the virus within the US? I know of a place where I can possibly get a test (they might run out soon); it seems ludicrously expensive relative to how much it should be (like $250) but the potential respiratory damage itself might be worrying enough for me to take it (plus I might be around old people even in quarantine). It doesn’t feel worth the risk to go into a medical center and making things worse though, lol.

also I think it’s a possibility a relief package gets passed within the week in Congress, personally it’s not the biggest deal to me but I know a lot of people are in dire need of it so hopefully they don’t keep dragging their feet on this
Yeah It's already taken too long for any kind of relief package being passed. With the amount of people living paycheck to paycheck hopefully no more time is spent. Many larger companies have been giving paid leave but small businesses and family businesses cannot afford all that for long.
 
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i work as a site carpenter in the uk and the neglect for the construction industry regarding corona virus is pretty eye opening. government orders are for construction to continue as long as you comply with social distancing which simply isn't feasible for larger jobs where hygiene is lowest priority. builders merchants having been closing with increased frequency and the supply chain is drying up but we are still being made to go to work to keep afloat

it seems up to the discretion of individual businesses whether they should close until this all blows over as government instruction has been incredibly vague. this isn't a lockdown so much as it forces the hand of employers between the health of them and their families or getting paid. the problem is exacerbated with the self employed with no safety net to fall back on.. worrying times as lives are being made second priority
 
My office is handling this extremely poorly. I work and live in Bergen County, NJ at a job I started 2 months ago. My boss refuses to close, despite government orders to do so, arguing we’re an “essential” business (we’re not). Now, he’s finally starting to get WFH instituted. You’d think it’d be a good thing, but he’s being an absolute dumbass about it - half the office is not being given WFH ability, and those that are, get it 1 day a week, with no more than 2 people from each department at home each day, thereby keeping the critical mass of employees in close contact with each other.

I guess he’d rather lose some staff than profits, but lol the profits are leaving anyway - our suppliers are shutting down rn and there’s no work to do anyway.

so angry at this prick
 
Well, I’ve been quarantined. I have “mild” symptoms and have been told not to even bother going out to get tested ‘cause I risk infecting others or being infected myself if I do not in fact have it. So I’m not allowed back to work until at least 7 days after my symptoms appeared and I go 3 straight days without fever or symptoms worsening. As I’m 27 and have no prior health concerns, they’re just kinda like “you’ll live, but srsly go away”
 
The situation became worse in Italy, many stores have been closed under Gov.'s orders, including my preferred store to buy meat, so now there is only low quality meat to bulk up on the supermarket.
There is also talk to watch citizens via their smartphone to avoid having "potentially" infected people going out, though nobody stops you from going out without a cellphone, the benefits seem useless considering the lenght they would go such as sp-
Oh.
 

EB0LA

Banned deucer.
Well, I’ve been quarantined. I have “mild” symptoms and have been told not to even bother going out to get tested ‘cause I risk infecting others or being infected myself if I do not in fact have it. So I’m not allowed back to work until at least 7 days after my symptoms appeared and I go 3 straight days without fever or symptoms worsening. As I’m 27 and have no prior health concerns, they’re just kinda like “you’ll live, but srsly go away”
What are your "mild" symptoms?
 
What are your "mild" symptoms?
Pretty much the same as the severe ones. Just not severe. Fever, respiratory issues, etc... Though as time goes on the “fever, cough, shortness of breath” list they keep repeating is not remotely comprehensive.
 

VKCA

(Virtual Circus Kareoky Act)
didnt know this thread existed

https://www.itv.com/news/2020-04-06...-being-admitted-to-hospital-with-coronavirus/

not good, doesn't matter how much of a cunt you think boris is the last thing anyone should be doing is cheering about his potential death
Why is it such a bad thing to laugh at a man who was willing to endanger the lives of his populace actually facing consequences for his shitty attitudes and actions? I think it's incredibly fair that the plague is such a risk factor to those who had the power to act but chose to do nothing instead.
 

tcr

sage of six tabs
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If you laugh at people dying then you're twisted and lack empathy, regardless if you think you're on the "right side" or not you're no different the people you condemn.

At the end of the day we're all human and it's only through recognizance of that very basic fact of life that labels and fear of differences will disappear, not through a homogenizing of opinion.

I think you're a really ignorant person if you wish death upon anyone regardless. Stop letting temporary politics permeate every thought you have
 

Jerry the great

Banned deucer.
Along with the comment above me, I'll just mention a point. OK. I get maybe he's not a nice guy. But it doesn't give ANYONE the right to laugh about a real person dying! It's not like he's Hitler or something like that! Let me ask you all this. How would you like to get infected and possibly DIE? Seriously! This is a serious issue! People are unable to leave the house, go to their college, many places are shut down, people are dying, and more! And people just laugh when someone gets infected?! That's one of the most evil things anyone can do without breaking the law!
 

p2

Banned deucer.
People need to stop letting politics interfere with anything they say, simple as that. Just because you don't agree with how he handled the virus (I don't either, personally I think ALL countries had an outright terrible approach to this bar Singapore and South Korea,) Doesn't mean it's okay to wish death on him, if you want to wish death on people for incompetence of dealing with coronavirus then you're wishing death on over 50%, if not more, of world leaders. It's not right in any shape or form to celebrate the death of someone (there are very obvious exceptions, and Boris is nowhere near them lol)
 
And people just laugh when someone gets infected?! That's one of the most evil things anyone can do without breaking the law!
I think building your politics around depriving poor people of services they need, and declaring "herd immunity" to be your pandemic approach (="we'll let hundreds of thousands die so as not to hurt the economy") is more evil. I'm totally gonna laugh if you indirectly kill thousands of people and brag about shaking hands with patients (lmao), and then catch the virus and get hospitalized yourself. I don't have any empathy towards Boris's situation and y'all can take your sanctimony elsewhere.
 
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Surgo

goes to eleven
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"I never killed anybody, but I have done just the same thing. I have had a great deal of satisfaction over many obituary notices that I have read. I never got into the habit of killing. I could mention the names of many that it would please me if I could read their obituaries in the paper in the morning."

- Clarence Darrow (an American hero; if you don't know who he is or why he's important, look him up)
 
I think building your politics around depriving poor people of services they need, and declaring "herd immunity" to be your pandemic approach (="we'll let hundreds of thousands die so as not to hurt the economy") is more evil. I'm totally gonna laugh if you indirectly kill thousands of people and brag about shaking hands with patients (lmao), and then catch the virus and get hospitalized yourself. I don't have any empathy towards Boris's situation and y'all can take your sanctimony elsewhere.
What a creepy weirdo u are. Ur justifying ur need to laugh at someone who’s seriously unwell solely because u don’t agree with their politics. Take a day off mate. Find it strange that anyone would think something like that could be funny to begin with, never mind openly bragging about it and justifying it in the way u have. Absolute weirdo.
 
Does anyone actually believe that the prime minister of the United Kingdom is choosing to show cruel negligence? I would say that that is the line that has to be crossed before we can call serious illness poetic justice. You may disagree with him and believe that he basically brought this upon himself, but don’t celebrate saying “I told you so” or your heart is in the wrong place.

This sure is a Hot Takes thread.
EDIT: I actually thought that this was the Hot Takes thread.
 

McGrrr

Facetious
is a Contributor Alumnus
I've been working from home since Tuesday 17 March. I made my parents self-isolate for 3+ months from that weekend.

My two pennies on Boris Johnson (I'm impartial, I hate all politicians and all parties):
  • Firstly, I hope he recovers and I wish his partner well as she's heavily pregnant
  • I applaud the fact that Boris shifted the narrative early to "a lot of people are going to lose loved ones" to emphasise the seriousness of the situation (he was criticised at the time)
  • Sometimes, you're faced with making a decision where every option is terrible ("where do you want to stand in a massacre?")
  • Hindsight has proven that his initial rapid herd immunity strategy was miscalculated, but he deserves credit for changing course as soon as better modelling was available
  • I didn't foresee the extent of the government handouts, but I don't have a better idea, and I think that it was the right thing to do
  • The government gave people the benefit of the doubt and only enforced more draconian rules when they were flouting guidelines. Perhaps that was naive, but a stricter approach from the outset would have been met with public backlash
All things considered, I think that Boris has handled the crisis reasonably well and certainly better than expected. The US response has been absolutely shambolic in comparison.
 
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This sure is a Hot Takes thread.
EDIT: I actually thought that this was the Hot Takes thread.
Every Cong thread is a hot takes thread if you're bold enough

Does anyone actually believe that the prime minister of the United Kingdom is choosing to show cruel negligence? I would say that that is the line that has to be crossed before we can call serious illness poetic justice.
Is this a serious question? I don't think he's "build a secret lair inside a volcano and laugh maniacally" type of evil, but I absolutely think he (along with many other high-ranking politicians and leaders) has been knowingly and consistently putting "the economy" and the wealth of the rich before human lives, and I find that despicable. People here aren't outraged at underfunded health systems and foot-dragging, reluctant half-measures (which is leading to and will lead to god knows how many avoidable deaths), but they're outraged at an internet stranger not feigning fake sympathy for a man directly responsible for this (and who bragged about handshaking with COVID patients just a month ago). It's ridiculous.
 
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Bughouse

Like ships in the night, you're passing me by
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Some things that most people probably aren't aware of when it comes to hospital care (mostly applicable to US, but some themes are broadly true to most european countries as well) that are really concerning in terms of long term impacts:

1) Many hospitals have (rightly) postponed elective procedures. They want to keep pretty much anyone who doesn't have to be in the hospital out of the hospital, but this is a very difficult nut to crack. Elective procedures tend to be more financially beneficial to begin with, employ directly or indirectly most of hospital staff, and while there's obviously been offsetting increases in terms of care for COVID patients, it's nowhere near the same size as the drop in other care (at least not yet - and I hope it never is enough, since that would mean a much longer and worse pandemic). Many hospitals have seen utilization down 2/3. This means a huge drop in revenue and in work available for hospital staff.
2) While all doctors do go to medical school and receive a broad-based medical education, if you're not already a doctor doing something related to emergency care, and you're not in let's say your first 3-5 years out of school, you are most likely not actually prepared to help face the worst of this crisis. The recent grads likely still remember enough. But the vast majority of non-hospitalists don't even have admitting privileges and even those that do likely know little about hospital care. Still any doctor, even the most siloed specialist, should be knowledgeable enough help with general diagnosis/triage as well as handling the ~90% of more mild cases. They just won't be able to be helpful for the ~10% of hospitalized cases. The supply of doctors who actually know how to handle these cases is capped and already over capacity in some places. If this 10% of cases that require hospital care is out of a bigger pie, there's obviously the fear about equipment. But I'm not sure if we run out of equipment or capable doctors first. Equipment we can make. Doctors we can't as easily. It would require a pretty valiant and fast re-training effort.
3) So while this delay of any elective care and changing of priorities does affect doctors, some will be able to adjust to help in at least some capacity. But the majority are seeing reduced hours and pay. In theory many doctors can handle this, as doctors make good salaries, but this may not be the case for doctors with kids, those paying off medical school student loans, etc. These doctors are likely not able to file for unemployment and they're making too much (last year) to be getting a check from the government - not that this one time check is much more than a bandaid anyway. There needs to be a specific targeted program to keep afloat medical professionals who've lost work and who genuinely need assistance or the system risks even greater collapse. There's a great concern about the system's ability to ramp back up after the crisis.
4) But even more concerning is what this means for other staff, such as nurses, techs, anesthetists, social workers, etc. Many of these are being furloughed. Others, if they're lucky, are being asked to take on tasks they are not trained in. Nurses can likely make a lot of this adjustment. The roles that are less trained in more general care trained cannot. Some hospitals are trying to still provide these hospital employees with SOME amount of work. I know anecdotally of techs who are being asked to do sanitation, i.e. janitorial duties, at night. That's the best the hospital can offer them.
5) The CARES Act does contain $100B for providers (largely hospitals), which is targeted to help with the issue of capacity in #2 (though the speed with which this money will be available is not currently known). It also with immediate effect temporarily ended Medicare sequestration and bumped up the IPPS rate paid when it's for treatment of a COVID patient, which help in the immediate term with revenues for COVID care. There's also some other extra benefits to providers thrown in, but altogether they still don't really broadly fix the payroll issue that is causing hospitals to furlough staff left and right.

A lot of this same stuff can be said for primary care doctors and some specialists, but many of these have at least been able to supplant some of their regular office visit revenue with telemedicine.
 

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