Coronavirus - how is it/has it affected you?

[Imurg]

Can you really, genuinely, compare any country's dealing with Covid?
Different populations, cultures, seasons...hell, do we even know if the numbers are derived in the same way and are accurate?
It just seems a waste of time trying to make comparisons.

 

[GB72]

Ok how quickly Omicron spreads is scary. New year's Eve party at my village. Not very busy in a big village hall. Going by messages today I reckon 60-70% are now testing positive. Nobody there had any symptoms

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Any thoughts on the new IHU variant. Only 12 cases so far but more mutations than Omicrom https://www.standard.co.uk/news/world/covid-ihu-variant-france-omicron-b974964.html

 

[Foxholer]

Can you really, genuinely, compare any country's dealing with Covid?
Different populations, cultures, seasons...hell, do we even know if the numbers are derived in the same way and are accurate?
It just seems a waste of time trying to make comparisons.

That's why I only 'compared' 'Deaths per 1M of Population' - and was selective about the 'regions'. Numbers of certain countries, Russia for example, just don't seem right.

 

[PNWokingham]

Exactly the reason why your comparison of Sweden and UK data was 'invalid'!!

Whatever. Similar urban density, same continent, but comparison invalid. Thanks for pointing out

 

[ColchesterFC]

Whatever. Similar urban density, same continent, but comparison invalid. Thanks for pointing out

Any reason that you didn't use Denmark with an urban density of 88.1%, or Norway with 83% urban density, or even Finland with 86.1%? Similar urban density, same continent but all three have far lower Covid deaths than Sweden.

 

[BubbaP]

Ok how quickly Omicron spreads is scary. New year's Eve party at my village. Not very busy in a big village hall. Going by messages today I reckon 60-70% are now testing positive. Nobody there had any symptoms

Not for the first time I've found it interesting just how quickly the virus can move around the globe. Here's the world view (of cases)

 

[PNWokingham]

Any reason that you didn't use Denmark with an urban density of 88.1%, or Norway with 83% urban density, or even Finland with 86.1%? Similar urban density, same continent but all three have far lower Covid deaths than Sweden.

I already acknowledged that the other Nordic countries all did great in covid deaths compared to all of Europe. I was merely highlighting that Sweden did better than we did on deaths and in a different postcode on costs and likely much better on other social issues while also not locking down - in the context that total lockdowns may have been less successful than targeted large assistance for the vulnerable. The fact that other countries did better than Sweden on deaths, although not on economics is another point. Anyway I have repeated myself enough

 

[Ethan]

Can you really, genuinely, compare any country's dealing with Covid?
Different populations, cultures, seasons...hell, do we even know if the numbers are derived in the same way and are accurate?
It just seems a waste of time trying to make comparisons.

Well, the definition of 'dead' is reasonably universal, what we call a 'hard endpoint'. Some comparisons are more valid than others.

 

[Captainron]

I can’t watch Novak Djokovic play in the Australian Open and I’m happy about why they binned him off.

 

[Foxholer]

I can’t watch Novak Djokovic play in the Australian Open and I’m happy about why they binned him off.

Whoever blundered on his visa app (if that's what happened) saved Aus a lot of aggro!
He's got over a fortnight to get over any bad effects of getting jabbed now!

 

[Imurg]

Well, the definition of 'dead' is reasonably universal, what we call a 'hard endpoint'. Some comparisons are more valid than others.

But are the numbers derived from the same data? Over the same time frame, using the same criteria?
Unless countries are reporting using the same data it's incomparable.
Spain, for example, didn't post figures at weekends for a long time and yet there wasn't a spike on a Monday....10k cases and "x" deaths Monday to Friday - nothing on a weekend - 10k cases and "x" deaths Monday to Friday again. So nobody caught it or died at the weekends?
We even changed our reporting to include deaths within 28 days of a +ve test..
What's the reporting criteria in other countries..?
All the same? All accurate?
I doubt it.

 

[Foxholer]

Can you really, genuinely, compare any country's dealing with Covid?
Different populations, cultures, seasons...hell, do we even know if the numbers are derived in the same way and are accurate?
It just seems a waste of time trying to make comparisons.

Depends on whether any 'conclusions' depend on the particular differences. Some/many trends can still be drawn, even with inaccurate data, as long as it's explainable/consistent, or the particular change point is highlighted.

 

[Ethan]

But are the numbers derived from the same data? Over the same time frame, using the same criteria?
Unless countries are reporting using the same data it's incomparable.
Spain, for example, didn't post figures at weekends for a long time and yet there wasn't a spike on a Monday....10k cases and "x" deaths Monday to Friday - nothing on a weekend - 10k cases and "x" deaths Monday to Friday again. So nobody caught it or died at the weekends?
We even changed our reporting to include deaths within 28 days of a +ve test..
What's the reporting criteria in other countries..?
All the same? All accurate?
I doubt it.

Data sets are often pretty comparable. Most European countries have similar standards for case definitions, and so long as relevant differences are known, they can be accounted for. Belgium has a stricter definition than the UK, so their numbers are probably a bit inflated compared to the UK. Usually the trends with time are more important than the absolute numbers. The UK definition of 28 days was set pretty early and has not changed as far as I am aware. Moving averages deal with the problem of weekend and holiday reporting variations.

 

[Rooter]

Ok how quickly Omicron spreads is scary. New year's Eve party at my village. Not very busy in a big village hall. Going by messages today I reckon 60-70% are now testing positive. Nobody there had any symptoms

It would be really interesting to get a true view on how many did a LFT before attending, I would wager not everyone! And a few wouldn't have done it just in case it was positive! Blind faith over science so not to ruin the plans.. Obviously you will never know, but surely one of them would have tested positive I reckon...

 

[larmen]

maybe compulsory testing might be a better solution than vax mandates.
Test on Sunday and you know how the next week will look like.

 

[Robster59]

We still regularly do our LFT, twice a week. We have an extra couple of packets as we went to the Pharmacy to get one, and he gave us two when we told him we were using them to test before going into a care home (not for sale BTW ).
I've no doubt there will be quite a few more variants of Covid that are waiting to come out, some will be more virulent/lethal than others. Only time will tell.

 

[GB72]

It would be really interesting to get a true view on how many did a LFT before attending, I would wager not everyone! And a few wouldn't have done it just in case it was positive! Blind faith over science so not to ruin the plans.. Obviously you will never know, but surely one of them would have tested positive I reckon...

A fair point and there are some people who will only test of they feel ill.

What is also interesting is that, so far at least, nobody has had anything even looking like serious symptoms. Some were totally unaware that they had it until their kids tested postive on an LFT for school and they then tested and found they were positive. Most have symptoms aki to a bad cold, one has what I would class as moderate flu symptoms. This is a wide age range from kids to people in their 60s and 70s.

 

[Rooter]

What is also interesting is that, so far at least, nobody has had anything even looking like serious symptoms. Some were totally unaware that they had it until their kids tested postive on an LFT for school and they then tested and found they were positive. Most have symptoms aki to a bad cold, one has what I would class as moderate flu symptoms. This is a wide age range from kids to people in their 60s and 70s.

That's really good to hear, I wonder again what the vaccination stats are like?

 

[GB72]

That's really good to hear, I wonder again what the vaccination stats are like?

From the ones I know, and I know most of them, fully jabbed, boosters if eligible.