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LAST UPDATE | 1 Mar 2020
THE DEPARTMENT OF Health has said it will issue a public notice if it is not able to contact individuals who came into contact with the male currently being treated for Covid-19.
Dr Ronan Glynn, deputy chief medical officer in the department, told the This Week programme on RTÉ Radio One this afternoon that contact tracing is something that public health officials have been doing for years.
In this latest case, Glynn said it was commenced in the past 24 hours and is ongoing.
Last night, the first case of the Covid-19 coronavirus in the Republic of Ireland was confirmed. The patient is a male and a resident in the eastern part of the country.
A process is underway to contact individuals who may have had close contact with the patient.
Glynn said the process is about ensuring that people who need information are provided with it.
“What I can say is that the people, in the first instance the doctors who need to have this information, have this information. And they will be contacting the contacts, who need to have more information,” Glynn said.
We are constantly striking a balance. And we have been open and transparent throughout this process about the developing situation internationally, our preparedness here, and we will continue to give more information as the situation evolves. But we have got to at all times protect the confidentiality of individual patients.
Glynn said such contract tracing processes are regularly engaged in “for a whole range of infectious diseases”.
“I can absolutely reassure people that if there’s a close contact of any case, I’m speaking in general terms here, if any case is identified as having been on a flight, the close contact of that person will be contacted and given appropriate advice,” he said, adding other methods will be employed if required:
In the past, if necessary, we will issue a public notice where that’s necessary. If we’re not confident that we can contact close contacts in another way, we will take the appropriate steps at the appropriate time. But at this moment in relation to this case, contact tracing is going on.
Contact
Glynn said that if people are concerned they should seek out information from the HSE:
For anyone who’s concerned whether they’ve been on a flight, whether they’ve come back from an affected region, or whether it’s someone who hasn’t travelled at all and just wanted more information, I would urge everyone to go to HSE.ie. It’s updated daily gives the latest advice, both in relation to Ireland and what’s happening internationally.
He added, however, that the rest of infection in Ireland remains low:
I would reiterate again, that the risk to an individual in Ireland at the moment remains low. People should not panic, but they should certainly appraise themselves of the measures that they themselves can take to protect themselves. And first and foremost, that’s about following the correct information and using basic hand hygiene.
Testing
The Department of Health said last night it would provide an update on the number of people in Ireland tested for Covid-19 this coming Tuesday.
Speaking about this this afternoon, Glynn said testing figures are provided on a weekly basis based on the number up to close of business on a Monday.
Up to last week 90 people had been tested and Glynn said today that people should expect this to have “increased significantly” because the number of affected areas was also expanded last week
“What I can say is that our laboratory capacity is more than capable for managing the number of tests that are required at the moment,” he added.
Asked about the potential that an escalation in the number of cases could, for example, cause the closure of schools, as has happened elsewhere, Glynn said this is not something the department is yet considering.
“It’s possible that measures like that will need to be taken, and we need to continue to monitor the situation clearly as it evolves. But again, I’d reiterate that at the moment, we’re in containment phase and that’s not something we envisage in the near future.
But obviously we’re monitoring developments. If measures like that need to be taken, they will be taken and the reasoning behind those measures will be communicated to the public.
Earlier today, Tourism Ireland chief executive Niall Gibbons said a decision on whether or not to postpone or cancel the St Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin will be taken by the end of this week.
Asked about the status of the parade, Glynn said the Department of Health will provide “a criteria for gatherings in the coming days” that will allow the organisers of any event to make a decision themselves.
“But clearly there will be events of major or national significance that will require input from public health doctors and medical expertise and yes, there will be a process in place around that within the coming days,” he added.
Covid-19 has spread to more than 60 countries around the globe, prompting the World Health Organisation to raise its risk assessment to its highest level.
According to the most extensive study done so far, the novel coronavirus was benign in 80.9% of cases, “serious” in 13.8% and “critical” in 4.7%. The remaining 0.6% was not specified.
Part of the reason Covid-19 has been declared a public health emergency is due to the speed at which it has spread compared to other coronaviruses (like Sars and Mers) and the fact that there’s a lot about the disease we still don’t know – including how exactly it’s being transmitted.
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Good clear and consistent information is how this is tackled. This Virus is spreading like wild fire in countrys like Iran when information is nor being shared. The HSE need to be mindful and keep the public informed and not be hiding behind smoke screen
@Opinionated: North Korean State media televised these guides to the Coronavirus, they are short, highly informative and to the point (English subtitled):
What is the coronavirus – https://youtu.be/rI_MG3ZnDak
How to reduce the spread of the coronavirus: http://youtu.be/iZA-H63ScfY
Ironic that their media did a better job at informing their public than western media that’s all about clicks and sound bites.
@Opinionated: Dept of Health and Harris changing their statements quicker than the virus is spreading.Why don’t they just tell the bloody truth for once in their careers to the Irish people?
@Billy McNamara: not in their nature…
@David Jordan:
I think North Korea were also the first to close their borders, too.
@Peter: Their borders are permanently closed.
@Dan: Don’t I know that.They treat us like idiots and tell us what we need to know when they decide.Who are these people ?Who do they think they are?
@Peter: The book World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks (son of Mel Brooks), North Korea escaped the Zombie plague by pulling out the teeth of everyone in North Korea.
In otherwords, North Korea can easily close its borders and do what ever it likes to stop the outbreak, sealing off towns, welding people into apartment blocks if they need to. Dictatorships and police states are able and willing to do that rather then open borders democracies.
@David Jordan: The intelligence emerging from DPRK ( N Korea to the rest us ) is that Kim Jong Un has ordered that anyone who is diagnosed with Covid19 be immediately executed in order reduce the risk of further spread.
The form of the execution is not yet clear.
But executing people that have the misfortune of catching Covid19 is apparently now is DPRK policy..
But as for Simon Harris & HSE …
he won’t even suspend flights from Northern Italy or screen 900-1000 passengers that arriving into Dublin each day from #1 Covid19
Hotspot in the EU … because it might ruffle some feathers in the EU and might mean HSE public health section might actually have do some real work rather than holding daily Press Conferences where they talk a lot … But Really say nothing at All !!
RTE: Risk from Coronavirus in Ireland is still “very low”. WHO: Risk level -”Very High” (The highest level they have).
@Paraic: WHO isn’t talking about Ireland, but overall …
The lack of clear information coming from the hse is ridiculous. Hundreds of school children travelled home from Italy last week.
@Lisa Malone: so? There are at least 4 flights a day from Milan in northern Italy a day on ryan air and aerlingus That’s an awful lot of people coming into the country. Don’t forget there is a lot of Italy than doesn’t have the virus
@Dave Harris: only take 1 to infect everyone in any confined environment such as inside the plane where the air circulates for the entire duration of the flight. Don’t forget there is a lot of Ireland don’t want to be infected.
@Lisa Malone: What information do you want about the children? Do you want their names and addresses. Your irrational need for information that doesn’t concern you is far outweighed by those children’s and their family’s right to privacy
@Irish Snowden: “only take 1 to infect everyone in any confined environment such as inside the plane where the air circulates”
That’s a myth. The air on passenger planes is filtered through HEPA filter, the same level of filtration as a gas mask. Experience with previous transmission of SARS in passenger planes in 2003 show the virus was transmitted mainly or exclusively by touch. Coronavirus is transmitted by touch and close range large droplets <2 meters) by coughing.
In fact, turning up the air conditioning above your seat to max, creating a bubble of clean air, will help prevent possible airborne transmission.
@David Jordan: HEPA filters remove particles down 0.3 micrometers in diameter.. 0.1 at the best. Bacteria ad virus are 0.004 to 0.1 microns in size…it seems the Corona is 0.110 μm
@Feardorcha Ó Maolomhnaigh: no that’s not what I said or implied, but half the country is panicking now. All the hse have to say is either a) what county the patient is in or b) what day they travelled or c) what region in Italy they returned from. Anyone of those pieces of information would do and none of those identify the patient.
@Eric Vdc: Coronavirus is touch and large droplet spread, large droplets are easily removed by HEPA filters. In addition, HEPA H14 filters remove 99.995% of virus sized particles. Higher grade filters available…
@Lisa Malone:
What possible reason does anyone have to want to know that?
Half the country isn’t panicking. I was out an about today, and I met loads of people, not one of them was panicking. Most were concerned about the impact of people panicking
A lot of irrational people on social media are panicking.
@David Jordan: It’s also aerosolised. The reality is, there is not an air intake in the floor below each seat (laminar flow). Air from the seating area of an infected passenger will meander throughout the aircraft until eventually it reaches an intake vent. Everyone in between is at risk. It doesn’t matter if it then gets filtered after the fact.
@Irish Snowden:
The virus is spread by droplets, it isn’t airborne.
@Paraic: The virus is NOT aerosolised! Stop making stuff up.
@David Jordan: David the issue HEPA Filters in commercial Aircraft such Airbus and Boeing are Rated to filter everything down 0.3microns … and are rated 99.97% effective
But the single core RNA virus like Corona virus has molecular dimension of 0.1 Micron….
So 0.3 Micron may filter out some airborne corona virus molecules .. it will not fully sanitise the Cabin environment as the recycled air is filtered ….
Sitting on a plane for 2-3 hours with an infected passenger puts everyone in that environment at much greater risk.. of getting the virus … of course not everyone will
Tonight Delta Airlines and other have announced that the suspending flights to Milan. I expect other US airlines to follow inside the next 24hrs … This is due to US Gov pressure .
But this makes sense .
The HSE and RTE are treating the irish public like 7-year-olds. “The eastern part of the coyntry” what an insult to our intelligence. Why not just name the town so that people can chose whether or not to place themselves in the environs of it.
Ive heard its Trim in county Meath. Dont know if this is correct or not, because the “authorities” deem that the public should be kept in the dark.
@Anthony Byrne: Just read on the mirror he is being treated in a a Dublin hospital. Still won’t name it though.
It’s like trying to get information from Ryanair on a delayed flight. More drib and drabs
@Thomas Claffey: 50 No Shows for a flight to Tenerife yesterday. Lunacy. You’ve more chance of dying from a snake bite than this virus.
Shrouded in secrecy again
Could you not get shopping centre’s to maybe wipe escalators, spray a bit of bleach, hand sterrilisers in schools.. Something… Anything please
@databackup: some hsopitals need to try doing that first.
Also, there needs to be a person with a big stick at the entrance to every hospital who beats people who don’t disinfect their hands when entering!
@databackup: Too late for any of that.Corona (not the drink) is here.
Providing a flight number , public transport used and a city of residence does not breach patient confidentiality.
It would make those possibly affected self report and save time and more unnecessary contamination. It’s despairing level of irresponsibility.
@Isabel Oliveira:
No it would create irrational fear in people living in that town, and it would have every one who was on any bus yesterday unnecessarily panicking.
There was never any question of the country being sealed off. No rational person would expect that or want that to happen.
The same as every other country in the world, this virus was always going to arrive here, some people are going to catch it, some people are going to get sick and a very small number of people will die from it. There is nothing outside of the normal infection protocols that will change that
80,000 infections in China required hospital treatment. That is 0.0057% of the population. That is the equivalent of 285 people requiring hospitalisation here. Unfortunately it means approximately 20 deaths based on a 7% mortality rate. The vast majority of Irish people will have no contact with this virus.
It appears that the Journal comments section has a very high percentage of commenters with seriously irrational fear levels.
@Feardorcha Ó Maolomhnaigh: The number of infected in Italy is increased from 0 to 1275 (today’s figure) since 20th/Feb, with 30 death. Do you really think the fear is created? And what do you Ireland has prepared better than Italy against this virus?
@Feardorcha Ó Maolomhnaigh: .0057% of the Irish population (4.83m) is 27,531 not 285. And at a 7% death rate it would mean 1,927 deaths. Also the virus is still spreading in China.
@Godknows: Ireland is as prepared as any other country in the world.
France has 100 cases with 2 deaths, Germany has 117 cases with no deaths, Japan has 241 cases with 5 deaths. Whats your point?
I never said the fear is created, I said it is irrational.
Heart disease is a far bigger killer than Covid 19. It doesn’t stop people going to McDonald’s
@NotMyIreland:
You need to brush up on your maths. I used 5 million. and you need to divide by 100 to get the correct number.
Calculating 0.0057% requires you to multiply by 0.0057 and divide by 100
1% of 5,000,000 is not 5,000,000 its 50,000
@Feardorcha Ó Maolomhnaigh: your reaction to other perfectly reasonable posts indicates you’re the one panicking about hearing the truth.
People need to take extra precautions in affected areas to minimise contagion and the public health is more important than the economy.
And no , it’s not the “ flu “ & there are people with underlying conditions or elderly that need to be protected.
What is your issue?
@Feardorcha Ó Maolomhnaigh: no it doesn’t . It requires only multiplication . He is correct .
@Isabel Oliveira:
They are not perfectly reasonable post they are completely irrational posts. The vast majority of Irish people will have no interaction with this virus. Silly, panicked people will be presenting for testing because they live within 100 yards of a particular school or in a particular village. A slight cough or a headache will mean unnecessary presentations to hospital. The heath system will be overstretched not by the corona virus, but by stupid panicked people
You might want to get a maths book and learn how to do percentages. By your reckoning, 5% of 100 is 500.
Based on the percentage of cases in China we will get around 280 cases. I’ll repeat. 280 cases. That will lead to approximately 20 deaths. Again I will repeat. 20 deaths.
The number of people who die from flu in Ireland each year is 200 to 500. That is 10 to 25 times the number that will die from this virus ( I assume you know how to do multiplication)
Schools should be closed. Plenty of evidence that this would reduce the spread by 35%+ During the SARS outbreak, school holidays happened to occur at the right time and is credited with slowing it down. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/figures?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0097297 Italy are already doing it. https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2020/0229/1119324-coronavirus/
@Paraic: why just schools?
@D: I didn’t say “just”.
Breaking news: Secondary school to close for 14 days after all pupils and staff confirmed as ‘close contacts’ of coronavirus case
Patient Zero has been identified…Do no panic people. Go about your day as usual, especially if you live in the east of Ireland.
@Arya: u don’t have to deflect from the crisis. There’s plenty bread to go around.
I think they need to draft in the penguins from Madagascar to sort this. I’d have more faith in them
Stop all unnecessary travel!!!!! This end of things is negligence.
@Lydia McLoughlin:
Would you not go if you had booked two weeks all inclusive at the Solana in Benidorm? I think not!
@Peter: I booked my champagne league ticket to Napoli this Tuesday (Napoli vs Barcelona), tickets for the match, flight, hotel room. When I saw there is almost 100-200 infected increase every day, I didn’t go, you may think you are virus proof, but your families and your friends not. Just be responsible for everyone close to you
@Godknows: Someone with both sense and empathy to others. Unusual for Journal.ie comments section
“efforts” + “tracking ongoing”….two phrases that do not inspire confidence while this invisible virus spreads
Hypochondriac hysteria is upons us all now. But I definitely don’t have it……. I think.
@Twitruser2020: If China is shutting cities with populations larger than Ireland down it’s not something I’d laugh about, especially since China probably has a better military and healthcare system thn us
Have they say when he flew back from Italy? Was it 4 days ago , 4 weeks ago etc. This isn’t affecting his confidentiality and important to understand where we are.
So to be really really clear, they haven’t a FU**ING clue who he was in contact with!! Just release the information and let people make the decision if they need to take the appropriate steps. Jeasus Christ chimpanzees could handle this better all while having a tea party!!
I’ve heard that two schools in Leixlip have returned from skiing holidays in Italy. Why not publish official data that they have been cleared if this is the case? …together with all school skiing trips. This might allay undue panic.
Why is incompetent simon Harris still letting 11 daily plane loads into Ireland from Italy, the two cases in ireland flew in from italy whats he waiting for a pandemic to happen here
@Tom o brien: Don’t be ridiculous.
For goodness sake, stop the drama. All you are doing is scaring people.
Masks masks get those masks or they will be gone!!
It makes no sense that hand sanitisers are in shirt supply when the country had weeks to prepare for this outbreak. Suppliers should limit purchases so everybody gets a chance to buy them when restocked
Couple of Lemsip.
Hot water bottle and in to bed.
Sorted.
Grow up!
How long is the incubation period for COVID-19?
The “incubation period” means the time between catching the virus and beginning to have symptoms of the disease. Most estimates of the incubation period for COVID-19 range from 1-14 days, most commonly around five days. These estimates will be updated as more data become available.
@Eric Curry: from the WHO website. We can have it for 14 day’s and not show any symptoms……. just saying
have your say