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HSE CEO Paul Reid at today's briefing. Leon Farrell/Rollingnews.ie

'Our desire is to lift restrictions on Kildare as quickly as possible': HSE pressed on schools and testing at briefing

On schools, the HSE said today “the risks of keeping schools closed now outweigh the risk of Covid for children”.

THE HSE’S CHIEF Clinical Officer Colm Henry has said that it is the desire of public health authorities to recommend lifting the restrictions placed on Kildare “as quickly as possible”. 

This, however, is dependent on daily data from the county and reducing the case per 100,000 population level there.

Restrictions were placed on Kildare on 8 August in an attempt to curb the rising spread of Covid-19, and these restrictions were extended for another fortnight last week

Henry was one of several senior HSE representatives addressing reporters at a briefing in DCU today. 

HSE CEO Paul Reid said that a second full lockdown is “exactly what we want to avoid” while Henry said that “the risks of keeping schools closed now outweigh the risk of Covid for children”.

On a day when many of the country’s children are returning to school for the first time in almost six months, questions were asked about what happen if an outbreak was detected in a school. 

Consultant Dr Abigail Collins told reporters she’s hopeful “schools won’t have to close…if that is necessary then we will take the appropriate action. I am hopeful it won’t be.

We will identify cases of Covid in children attending school. When someone has tested positive, we will take it forward.

She said: “Our priority is to not have a wide-sweeping initial approach to remove all children… that can be counterproductive.”

She added she hopes the interventions will be “more measured”, while it was emphasised at the briefing that all interventions in schools would be done on a “case-by-case” basis.

Reid, meanwhile, said a report due to be published later today on the impact of Covid-19, showed primary school children had been most affected by the restrictions.

He said that children with additional learning needs and or special needs are disproportionately affected and that anxiety levels for children may increase due to lack of routines and socialisation.

Reid added that 52,000 tests for Covid-19 had been conducted in the past week, with a positivity rate of around 0.18%. Despite that, there were 725 cases reported in the past week which is a slight increase on the previous week. 

Anne O’Connor, chief operations officer with the HSE, meanwhile said that there’s been an increase in older people accessing mental health services, but they’re expecting more younger people to get in touch now that schools are beginning to return. 

With reporting from Cónal Thomas at the HSE briefing in DCU

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    Mute Ciaran De Bhal
    Favourite Ciaran De Bhal
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    May 12th 2023, 7:27 AM

    Beautiful house. €8.5m though? Imagine having €8.5m. Wouldn’t you buy a nice house anywhere but Dublin for half a million and live your life with the remaining 8, with no worries or stress, or gridlock. Utter madness

    510
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    Mute Gerard McAuliffe
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    May 12th 2023, 2:43 PM

    @Ciaran De Bhal: Anyone buying a house for €8.5M is probably worth 3-4 times that so if they wanted they could just sit and relax and avoid gridlock at home in Foxrock anyway.

    121
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    Mute Sea-point Point
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    May 12th 2023, 6:44 PM

    @Ciaran De Bhal: if you can afford a €8.5m gaff, it’s nailed on that you don’t spend your whole year in Dublin and probably have a holiday home in Ireland and a pied-a-terre or two abroad….

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    Mute Mick Hyland
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    May 15th 2023, 1:32 AM

    @Ciaran De Bhal: €8.5 million isn’t what it used to be you know.

    1
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    Mute david byrne
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    May 12th 2023, 7:10 AM

    Cud ya imagine just having 8.5million

    179
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    Mute Rafa Condron
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    May 12th 2023, 6:49 AM

    I’ll put my name in the hat. When’s the draw?

    135
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    Mute Liz O'Neill
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    May 12th 2023, 10:28 AM

    An Orangery. Loyalists only need apply?

    115
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    Mute Sue O'Neill
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    May 12th 2023, 7:19 AM

    Love it

    91
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    Mute pio Martin
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    May 12th 2023, 6:26 AM

    Meh

    54
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    Mute The Red Devil
    Favourite The Red Devil
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    May 14th 2023, 7:51 AM

    8.5m and no pool or helicopter landing pad ……I feel cheated so no I’m out

    56
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    Mute Patricia Ellis Dunne
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    May 12th 2023, 5:54 PM

    Orangery? Had to Google that. Was wondering how they were growing oranges in Foxrock

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    Mute John Murphy
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    May 12th 2023, 8:48 PM

    @Patricia Ellis Dunne: I’m disappointed with the orangery too. I clicked this story to see their millionaire greenhouse setup!

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    Mute SPQH
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    May 14th 2023, 6:20 PM

    @John Murphy: haha same here. Orangery is now just posh speak for a sunroom. Nonsense usage of the word in the gaff above. Very disappointed. Zero fruit trees.

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    Mute John O'Neill
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    May 12th 2023, 8:27 PM

    Liked and shared

    27
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    Mute Mary Fitzsimons
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    May 14th 2023, 1:55 PM

    Garden is boring as hell. It took 2 designers to come up with a hedge and lawn

    41
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    Mute SPQH
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    May 14th 2023, 6:22 PM

    @Mary Fitzsimons: was thinking the same, I clicked to see the “orangery” but just found a bloody sunroom, sure I have one of those myself! Designer names….. Big lawn in the shape of a rectangle, very boring. So much potential in that plot.

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    Mute reg morrisey
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    May 14th 2023, 10:03 AM

    Today I learned what an orangery was.

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    Mute James Lyons
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    May 14th 2023, 12:00 PM

    I’ve a few questions about the Orangery

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    Mute Eoghan O Sullivan
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    May 14th 2023, 11:29 AM

    They could have fit another toilet / Jacks under thr stairs if they had designed it properly.

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    Mute Yvon Queguiner
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    May 14th 2023, 3:00 PM

    I am baffled by the number of people who have no clue what an orangery is.
    It’s very common pretty much anywhere and in any renaissance garden.
    The lack of education is showing!

    16
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    Mute SPQH
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    May 14th 2023, 6:24 PM

    @Yvon Queguiner: I don’t think the sellers know what one is either. That’s not an Orangery! Do you think it is? That’s a sunroom! It’s property seller speak for sunroom, it’s a modern nonsense take on a real orangery. There’s a proper one in Killruddery that looks the part, although no longer in use as one I believe.

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    Mute Riddled Fidl
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    May 14th 2023, 6:27 PM

    Orangery… notions!

    14
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