Covid-19: Lockdown needed to protect health service, say medics

Medical experts say the proposed increased lockdown measures are needed in order to protect the health service this winter. File Picture.

Implementing a countrywide lockdown is necessary to protect the vulnerable health system.

Dr Mary Favier, a member of the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) and former president of the Irish College of General Practitioners (ICGP), said medics nationwide are afraid of what the winter season will look like.

Chief medical officer Dr Tony Holohan is to meet government leaders today to discuss the recommendation to place the entire country under level 5 restrictions.

If the Covid-19 case figures — which numbered close to 1,000 over the weekend — continue on their current trajectory, there could be 1,500 cases per day by the start of November, putting hospitals under enormous strain, Dr Favier said.

The “absolute reality” and “inevitable truth” of the current Covid-19 figures was that a lockdown would be necessary because of the vulnerability of the health care system, she told RTÉ.

Dr Favier said there was a concern that if there was a serious traffic accident or a cardiac incident that there would not be an ICU bed available as they would be occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Moving to Level 3 in Dublin and Donegal had made “some difference” but not enough, she added.

On Newstalk, infectious diseases expert, Professor Jack Lambert said the enforcement of preventative measures was very important. People needed to be compliant with public health measures.

The wearing of masks, maintaining social distance and all preventative measures needed to be enforced, he said.

Professor Anthony Staines, head of Health Systems at the School of Nursing and Human Sciences in DCU, said it is clear that Covid-19 is "out of control and rising across the whole country".

He said he believed the public would get behind health restrictions if imposed, and said "the business community and at least one element within the Cabinet" are responsible for a lot of the opposition, but that something needs to be done urgently. 

"The big weakness is the plan to live with the virus," he said. 

We are living with the virus, this is what living with the virus looks like: You bring the numbers down, they go up again, you bring the numbers down, they go up again. 

"Every time they go up, they do appalling economic damage, and it is the virus that does the damage, not the response," said Prof Staines. 

"They are moving to high level restrictions because the plan hasn't worked to date. We should probably have started at Level 4 nationally when the plan was brought out, and then worked county by county, depending on what's going on in the county.

"Having a national overall response to absolutely everywhere won't work, we need to start with a national response and work within that framework."