Professor: ‘If we do not get lockdown easing right then NI may be back at square one’

A Belfast-based professor who is an expert in respiratory viruses has warned that unless Northern Ireland re-opens its society just right, then it risks going back to “square one” on Covid-19.
Ultan Power is an expert in respiratory virusesUltan Power is an expert in respiratory viruses
Ultan Power is an expert in respiratory viruses

Professor Ultan Power, based at Queen’s University, had been an early advocate for lockdown, telling the News Letter in mid-March that “I’m of the frame of mind today that we need to close down pretty much everything”.

He said that today Northern Ireland has largely wrestled the situation back under control, and is “heading back to where we were right at the start” of the pandemic.

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However, when it comes to lifting the lockdown, he said some antibody testing data he has seen indicates that 95% of the population has not been infected with Covid-19, “and therefore the vast majority of people are still susceptible”.

Asked if the planned re-opening of pubs and hotels up and running again means there will be another inevitable spike he said: “That would be my concern. It’s a very important part of the economy. But my concern would be that if it’s not done carefully in terms of physical distancing we will run the risk of going back to square one...

“If we’re not careful we will run the risk of a second wave or a resurgence of the virus coming back into the community again.”

He said people are becoming “fixated” on social distancing as being the key when pubs, restaurants et cetera open up again.

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However, other very important behaviours will be continuing to vigorously wash hands, watching your coughing, and staying in well-ventilated rooms as opposed to closed spaces where the same air is being recycled.

He also warned that for licenced premises, when people have had a lot to drink social distancing “goes out the window” – and this would need to form part of our thinking too.

NO REGRETS... YET:

Prof Power was also asked if ever he fears he was wrong, and that the lockdown could end up causing more harm than good.

Just yesterday, a doctor had written in the News Letter of a “tsunami” of problems caused by the lockdown as far as regular patients go.

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“No,” he said. “At the moment I don’t think we should have regrets on the lockdown.

“If we look back in 10 years’ time and say ‘maybe we overdid it’, that’s for the future. That’s not for now.

“Now we need to look at what’s real and in front of our face – the risks are still there.”

SHAPE OF THING TO COME?:

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Prof Power was also was asked whether this current pandemic shows the shape of things to come in our increasingly-interconnected world.

He replied that the last two decades have seen SARS, Swine Flue, Ebola, and MERS march across the globe.

“Certainly the frequency is increasing,” he said.

“Undoubtedly the ability of people to travel very far, very quickly accelerates the capacity of a virus to find its way across the globe.

“That certainly is a big, big concern for the future.This is undoubtedly not the last pandemic we’ll have to deal with. That’s a given.

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“The question really is: What are we doing about it in terms of pandemic preparedness and planning?”

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