By Tony O’Riley-
The Minister Of Health And Services for Wales, Eluned Morgan, appears to be spreading the fear of the Omicron variant, as she urges all Wales residents to take the vaccine.
Morgan repeated established facts that the coronavirus variant spreads very rapidly , stating her belief that there is clearly cause for concern, as she urged people to take the vaccine.
However, the transmisibility of the variant has not yet been equated with the rate of hospitalisation or death rates, which researchers say will take time to establish.
The panic and potential fearmongering of the Omicron variant is unnecessary and unhealthy- it also leads to suspicion of an ulterior motive, even if the rate of transmissibility is true.
Ms Morgan said: “We are expecting a significant wave of Omicron to hit Wales.
“The modelling suggests that it will reach its peak by around the end of January, which is why there is an urgency in terms of getting people vaccinated and boosters done as soon as possible.” All cases of Omicron in Wales have so far been detected in the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board area.
On Tuesday health officials confirmed a fifth Omicron case had been found in Wales, among 101 cases reported in the UK on the same day, bringing the total to 437. The variant is believed to be spreading in the community in England.
The prime minister’s official spokesman has also said Omicron appears more transmissible than Delta – the variant of coronavirus currently dominant in the UK.
“We can’t give you any assurances on that because we are still learning about the situation,” she told a Welsh government press briefing.
Ministers have stressed the importance of caution over the festive period, and Ms Morgan recommended people take lateral flow tests before meeting friends over Christmas.
Extra caution is necessary, but there is a growing body of thought by observers whose views are seldom in the media that more alarm than necessary is being made of the Omicron variant before any evidence of its seriousness.
One nurse anonymously told The Eye Of Media.Com: ”it is better to be safe than sorry, but when you get most of the mainstream media outlets making a lot of noise about the Omicron variant, you start to wonder if it is becoming the fashionable thing to use something as serious as a virus for clickbaits.
Yes, virus’s mutate and we don’t know the full effects, but we can’t have leaders of every country seeking a headline spot with wondering journalists, homing in on the same unpleasant topic at every opportunity.
Review Of Restrictions
First Minister Mark Drakeford is due to announce his latest review of coronavirus restrictions on Friday.The health minister said it was not yet known how sick the Omicron variant could make people.
“We don’t know the extent to which vaccines will give us protection but we do think they will give us a lot more than having no vaccine at all. So that’s why our plea today is please help us in this situation.”
Dr Meng Khaw of Public Health Wales said the fifth individual, announced on Tuesday, had recently travelled.
“As we have said previously, an increase in cases of Omicron variant in Wales is to be expected,” she said.
There were two more deaths reported by Public Health Wales on Tuesday, bringing the total to 6,441.On Tuesday the Welsh government announced it would offer all adults a booster vaccine by the end of January, in line with targets announced last week in England and Scotland.
It follows advice to bring forward the gap between second and third doses from six months to three – significantly increasing the number of adults eligible for a third dose.
At Tuesday’s press conference, Ms Morgan there may be a need “to reduce some planned care” in the NHS to run the booster programme “but we’re obviously hoping that we can keep our GP surgeries going as usual”.
Some family doctors had “stepped up and offered support, but we’re not expecting that provision within our community to be reduced at this time”, Ms Morgan added.
Whilst the booster programme may offer increased protection against the Omicron variant, scientists have already stated concerns that this variant may evade vaccines, and even the booster.
Ministers have the challenging task of encouraging the public to increase protection by being vaccinated without seeming to exploit that aim by spreading fear about a variant whose precise nature is yet to be established.
Cheap headline grabbing news by ministers and some publications is not what is needed in times like these.