Day 8
Tuesday, March 10th
0730hrs Good Morning world….If self-Isolation is not enough, I am awoken by our house alarm going off….and the electric in the house has stopped working!…Good job I was in…as if we were both out at work we would have come back to a house with no electricity and a load of food that would have to be eaten that day, donated to the neighbours or discarded…in the compost bin of course…Just received an email from my Fitbit account to tell me how many steps I have done over the last week… So…weekly stats….25th Feb – 1st March…66,645 steps… 2nd-8th March 8499 steps..hmm…best get back to my Kettlebells and squat jumps…This self-isolation has really taken its toll in terms of my fitness…I am also feeling a bit short…temper wise….like a caged animal I guess… I have become addicted to the #SelfIsolation WhatsApp group….constantly checking my phone for updates and twitter to see if anyone has responded to my query about sick notes from yesterday…
PING…I get a text from one of my colleagues….informing me that the inpatient definition of “possible cases” of coronavirus has changed from before.. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/wuhan-novel-coronavirus-initial-investigation-of-possible-cases/investigation-and-initial-clinical-management-of-possible-cases-of-wuhan-novel-coronavirus-wn-cov-infection Therefore as of March 10th,
2.1 Patients who meet the following criteria, regardless of epidemiological links
• requiring admission to hospital
and
• have either clinical or radiological evidence of pneumonia
or
• acute respiratory distress syndrome
or
• influenza-like illness
This is now very different from the 28th February when we managed our patient who did require admission to hospital, and they had radiological evidence of pneumonia…meaning that they would have been managed as if they were possibly positive for COVID….now if we would have only known this then…then we would not have had to go through what we are experiencing currently…But then such is the nature of this condition that I personally feel that no one really knows the extent of what is going on….I do wonder that if it was not for Dr Li Wenliang, the ophthalmologist at Wuhan Central Hospital, we would have not been the wiser until much later on…which could have resulted in further mortalities than currently….To be fair we still do not know the true extent of what is going on in China….what I can say is that I have never seen the kind of impact globally…and this includes the SARS outbreak of 2003 https://www.who.int/ith/diseases/sars/en/ or the Ebola outbreak between 2014-2016 https://www.who.int/health-topics/ebola/#tab=tab_1. As reported by the BBC, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-51364382, Dr Li, 34, tried to send a message to fellow medics about the outbreak at the end of December 2019. Three days later the police paid him a visit and told him to stop. He returned to work and caught the virus from a patient. He had been in hospital for at least three weeks, but unfortunately died on 6th February 2020. Dr Li was working at the centre of the outbreak in December when he noticed seven cases of a virus that he thought looked like Sars – the virus that led to a global epidemic in 2003. The cases were thought to come from the Huanan Seafood market in Wuhan and the patients were in quarantine in his hospital. On 30 December he sent a message to fellow doctors in a chat group warning them about the outbreak and advising they wear protective clothing to avoid infection. What Dr Li didn’t know then was that the disease that had been discovered was an entirely new coronavirus. Four days later he was summoned to the Public Security Bureau where he was told to sign a letter. In the letter, he was accused of “making false comments” that had “severely disturbed the social order”. “We solemnly warn you: If you keep being stubborn, with such impertinence, and continue this illegal activity, you will be brought to justice – is that understood?” Underneath in Dr Li’s handwriting is written: “Yes, I do.” He was one of eight people who police said were being investigated for “spreading rumours”. By the way, I love the fact that we in the Groupchat are happy to disseminate peer-reviewed information. It is interesting that I haven’t received this information from PHE. This confirms how important our WhatsApp group is. I feel really reassured that there are people looking out for me.
At the end of January, Dr Li published a copy of the letter on Weibo and explained what had happened. In the meantime, local authorities seemed to have relented on their accusatory take on this, and subsequently apologised to him but that apology came too late. During January officials in Wuhan were insisting that only those who came into contact with infected animals could catch the virus. No guidance was issued to protect doctors. However, a week after his visit from the police, Dr Li was treating a woman with glaucoma. He didn’t know that she had been infected with the new coronavirus. In his Weibo post he described how on 10 January he started coughing, the next day he had a fever and two days later he was in hospital. His parents also fell ill and were taken to hospital. It wasn’t until January 20th that China declared the outbreak an emergency…that was 10 days later….to put that into context…that’s roughly the amount of time it has taken for Italy to go from a position of “working as usual” to complete lockdown. Dr Li says he was tested several times for coronavirus, all of them came back negative. On 30 January he posted again: “Today nucleic acid testing came back with a positive result, the dust has settled, finally diagnosed.”
I remember at the time, experts were saying that this would not be an issue like SARS as China is now doing everything to keep things contained…clearly, this has not been the case…So when it comes to me considering the rapid change in advice and definition of COVID-19, I reflect on the natural history of what has happened in recent months and what governments have done to try and manage the situation….We in the UK are still in the first phase…. “Containment”. …Meanwhile….
PING!! One of the #SelfIsolated Groupchat team has had a call from her son’s school. One of the mums is apparently upset. Her son’s best friend has been told he’s at risk and they’re not sure what to do. This I presume is on the background of them being self-isolated…note that they do not currently have any symptoms…therefore as per government guidance (on 10th March), her family members “do not need to self-isolate and have no restrictions on any of their activities” https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-guidance-for-healthcare-providers-with-staff-who-have-travelled-to-china/guidance-for-healthcare-providers-healthcare-workers-who-have-travelled-to-china However, this does not seem to have got through to organisations such as schools. What was really upsetting for this individual was that the parent of the said child told her that if their child gets it, then the child might die! I can only imagine what must be going through my WhatsApp group friend…A few of us in the group provide supportive messages reiterating what the guidance is from PHE and the gov.uk site…There now appears to be mass panic in the school…I suggest that the school needs to take control of this like any organisation…My wife, who is a practice nurse has just told me that at her surgery, there were some mutterings in the background about how Ann should not be at work and she should be sent home. Her very supportive manager dealt with the situation in a rapid and efficient manner…explaining to everyone that Ann had sent her an email on the night I found out that I was being asked to self isolate….111 were contacted and as per the gov.uk website, Ann could continue without restrictions as I was not experiencing any symptoms…In the case presented in the group, I felt that the school should send out an urgent email or letter to every parent explaining the situation with links to recommended sites. I asked my sister-in-law, who is a deputy head of a school as to what they are doing. She responded by saying that their school has “sent a letter telling parents what we’re doing in school and reiterating what they can do to keep themselves safe. There is a lot of misinformation and odd theories around”….Correct!! There is a lot of misinformation around like the Facebook account I mentioned earlier. I put up a “your one-stop resource” published by the Critical Care Group from Northampton. Their site reads, “COVID-19 – Your one-stop resource! Debunk some of the hysteria and take a look at what these guys have put together on all you need to know. All will be continuously updated….” https://criticalcarenorthampton.com/2020/03/08/covid-19-your-one-stop-resource/ maybe this would mitigate the internet trawling and misinformation swirling around. My WhatsApp colleague has said that they will write an email to school….oh…update on said child?…111 have said its ok for my colleague’s child to be in school as they do not have any symptoms……Her son comes home later today to say that school are going to send in an email to all the parents later…at last the powers at be, at the school seeing some sense.
This hysteria seems to be affecting people everywhere…The BBC twitter page has reported how a woman’s cough on a train in Sydney sparks a row https://twitter.com/bbcworld/status/1237347969466281984?s=12.
Considering this issue, the BBC has today published an article asking, “Coronavirus: What’s the risk of flying or taking the train?” It discusses how some governments have restricted travel while, elsewhere, e.g. Italy, individual travellers have been taking their own precautions https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51736185.
Considering, it’s not yet known exactly how coronavirus spreads, we have to assume the spread compared to similar virus…which are caught from either breathing in droplets from an infected person’s coughs or sneezes, or touching surfaces with them on. There is some evidence that coronavirus does not survive in the air the same way flu does as per the gov.uk guidance, people would need to be in close contact to contract the virus. The NHS guidance on coronavirus defines “close contact” as being within 2 metres of an infected person for more than 15 minutes. This means that on trains, the underground, and busses there is a potential risk of infection, especially if it is heavily crowded during the rush hour
The BBC go on to discuss the research conducted by Dr Lara Gosce, at the Institute of Global Health, (published in 2018) which showed people who used the Underground regularly were more likely to suffer flu-like symptoms. She was quoted as saying, “Particularly, it shows that boroughs served by fewer lines – where inhabitants are forced to change line one or more times when travelling on the Underground – have higher rates of influenza-like diseases, compared to well-served boroughs where passengers reach their destination by one direct trip.” Dr Gosce says that “limiting the number of close contacts with potentially infected individuals and objects is important”…”and…In terms of travel, avoid peak hours if possible,” suggesting, where viable, passengers should choose routes involving only one means of transport.
It also appears that the length of time spent on a vehicle, if they are ventilated also plays a role and how often the transport is cleaned will be factors as well. The BBC has reported that Network Rail says it is continuing with its “business as usual” cleaning schedule but is making plans for extra, specialist cleans of stations and trains if necessary.
Currently, the UK government is not telling people to avoid public transport. David Nabarro, a special adviser on coronavirus for the World Health Organization (WHO), told the BBC that although public transport was an important thing to look at, the evidence suggested that the kind of “fleeting contacts” people have when travelling together didn’t so far seem to be the “most important source of transmission”.
When considering flight, it’s a common belief that you are more likely to become ill on an aeroplane, because you’re breathing ‘stale’ air. In fact, the air on a plane may well be better quality than in the average office (and almost certainly better than a train or a bus). There are more people per square foot on a busy plane, which can increase the risk, but the air is also being changed at a faster rate.
The BBC spoke to Professor Quingyan Chen at Purdue University, who studies air quality in different passenger vehicles, estimates that the air on a plane is completely replaced every 2-3 minutes, compared with every 10-12 minutes in an air-conditioned building. That’s because while you are on a plane, the air you breathe is being cleaned by something called a high-efficiency particulate air filter (Hepa). This system can capture smaller particles than ordinary air-conditioning systems, including viruses. The filter sucks in fresh air from outside and mixes it with the air already in the cabin, meaning that at any one-time half the air is fresh and half is not. Many ordinary air-conditioning systems merely re-circulate the same air to save energy.
As well as breathing in droplets from someone coughing or sneezing, infections like coronavirus can be transmitted through touching contaminated surfaces with infectious droplets on them – whether that’s a person’s hand or a door handle. Research has shown that samples from surfaces within an aircraft showed that there’s nothing notable in the plane samples compared with tests they had done in buildings and other types of transport. However, it’s difficult to generalise about the risks on any form of transport because there are various factors that increase or decrease the risk. For example, on a long-haul flight, passengers might move around more and, should they have the virus, risk spreading it further.
The WHO guidance is that the highest risk area is the two rows in front, behind or next to an infected person. But during the 2003 Sars outbreak, on a plane carrying one infected person, 45% of those who caught the disease were sitting outside the two-row zone. The usual advice applies – wash your hands, clean surfaces where possible and sneeze and cough into a tissue.
The main concern about air travel is how it can transport potentially infectious people from one part of the world to another. Currently, the UK government is not advising against taking planes – only travel to specific affected areas, like Italy and Hubei Province in China.
Cruise ships have become the focus of attention after passengers on the Diamond Princess in Japan were quarantined in February. A second cruise ship, the Grand Princess, was held off the coast of California while tests for coronavirus were carried out on dozens of its 3,500 passengers. Cruise ships contain lots of people mixing in a confined space for relatively long periods of time compared with a flight. Professor Chen (as reported by the BBC) says it’s “standard practice for the air-conditioning systems of cruise ships to mix outside air with inside air to save energy.”….and “The problem is that these systems can’t filter out particles smaller than 5,000 nanometres.” The 2003 outbreak of SARS involved particles of 120 nanometres in diameter so they would have been able to travel throughout a ship via the air-conditioning system. Professor Chen believes cruise ships can reduce this problem by using outside air and not re-circulating it.
The WhatsApp group are naturally concerned about training…rules are that if you have had greater than 20 days off within a 12 month period, for whatever reasons then (when the doctor would normally be at work), this will trigger a review of whether the doctor needs to have an extra period of training. We wonder if it will be of benefit to us to do accredited CPD and uploading certificates to prove we have been keeping up to date with our education….I wonder if the diary I am writing counts…We are now becoming very experienced in the world of COVID.
PING…1201hrs…I am now annoyed…one of the group informs us that someone has texted to say “how it must be good to basically have two weeks off”…This suggests that the individual concerned has absolutely no idea as to what is going on…This has been a challenging period…but then you have already read about my feelings on this…One of the colleagues on the group chat suggests we should send in an article that one of the WhatsApp Group members has written on behalf of all of us to be potentially published in the ICM trainee’s newsletter, ‘Trainee Eye’. I will not spoil it for them and so will not expand on it here…but essentially this has all been covered within the log of this diary
I read the draft this morning and it’s excellent. It summarises the experience we have had over the last seven days really well. They have also put in some recommended top tips for anyone self-isolating, which include,
- Create messaging groups with other self-isolators
- Exercise regularly
- Plan your deliveries so that you have a variety of food, drink and activities
I have suggested that we should add an extra few bits. These are as follows
• Should we mention something about the rapidly changing definition on who should self-isolate…from everyone to people who spent >15 min with patient and was within 1m of them…This was like waiting for your ticket to be called for x,y,z
• (With tongue in cheek I suppose….and in the top tips section) get that manuscript, admin and portfolio stuff done that has been waiting for ages…or even work your way through the piles of journals that need reading
• Another Top tip….When people send you packages, please ask if they can kindly not send it as “tracked”, or “recorded”…(unless they deliver to next door…who can then drop on your doorstep)….and if caring relatives send games, please consider the number of players that game requires
• In top tips…Try out that hobby you were thinking of doing…you have two weeks to make a good start…or write those letters that have been waiting for ages…get on top of all the bills and household chores
• Top Tip…Consider your own well-being and mental health (I thought this might be important) I also wondered if we could expand on the support from family in terms of mental health etc…(how they have supported us…an example maybe?)…and how we have impacted on them, It is frustrating and tempers can become short when stuck in a room…maybe something about the challenging logistics?…I can see you have covered this..I hope I have explained myself
• Maybe add in something about the excellent support the consultants and fellow colleagues have been? and how they have always been available to listen to us and manage any issues
There clearly needs to be a narrative from the people who are self-isolating. I have put comments on twitter…However, I am not very popular so do not get much interest…..From a mental health perspective, I guess I am seeking a lot of solace from writing all this down with reflections. I am truly grateful for the camaraderie from within the group and the support from the people at work…and the PHE from their regular texting…however…its not a person…and there is no feedback…Every day over the last three days, I have received the following text,
“Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) – Public Health England: If you have a fever, cough or shortness of breath, please reply “YES”. If you do not have any of these symptoms, please reply “NO”.”
I reply “NO” as I am Ok…but there is not actually any feedback or response to say the PHE have accepted this information and what we should be doing….I presume that the PHE is very busy dealing with 1000’s of these… so me on my own…in my self-isolated exclusion am just a very small piece of a ginormous jigsaw.
Anyhow it is now nearly 1300hrs…I have been on my computer all morning! Where has that time gone?? …Time for an update from around the world me thinks….
Dr Jenny Harries, England’s deputy chief medical officer has defended the decision to delay closing schools and introduce other strict measures to combat coronavirus https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51812326 She told BBC Breakfast new measures could follow as UK cases begin to rise rapidly over the next two weeks. In the UK, five people with the virus have died, and that the vast majority of those diagnosed with coronavirus in Britain are “pretty well” but that they may “feel a bit rough for a few days”. She has advised (as per PHE recommendation) that people with flu-like symptoms will be advised to self-isolate within 10 to 14 days and, at the same time, significant increases in the number of cases are likely to begin.
Dr Harries confirmed that cancelling big outdoor events like football matches would not necessarily be a decision supported by science. She stated, “The virus will not survive very long outside,” she said. “Many outdoor events, particularly, are relatively safe.”
Meanwhile, in the world of sport, matches in Spain’s top two divisions will be played behind closed doors for at least the next two weeks because of coronavirus concerns. Whilst as mentioned yesterday, Paris St-Germain’s Champions League match against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday will also be closed to fans. All sport in Italy has been suspended until at least 3 April because of coronavirus. The ruling includes Serie A matches but not Italian clubs or national teams participating in international competitions https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/51815623. The Cheltenham Festival is still going ahead…this probably based on the advice by the chief medical officer and the government… https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/horse-racing/51744313
The BBC has published a chronological timeline of how the virus has impacted sporting events around the world https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/51605235 Cancellations and postponements seemed to have begun on 22nd January. This was two days after China had declared an outbreak. The Fed cup was next to be rescheduled from 26th January to March, and so on like a snowball….For those who are interested, see below (Source https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/51605235). I note the events that were rescheduled from January to March have not been played so my feeling is that they may be cancelled. As a Liverpool fan, there are many reds who are worried that the Premier League will get cancelled this season…which will not be good news considering that this season will be the first title Liverpool will have won for 30 years. Although considering the lead Liverpool have…and if results go our way, Liverpool could win this without kicking a ball before 16th March when Liverpool play Everton…of all teams. Imagine parading the Premier League trophy at Goodison?
Coronavirus: How the virus has impacted sporting events around the world as of today
Today 10 March 2020:
FOOTBALL: Manchester United’s Europa League last-16 first leg at Austrian side LASK on 12 March to be played behind closed doors.
FOOTBALL: The Republic of Ireland’s Euro 2020 play-off against Slovakia on 26 March will be played behind closed doors.
FOOTBALL: Matches in Spain’s top two divisions to be played behind closed doors for at least the next two weeks.
FOOTBALL: Barcelona’s Champions League game against Napoli on 18 March will be played behind closed doors at the Nou Camp.
FOOTBALL: Borussia Monchengladbach’s Bundesliga game against Cologne on Wednesday to be played behind closed doors.
FOOTBALL: Poland’s top-flight the Ekstraklasa to be played behind closed doors until further notice.
FOOTBALL: Japan’s J League is suspended until at least 3 April having initially postponed matches until 18 March.
ROWING: Two World Rowing Cups, the European Olympic and Paralympic Qualification Regatta and the final Paralympic Qualification Regatta, all due to be held in Italy between 10 April-May 10, have been cancelled.
TABLE TENNIS: International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) says April’s ITTF World Tour Japan Open is postponed. It hopes to hold the event later in 2020.
9 March:
FOOTBALL: Olympiakos v Wolves and Sevilla v Roma in the Europa League, scheduled to be played on 12 March, will take place behind closed doors.
SPORT: All sport at all levels in Italy is to be suspended until at least 3 April, the country’s prime minister has announced.
RUGBY UNION: The Six Nations match between France and Ireland, scheduled for 14 March, is postponed – Italy v England, initially set for the same day, was postponed four days earlier.
RUGBY UNION: The Women’s Six Nations fixture between Wales and Scotland is postponed after a Scottish player tests positive for the virus.
TENNIS: Indian Wells, a combined ATP and WTA event which is one of the most prestigious tournaments outside of the Grand Slams, is cancelled two days before the main draw matches were due to start.
FOOTBALL: The Romanian Football Federation announces that all league matches will be played behind closed doors until further notice and ticket sales for the 2021 European Under-21 Championship qualifier between Romania and Denmark on 31 March are suspended.
BASEBALL: Japanese officials postpone the start of the professional baseball league season, scheduled for 20 March.
FOOTBALL: The Asian qualifiers for the Qatar World Cup in 2022, due to be played on 23-31 March and 1-9 June, are postponed.
FOOTBALL: Paris St-Germain’s Champions League last-16 match against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday will be played behind closed doors.
CYCLING: Organisers of the Paris-Nice race said the event will now be ‘behind closed doors’.
SPORT: The government says there is ‘no rationale’ for cancelling sport events in the UK .
WINTER SPORT: The Italian Winters Sports Federation has suspended all sporting activity across its disciplines, including skiing, snowboarding and biathlon due to the coronavirus outbreak.
SNOOKER: The attendance in the arena for the Gibraltar Open, which starts on 11 March, will be limited to 100 people as a precautionary measure.
JUDO: The International Judo Federation said that all World Judo Tour events were cancelled until the end of April.
BOXING: Francesco Patera vs Devis Boschiero, due to take place on 27 March in Verona, Italy, for the vacant interim WBA World Lightweight Title was postponed.
8 March
FORMULA 1: The Bahrain Grand Prix from 20-22 March will be held behind closed doors.
FOOTBALL: Uefa has banned pre-match handshakes between players and officials in all its competitions until further notice.
FOOTBALL: All Bulgarian league matches over next two rounds will be played behind closed doors and all sporting events in the Pleven and Gabrovo regions of the country will be postponed.
SPORT: The Greek government announces that that all professional sports events for the next two weeks will be played without spectators.
7 March
ATHLETICS: The Barcelona Marathon, which was scheduled for 15 March, has been postponed until 25 October.
ICE HOCKEY: The 2020 IIHF Women’s World Championship, due to be held in Canada between 31 March and 10 April, is cancelled.
6 March
ATHLETICS: The World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland, which were to be held on 29 March, are postponed until 17 October.
FORMULA E: The Rome E-Prix, scheduled for 4 April, is postponed.
CYCLING: One-day classic Milan-San Remo, scheduled for 21 March, is postponed.
GOLF: The European Tour’s Kenya Open, due to take place between 12-15 March, is postponed.
SKIING: The Alpine Skiing World Cup finals scheduled for 18-22 March in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, is cancelled.
GYMNASTICS: The Gymnastics World Cup event in Doha, Qatar, between 18-21 March will be held behind closed doors.
SPORT: Governing bodies and broadcasters called to a government meeting on 9 March to discuss the staging of events behind closed doors if outbreak worsens and mass gatherings are banned.
RUGBY UNION: Scotland Women’s Six Nations match with France is postponed after a home player contracts coronavirus.
SPORT: Saudi Arabia suspends public attendance at all sports events starting on 7 March.
FOOTBALL: Paris St-Germain’s league fixture at Strasbourg is postponed.
5 March
FOOTBALL: The Premier League bans pre-match handshakes to help prevent the spread of the virus.
ATHLETICS: The Rome Marathon, due to take place on 29 March is postponed with all entries moved to 2021 while the Paris Marathon, due to take place on 5 April is rescheduled for 18 October.
FOOTBALL: Valencia’s Champions League last-16 tie at home to Atalanta on 10 March will be played behind closed doors in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus.
CYCLING: Italy’s Strade Bianche event, due to take place on 7 March, is postponed.
RUGBY UNION: England’s men’s, women’s and under 20s Six Nations games against Italy across the weekend of 14/15 March are postponed.
CYCLING: Several teams withdraw from all races until the end of March.
FOOTBALL: The Morocco Football Federation orders all matches in the country to be played behind closed doors until further notice, to try and combat the spread of the coronavirus.
GOLF: The Mena Tour postpones the rest of this season’s tournaments until September. On the Asian Tour, the Royal’s Cup, scheduled for 12-15 March in Thailand, is postponed indefinitely.
DISABILITY SPORT: The International Paralympic Committee announces a review of qualifying for this summer’s Paralympics due to cancellation of events, but the Games will go ahead “as planned”.
TAEKWONDO: The European Olympic and Paralympic taekwondo qualification event – scheduled to take place between 17-19 March – is to be moved from Milan to Moscow.
4 March
CYCLING: Team Ineos withdraws from all races until 23 March because of the death of sporting director Nicolas Portal and the “very uncertain” coronavirus situation.
ALL SPORT: All Italian sport, including England’s men’s and women’s Six Nations matches in Rome and all Serie A games, will be played behind closed doors until 3 April.
OLYMPICS: International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach says there was no talk of “cancellation” or “postponement” regarding Tokyo 2020 at an executive board meeting.
FOOTBALL: Italy’s sports minister says Serie A games may be played behind closed doors in an effort to contain coronavirus.
CYCLING: UAE Tour riders and staff from Cofidis, Groupama-FDJ and Gazprom are to be held in quarantine until 14 March, as Mitchelton-Scott withdraws from European races in March.
BASKETBALL: Inaugural Basketball Africa League due to start on 13 March in Dakar, Senegal has been postponed.
RUGBY UNION: Asia Sevens Invitational 2020 tournament, a test event for the Tokyo Olympics scheduled to take place from 25-26 April, is cancelled.
BADMINTON: Asia Championships, scheduled for April 21-26, are moved to the Philippines from China.
3 March
JUDO: The International Judo Federation has announced the cancellation of the Rabat Grand Prix in Morocco, which was due to take place from 6-8 March.
FOOTBALL: Italian Cup semi-final second leg between Juventus and AC Milan in Turin on Wednesday postponed.
TENNIS: The ATP has cancelled or postponed six tournaments on the second-tier Challenger Tour. The events in Anning, China on 20 April and Samarkand, Uzbekistan on 11 May have been cancelled. Three tournaments in South Korea – Seoul, Busan and Gwangju – have been put back to August and another in Spanish capital Madrid rescheduled for October.
DISABILITY SPORT: The World Shooting Para Sport World Cup, which was set to take place in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates from 11-22 March, is cancelled.
MOTORSPORT: The second World Superbikes race of the season in Qatar, which was due to take place from 13-15 March, is postponed.
SPORT CLIMBING: Olympic test event from 6-7 March in Tokyo to be held without athletes. Organisers said Tokyo 2020 staff would take the place of athletes to “test operational readiness”.
DISABILITY SPORT: Japan Para Wheelchair Rugby Championships, a test event for the Paralympics scheduled for 12-15 March, is cancelled.
TENNIS: WTA event the Kunming Open, scheduled for 27 April-3 May in the Chinese city of Anning, is cancelled.
2 March
FOOTBALL: The Swiss Football League is suspended until 23 March following a meeting between all 20 clubs.
FOOTBALL: International Champions Cup matches due to take place in Asia this summer are cancelled.
CRICKET: Ireland women’s cricket tour to Thailand for a four-team tournament was cancelled.
MOTORSPORT: The season’s second MotoGP, set for Thailand on 22 March, is cancelled “in the best interests of the nation and participants”. The season opening race had already been cancelled.
1 March
MOTORSPORT: The opening MotoGP of the season in Qatar on 8 March is cancelled as a result of travel restrictions imposed on passengers from Italy because of coronavirus.
FOOTBALL: The Serie A match between Sampdoria’s and Hellas Verona, scheduled for 2 March, is also postponed because of the outbreak in Italy.
29 February
FOOTBALL: Five Serie A matches, including Juventus’ game at home to Inter Milan, that were due to be played on the weekend of 29 February and 1 March were postponed following the outbreak of the virus in Italy.
TRIATHLON: The opening event in the World Triathlon Series in Abu Dhabi, which was due to take place from 5-7 March, was postponed as a “precautionary measure” after a number of new cases were reported in the city. Organisers say they hope to reschedule the event later in March or April.
28 February
FOOTBALL: The weekend’s matches in Switzerland’s top two divisions were postponed, and the World Anti-Doping Agency cancelled next month’s annual symposium in the Swiss city of Lausanne.
WRESTLING: The Asian Olympic Games qualifying, due to take place from 27-29 March in Kyrgyzstan was cancelled, due to government advice to prevent the spread of the virus.
27 February
CYCLING: UAE Tour cancelled after two “staff members” at the event tested positive for coronavirus
SKIING: The annual Engadin ski marathon in Switzerland, one of the world’s largest cross-country skiing events with around 14,000 participants, due to take place on 8 March, is cancelled.
26 February
RUGBY UNION: Ireland v Italy’s Six Nations game in Italy on 7 March postponed.
SKATING: World Short Track Speed Skating Championships, due to take place in Seoul, South Korea from 13-15 March, cancelled.
25 February
RUGBY UNION: Six Nations officials says they are “monitoring” the situation in Italy, where England are due to play on 14 March.
TABLE TENNIS: World Table Tennis Championships in South Korea, due to be held from 22-29 March, are postponed until June.
FOOTBALL: Japan’s J-League postpones all domestic games until the middle of March.
FOOTBALL: Five matches in the next round of fixtures in Italy’s Serie A are ordered to be played behind closed doors.
OLYMPICS: International Olympic Committee member Dick Pound says preparations for the Tokyo Games in July are “business as usual”.
FORMULA 1: Ferrari restricts access to its factory in northern Italy for those that are “resident in or have visited the affected municipalities”.
HORSE RACING: An industry steering group will look at potential implications but there is currently no threat to next month’s Cheltenham Festival.
24 February
RUGBY UNION: Ospreys and Ulster’s Pro14 trips to play in Italy on 29 February were postponed. Ospreys were due to play Zebre in Parma with Treviso the venue for Ulster’s game against Benetton. The Italian Rugby Federation also suspended its National Championship and youth games for the weekend of 28 February to 1 March.
The start of the K-League season was postponed, with the four teams in the AFC Champions League playing their matches behind closed doors.
23 February
FOOTBALL: Selected Serie A matches in the northern Italian regions of Lombardy and Veneto were postponed. Several matches in Serie B and Serie D, as well as a number of amateur and youth games, were also called off.
RUGBY UNION: Scotland Women’s Six Nations match with Italy postponed.
21 February
FOOTBALL: China’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers at home to Maldives and away to Guam moved to Thailand and will be played behind closed doors in March.
FOOTBALL: Daegu FC and Pohang Steelers home fixtures in South Korea’s K-League were postponed.
TABLE TENNIS: The first-stage draw for the Table Tennis World Championships, scheduled to take place in South Korea from 22 to 29 Match, was postponed. Organisers are going to take World Health Organisation advice before deciding whether to postpone the event entirely.
20 February
TENNIS: The women’s Xi’an Open, which was scheduled for 13 to 19 April, was cancelled. The WTA said it was monitoring the situation with several events scheduled to take place in China in the second half of the season.
18 February
TENNIS: China forfeited a Davis Cup tie because its men’s team were unable to travel to Romania for their play-off at the start of March.
BEACH VOLLEYBALL: A beach volleyball tournament, due to be held from 22 to 26 April in Yangzhou, was postponed until after the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
MMA: Organisers of the Asian mixed martial arts One Championship said the event, scheduled for February 29 in Singapore, will take place behind closed doors.
17 February
WEIGHTLIFTING: The Asian weightlifting championships, scheduled for March, were relocated from Kazakhstan to neighbouring Uzbekistan.
15 February
GYMNASTICS: The Chinese team pulled out of the Gymnastics World Cup in Melbourne.
14 February
GOLF: The European Tour’s Maybank Championship and Volvo China Open, both scheduled for April, were postponed.
BASKETBALL: Fiba Asia Cup basketball qualifying matches between Japan and China, Philippines and Thailand and China and Malaysia were all postponed.
13 February
RUGBY SEVENS: The Singapore and Hong Kong legs of the World Rugby Sevens Series were postponed from April until October.
12 February
GOLF: The PGA Tour Series-China postponed two qualifying tournaments and delayed the start of its 2020 campaign by two months, cutting the number of regular season tournaments from 14 to 10
FORMULA ONE: The Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, set for April 19, was postponed by the governing body FIA and Formula One. Authorities will weigh potential alternative dates later this year if the situation improves.
11 February
FOOTBALL: The Asian Football Confederation said preliminary stage matches of the East Zone of the AFC Cup were postponed until April due to travel curbs in several countries.
9 February
GOLF: The Honda LPGA Thailand event in Pattaya, Thailand scheduled for 20 to 23 February and the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore, scheduled to start on February 27, were both postponed.
8 February
GOLF: The Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific golf championship, due take place from 12 to 15 February in Thailand, was postponed and rescheduled for October.
7 February
HOCKEY: Hockey Pro League matches between China and Australia, scheduled for 14 to 25 March in Changzhou, were postponed.
FOOTBALL: Vietnam said it would not allow sports events to be hosted in February, meaning home AFC Cup group stage matches for Ho Chi Minh City and Than Quang Ninh were switched to away fixtures.
4 February
FOOTBALL: Asian Champions League matches involving Chinese clubs Guangzhou Evergrande, Shanghai Shenhua and Shanghai SIPG were postponed until April.
2 February
MOTORSPORT: The all-electric Formula E motor racing series abandoned plans for a race in Sanya on 21 March.
1 February
BADMINTON: The China Masters tournament in Hainan, scheduled to start on February 25, was postponed after several players withdrew. The Badminton World Federation said it hoped the flagship Badminton Asia Championships could still go ahead in Wuhan in April.
31 January
GOLF: The elite women’s LPGA golf tour cancelled the Blue Bay tournament due to be held on Hainan Island in March.
SNOOKER: The lucrative China Open in Beijing, which was due to take place from 30 March to 5 April, finishing 13 days before the World Championship starts at the Crucible, was postponed.
30 January
FOOTBALL: The Chinese Football Association said domestic games at all levels would be postponed.
29 January
FOOTBALL: The home leg of the Chinese women’s national team’s Olympic qualification play-off against South Korea in March was switched in Sydney. The squad were held in quarantine upon their arrival in Australia for January’s qualifying group stage.
ATHLETICS: The World Athletics Indoor Championships, scheduled for Nanjing from 13 to 15 March, were postponed until next year.
27 January
BASKETBALL: The Women’s Olympic qualifying tournament, scheduled for Foshan from 6-9 February, was relocated to Belgrade, Serbia by world governing body Fiba.
26 January
TENNIS: The International Tennis Federation moved the Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Group I event featuring China, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Korea and Uzbekistan out of Dongguan to Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) in Kazakhstan. The event was then moved again to Dubai and rescheduled for the start of March after Kazakhstan declined to serve as substitute hosts.
22 January
BOXING: The International Olympic Committee cancels Olympic boxing qualifiers due to take place in Wuhan. They will now take place in Amman from 3 to 11 March
FOOTBALL: Olympic women’s qualifiers moved from Wuhan to Nanjing, before later being switched to Sydney.
1400hrs…Meanwhile, #sicknotegate….not heard much today about this…a WhatsApp group colleague has just sent an email to the Lead Employer explaining what the BMA rep said…(See yesterday’s entry)….
Ok ….Lunchtime now….I did have breakfast…honest…My hands are tired now typing all this…back later…. Although before I go….I have just seen that sadly a sixth person has died n the UK after testing positive for coronavirus https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-sixth-person-dies-in-uk-after-testing-positive-for-infection-11954511. The patient, who died in the evening of Monday, March 9, was in his early 80s and had underlying health conditions. Thoughts are with them and their family. Although I think publications need to refrain from saying, “old with underlying health conditions though”.. I do not think it is very reassuring for older people with underlying health conditions…although I guess they are reporting what has been released from the particular hospital…There is a risk of lumping a group of people altogether, i.e. older people. Last week, a rumour was that people over the age of 70 would be banned from football grounds…however, this was not to be the case. Whilst on this subject, the question is if someone, of a certain age, has no support nor do they have a digital connection, what do they do? We are talking about some of the most vulnerable people. The question is what to do if you are over 70 with multiple co-morbidities? Having trawled the internet and listening to commentaries on the radio, it is about following national guidance and taking precautions.
The BBC is covering a Live coverage of the Health and Social Care Committee’s hearing with the chief medical officer for England and Wales Professor Chris Whitty on preparations for a possible coronavirus global pandemic. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000ghsb/select-committees-live-coronavirus-committee. Lots of stuff on the epidemiology of coronavirus and reiteration of what has already been discussed over the last few days….
In the world of twitter, https://twitter.com/NewTimesRwanda/status/1237048775526547456. To prevent the risk of Coronavirus outbreak, passengers at the Kigali Bus Park have to wash their hands before getting onto buses. Rwanda has recorded no case of the epidemic but the country has stepped up vigilance.
1700…My wife tells me that she has just been to Tesco, unbelievable! Almost no chopped tomatoes left or pasta!…Maybe there is a cure I have no idea about?….Meanwhile my colleague on the WhatsApp group chat has received an email from Public Health to say that they are liaising with the hospital we work at to re-visit the risk assessment around staff and associated exclusion recommendations/type of monitoring….Is this because the current guidelines have the risk of leaving the ward with no staff?…I will be interested to see where we go from here
1800Hrs, the number of coronavirus cases in the UK has now reached 373, a rise of 54 from Monday’s figure. Meanwhile, at least 631 people have now died from the coronavirus in Italy – an increase of 168 in a single day, as the number of confirmed cases in the country exceeds 10,000 https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-fatalities-in-italy-rise-to-631-with-10000-cases-now-confirmed-11954715.
Despite this, there are still flights operating between the UK and Italy. I have to say, This, is absolutely astonishing/irresponsible!!
Examples,
Blogna-STN London RYR4XL
London LGW – Florance VLG56RH
PISA – London LTN EZY14UK
ROME – London LGW VLG387D
1830hrs Coronavirus: Serie A season may not be concluded says Italian football federation. The federation statement confirmed that Serie A would stop until 3 April following a government decree issued on Monday.
PING….I have just been informed by my son who is based in Cyprus that he cannot come back to the UK as those flying from the UK to Cypris will have to have an enforced 14-day quarantine. This means he cannot come back for the Liverpool legends game on March 28th at Anfield…but then at this rate that might get cancelled too.
Anyhow…time to watch the Leipzig v Spurs game, dinner (salmon) and home-made apple crumble! (Thanks Ann)…I’ve just realised I’ve been practically on my laptop all-day….Although I am self-isolating…I have definitely been busy!…maybe going to work will be a respite from the computer screen.….Not a good result for Tottenham…lost 3-0..Last year’s finalists (European Champions League) are out. Liverpool v Athletico tomorrow
Just about to go to bed…..
PING..2230hrs…message comes in…apparently the Health Minister, Nadine Dorries has tested positive for Coronavirus https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-infected-minster-nadine-dorries-had-been-in-no-10-c3sjs5kmp. She held a constituency meeting for 50 people and then started to feel unwell..She used to be a nurse and apparently recognised the symptoms last Thursday so felt she should self isolate…The question is whether other members of parliament might become infected?..including the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson…His partner is pregnant as well. I am sure there will be many meetings about this and who should take responsibility if the PM….Just watching Newsnight and an Intensive Care Doctor in Milan has advised that the government in the UK should take control especially after what has happened in Italy…Containment may not be enough…An Italian minister has come on and talked about the effect on the economy. He suggests that monitoring in the UK must be strict and avoid gatherings, eg. Cheltenham… but it is up to the UK government….I think of Dr Harries (deputy chief medical officer)…who commented that it does not last very long in the air….therefore gatherings are ok…but people will be in close proximity…look what happened in Korea and Italy?
The discussion swiftly moves to how we are going to take care of our elderly…and how social care and primary care will manage the increased costs when managing this….All this discussion is great…the budget is tomorrow..I wonder if there will be any last-minute changes
Football shirt of the day? (from twitterverse #Groupchatee)..Poland Home shirt, 2008…Oh to surprise us all, he even dons a hat to represent the start of the Cheltenham Festival…which I have to say I am surprised is going ahead…
Anyhow…Goodnight!
@LeDyslexicMedic Blog 