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A #COVIDー19 thread. Once upon a time I was working on a TV programme called "Demolition Day) for @Channel4 as a producer/director (with @giagia presenting, as it happens). The programme was a factual entertainment show in which competitors had to construct large structures/1
such as a bridge that could carry a car, or a water tower. which would then be tested to destruction. The set was designated a construction site, and as such, normal construction site rules applied; no access without a hard-hat, hi-vis and steel toe-capped boots. One day /2
..for a shot, I had to go up on a cherrypicker (extendable hydraulic platform). This thing went up 30m in the air, and the set was in Norfolk. The flat plains went on as far as the eye could see. I was the highest thing around by at least 20m. But still, I was made to wear my /3
..hard hat. Not a crash helmet - it didn& #39;t even have a chin strap, It would have helped me not one bit if I had fallen 100ft. "But WHY?!" I intoned to the site supervisor (bemoaning the day we& #39;d thought it was a good idea to be an official construction site). "1 word", he said /4
.".compliance". He said "you know it won& #39;t help you if you fall. the site workers know it too, but if you take it off whenever you feel like then all the lines get blurred". So if there& #39;s a rule, EVERYONE sticks to it, or people get hurt. So, what& #39;s this to do with #COVIDー19 ?/5
The catch it, bin it, wash your hands protocol really works in reducing transmission of viral particles. Being close, sharing bathrooms, close-space, sharing foods, coughing or sneezing and touching surfaces recently touched by other people spreads it really effectively. /6
If we think of preventing *between* household, transmission, (rather than *within*) social distancing is a really effective way of cutting down viral transmission, but if you go to the shop, open the milk fridge using the same handle as the person before, /7
or let kids clambour on playground equipment that another kid has just been climbing on, or if you meet your mates for a beer and one of them passes you a drink, or a sandwich, or you touch a door handle, all of that distancing can be instantly negated. So you just have to be /8
super strict about that stuff. Playgrounds are a no, but walking is fine (more than a cough distance apart of course), hiking is OK but picnics are not. (Don& #39;t trace your finger on the "where am I" map in the woods/park because guaranteed someone else very recently has 
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="😬" title="Grimacing face" aria-label="Emoji: Grimacing face">). So /9
Lock-down is a way to make us more compliant with social distancing. If we are compliant with the advice, we can save lives. Stick to your household/family groups for the timebeing. Wash hands a lot, don& #39;t touch your face or stuff others have touched without/10
washing your hands. We can make a difference and it doesn& #39;t have to be that hard. For now - what& #39;s done is done - we can expect cases/deaths to increase for the next 2-3 weeks no matter what we do now. But what happens beyond that is /11
..in our hands literally and metaphorically. We& #39;ve got this, if we do our thing OK. So that wise site supervisor was from @ArupGroup and also, if you don& #39;t take my word for it, do follow @BillHanage who gives good advice and is an actual epidemiologist. This has been a Bottom PSA
I should add to this thread, that my PhD is in infectious diseases from @imperialcollege so although I dont work in lab research anymore I& #39;m not wholly just an an internet rando spouting off https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="😁" title="Grinning face with smiling eyes" aria-label="Emoji: Grinning face with smiling eyes">
