I haven’t really had too much to say on the subject so far. Other than the over hyped media coverage and misinformation that is being circulated it’s been more of a minor irritation and annoyance than anything else. As has been well publicised, there has been panic buying of certain products, mainly sanitising products and toilet paper (who knows why) and some other long life food products but no major inconveniences.
As the current situation evolves, the measures that are being put in place are unprecendented, I thought this would be a good time to start documenting exactly what is happening and the effect its having on everyday life.
Up until today, things had been carrying on as normal with no changes other than people being a bit more particular about their personal hygene. In the IT industry we’ve seen plenty of people looking at their remote working options and ensuring they have the facility and enough capacity to allow their employees to work remotely. That includes the company I work for, who went as far as to arrange a load test of our remote capabilities.
Yesterday, we received further guidance regarding remote working. All of our technical teams have been split in to two groups. Only one of the two teams will be on site at any one time, hopefully limiting the exposure of staff and ensuring there are sufficient employees available to maintain the services we provide to our customers.
I find the guidelines being given by the government quite confusing at the moment. We’re being told to social distance, but they are refusing to close the schools. It seems odd to me, while the children seem to be less susceptible to the virus, they are still able to transmit it to other people. What’s the point in the adult population isolating themselves if we’re going to send children in to a building with three hundred plus other children who may or may not be infected and then have them return home to possibly infect adults who are trying to self isolate?
I’m pretty sure the schools will be closed soon and hopefully this will have a massive effect on the rate of spread of the virus.
Meanwhile, I’m heading in to my first week of working remotely. It’s not a massive deal for me as I’ve been working at home for a couple of days a week for the past couple of years so I’m fully organised and have everyhing I need. Unfortunately for me, this does mean I will continue to work while everyone else gets a nice paid break.
Interesting times ahead I think. Please try and follow the guidlines issued by the government, even if they’re confusing at times. They’re not only for your benefit, but for the benfit of everyone around you.
For more information, check the links below.
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
- https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/public-health-england
Stay safe, and use your time wisely.