Gold Coast Doctor Predicted Sydney Outbreak

 

CREDIT: couriermail.com.au

An infectious diseases doctor urged politicians to take advantage of the COVID-free status earlier in the year and now has seen his darkest prediction come true.

Dr. John Gerrard from Queensland's Gold Coast University Hospital, revealed in May he had "no doubt" COVID-19 would "explode across the nation."

"I have no doubt that sometime in the next 12 months, this hospital will be used for the purpose for which it's designed."

"I think we'll have small outbreaks, and they'll get bigger and eventually, we'll lose control, and it will spread."

"That's happened in the past, it happened, for example, in 2009 with the H1N1 pandemic. And at some point, we will lose control."

"Once we get above a certain critical number the virus will spread, and we won't be able to contain it."

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and NSW Chief Health Officer Dr. Kerry Chant won't admit loss of control, but NSW records around 200 cases daily.

NSW is also caring for around 250 COVID-19 patients in hospital, 53 in intensive care, 20 requiring ventilation.

Back in May, Dr. Gerrard urged the government to take control of the zero community cases.

"We are in this lucky position, this fortunate position, at the moment, that we have this lull, and this gives us an opportunity to vaccinate the vulnerable, and to protect them for when the virus arrives."

"We didn't expect we would have this extraordinary opportunity to vaccinate the population whilst we waited for the vaccination to arrive."

"It's an extraordinary gift, and let's hope we don't waste it."

Gladys Berejiklian wants to see six million vaccinations completed by the end of August, when the lockdown is supposed to be lifted.

"In particular we know that people value their freedom, their desire to go back to work, their desire to engage in community life and those are the type of incentives that we'll be looking at over the next little while to provide our citizens with the opportunities to know that if they're vaccinated and their loved ones are vaccinated, there will be opportunities for greater freedom moving forward."

"Obviously we're considering all the options. We believe, based on experience overseas and elsewhere, that allowing people additional movement or activity if they've been vaccinated we think is a great incentive and that will be linked to our plan for what life looks like on 29 August."