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Why 2021 will be an even bigger year for coronavirus Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

2020 saw the rise of coronavirus but it's not going away anytime soon.

In 2021, cases and deaths will continue to rise around the world and Australia will have to handle more outbreaks.

But 2021 will also bring positives. Vaccines will be given to millions of people, and scientists will discover new things about the virus that's changed the world.

So on today's Coronacast - the last one of the year - Dr Norman Swan gives us his list of things to keep an eye out for next year.

How to avoid a super-spreading coronavirus Christmas Dec 25, 2020

Show notes

If there's one thing we've learnt from coronavirus this year, is that when it appears it happens quickly, by surprise, and is very hard to get back under control.

That's why health experts are worried that the gathering of people across several generations in homes across the country give the virus some very fertile infection conditions.

The home is one of the riskiest environments, and today's Christmas get-togethers present real super-spreading risks.

Which is why Coronacast is here to help explain what you can do to make sure your Christmas is as COVID safe as it can be.

The great big coronavirus balancing act of Christmas 2020 Dec 24, 2020

Show notes

The coronavirus stage in Sydney has been set for Christmas.

Restrictions have been relaxed a little and health authorities are hoping that case numbers won't balloon after families get together for festive celebrations.

It's a massive balancing act allowing people to try and live their life as normally as possible, but also not giving the virus too much of a chance to take off undetected in other parts of the city.

So on today's Coronacast, do we need more Grinch for Greater Sydney, or should the Christmas spirit flow?

Also on today's show:

* In pulling back restrictions slightly, is NSW hoping for a Christmas miracle?

* It's great people from the Northern Beaches got tested, but did too many people get tested too early?

* Turns out the transport nurse is connected to the Northern Beaches cluster and not hotel quarantine. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Four leaks in three weeks - what's going wrong? Dec 23, 2020

Show notes

Yesterday, NSW reported eight new community transmission cases of coronavirus with seven of those cases already linked to the Northern Beaches outbreak.

The one remaining case's source is still under investigation, but what's known is that it was a healthcare worker who transported a symptomatic family of three from the airport on 14th of December.

It's likely the latest leak from the hotel quarantine system, which in the last month has become quite common.

Along with the latest case, there was a cleaner who got COVID while working in a quarantine hotel, a driver who picked it up while transporting aircrew, and the still unknown source who started the Northern Beaches outbreak.

So on today's Coronacast, with four leaks in three weeks, what's going on?

Also on today's show:

* Shout out for NSW contact tracers

* What's going on with the NSW hotel quarantine system?

* Australia exports coronavirus to Singapore

* And more on the new infectious strain in the UK

Are we out of the woods? Or is it the calm before the storm? Dec 22, 2020

Show notes

There was slightly better news yesterday on the Northern Beaches outbreak front when the NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced 15 new cases of COVID.

The majority were from people who live in the Northern Beaches, with only four cases from outside the main outbreak area.

And add a huge number of tests across the state, and you could be forgiven for thinking that it could be looking up.

So is NSW out of the woods? Or was yesterday just one good day before the real trouble starts?

Also on today's show:

* Are people getting testing across Sydney or just in the Northern Beaches?

* Why we're failing NSW health care workers

* Would mandating the use of the Service NSW QR code system be a good idea?

* And what do you make of the "new strain" in the UK?

Has NSW's luck run out? Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

Throughout the pandemic, NSW has mostly managed to keep a lid on outbreaks without imposing hard restrictions like we saw in Victoria and South Australia.

While those states went into various stages of hard lockdown, NSW used a fast, efficient contact tracing system to get on top of things before they got too bad.

But with the growing outbreak on Sydney's Northern Beaches showing little sign of slowing down, has that system met its match?

On today's Coronacast will NSW need harsher restrictions to get on top of things?

What could Sydney's outbreak mean for Christmas? Dec 18, 2020

Show notes

A couple of days ago, a COVID-normal Christmas all over Australia was looking pretty sweet, but the rapidly growing cluster in Sydney's Northern Beaches has thrown it into doubt.

Yesterday, the cluster grew to 17 people. Aged care homes were locked down, long lines of people queued to get tested and other states considered whether to enforce border restrictions again.

So what do we know about the cluster so far? And what does it mean for Christmas?

How worried should we be about the two Sydney mystery cases? Dec 17, 2020

Show notes

Just when you think you've got coronavirus pinned down, it manages to struggle free and throw a few mystery moves in your direction.

Late yesterday, NSW Health sent out an alert revealing two people from Sydney's Northern Beaches had tested positive to COVID-19.

There are currently no known links, which is a worry as it's been more than a month since authorities have been unable to trace the source of an infection in the community.

And if that wasn't enough, a Sydney van driver who was responsible for driving international flight crews to and from the airport had tested positive COVID.

So on today's Coronacast, how worried should we be?

Also on today's show:

* If a vaccine is only 90 per cent effective at stopping disease, but not spread, then how does it differ from having no vaccine?

* How long will it take to have everyone moving freely around again after being vaccinated, for instance if 100 people are vaccinated or 1 million people are vaccinated what's the number?

And we have an announcement about the summer break! Will Coronacast be back in 2021?

Another new strain? Panic stations or same as last time? Dec 16, 2020

Show notes

The British Government says it has detected a new strain of coronavirus that is rapidly increasing in prominence in southern England.

Viruses can and do change all the time in ways that can both help or hinder the strain depending on what the mutation is.

We've heard about new coronavirus variants several times: think back to claims of a new, fast moving, wildly infectious strain in South Australia's Parafield cluster.

So on today's Coronacast, what could be happening in the UK? And is it something to worry about this time around?

Also on today's show:

* What's the latest with the Oxford vaccine? Is it currently up for approval?

* What happens if they vaccinate someone who's already had COVID-19?

Why are we still waiting for travel bubbles? Dec 15, 2020

Show notes

A New Zealand-Australia travel bubble is a step closer after New Zealand's Cabinet agreed in principle to establish a bubble with Australia early next year.

Australia already accepts New Zealand travellers without forcing hotel quarantine.

And despite hotel quarantine outbreaks in South Australia and NSW, Australia has kept community transmission cases very low.

So what could be the hold up in creating a New Zealand Australian travel bubble?

Well on today's Coronacast, we can look to sexually transmitted infections for a possible answer.

Also on today's show:

* mRNA vaccines fiddle with genetics, does that mean it could cause cancer?

* Social distancing has suppressed many viruses, but my son in kindergarten has just had his 10th cold. Are we doing something wrong?

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