So the news of the day, to probably nobody's surprise is that Neil Ferguson, aka "Professor Lockdown" has relieved himself of his role in advising the government over the on-going virus outbreak in the UK.
For those of you following the virus closely, you will know Neil Ferguson to be one of the "pioneers" in epidemiological research , being one of the first scientists to build a mathematical model of the swine flu as well as MERS and Ebola.
In terms of COVID-19, Ferguson used his statistical analysis to predict the number of deaths in the UK if no social distancing was adhered to and the figure was initially 500,000 later revised down to 200,000. Regardless of how right or wrong these predictions were, Ferguson was pivotal in the implementation of stricter social distancing measures as it became clear that "Herd Immunity" was not a desirable strategy.
Here's the irony. Perhaps unsurprisingly, but definitely ironically, despite championing the stricter social distancing measures in attempt to support the idea of flattening the curve, he succumbed to the virus himself soon after and was forced to quarantine himself. But after recovering relatively unscathed, it was revealed that Ms Staats had visited Ferguson(they did not live in the same household), and more than once!
Open marriages/relationships aside, the two times she visited Ferguson, were during heightened calls for adherence to social distancing measures whereby visiting anyone outside of your own household was prohibited.
A couple of things to take away from this.
- While those in charge continue to tout the effectiveness of social distancing. The expected case decline and thus new deaths should have made a significant impact on the statistical trajectory much much earlier. But this was not the case.
- Apparently being in an open relationship grants you the right to break social distancing measures, especially when it's with the top scientist in the field.
- It doesn't matter whether you're a person of interest, working in government, advising the government, wealth, politically connected, social distancing has very obvious caveats attached to it, and that is it can't be sustained for much more than a few months.
Whether there should be any out-lash over this behaviour or any other which breaks the government rules in lockdown, the situation is clear. An exit strategy needs to be formulated, and people need to get back to their lives. Risk tolerances can be determined on an individual level, particularly under new operational guidance on how businesses and work places are to operate.
A couple of links for your reading enjoyment :
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-52553229
https://metro.co.uk/2020/05/05/government-coronavirus-scientist-resigns-meeting-married-lover-lockdown-12659413/