COVID-19: Sensationalising the Bledin' Obvious.

It seems the pandemic has entered silly season news-wise.

First we have have Panorama on the BBC sensationalising the fact that Nitrile gloves are counted as a single piece of PPE for some reason. When that's how everyone counts them.

You buy a box of 100 single gloves, you don't buy pairs. So you buy 1000 gloves, that's 1000 pieces of PPE right there.

The BBC are unable to understand that not all jobs within the NHS or care that involves using a glove requires a pair of gloves. There are some jobs that can be done quite safely with a single glove.

But hey, that's the BBC. They employ thick people that have never lived a life as reporters who suddenly think that the government is somehow misrepresenting the numbers by not counting gloves as "pairs". Give me strength.

The BBC also over the last few days paraded a long list of Labour activists within the NHS as "experts" without any hint of their political affiliation. Had the report been on something neutral, that would be fair enough. But when the BBC and the "activist" doctor or nurse is scoring a political point, we should bloody well know the extent of the person's political affiliations.

Especially when they stretch to Union leaders, party political campaigners or Labour candidates.

Hardly impartial.

Today the Metro picked up the ONS figures for the 17th of April and made a big deal of the amount of deaths outside of hospital. It's not like we weren't expecting it. Those of us close to the care community already have knowledge of the numbers of deaths, especially in care homes up North.

Hardly sensational.

Even if you weren't involved in caring and you had listened to the news, you'd know that a great deal more people in the community have been infected with COVID-19 than official figures estimate. Something like 10 or 20 times the official amount. So the death rate outside hospital is no surprise to those of us that are well-informed.

To keep well informed on COVID-19, I can recommend no better source than Dr John Campbell's YouTube channel. He is factual, accurate and never, ever sensational. Heed his words.

Even the fluctuations in numbers caused by the weekend seems to be a source of "News" apparently.

The fact is that the figures for the first three days of the week are inflated by the weekend figures being delayed  and added to the weekday totals. Nothing sensational. The figures are delayed because not all NHS workers work a 7-day week shift pattern. The admins and analysts work weekdays only. So much for the 7-day NHS.

You just have to remember that to get the true trend of infection rates and death tolls, you have to use Thursday and Friday's numbers. They are the most accurate "instant" reporting numbers.

Anyway, I look forward to the BBC's next Expose. Apparently they are doing a future episode on care. I have a feeling it won't be such a love-fest as those involved in it think it will be. I have an idea that it will be yet another excuse to clobber the government. Or the care companies and charities.

There will be a sensational agenda. Again.