Prof Philip Nolan

Professor Nolan is an immunologist at the NUI Maynooth and the Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group

The IRISH TIMES: Prof Philip Nolan: A small sacrifice now could save many lives

THE JOURNAL: Covid-19: Booster campaign should focus on over-70s, says Nphet's Professor Philip Nolan

RTE: Covid-19 Ireland: Nphet's Professor Philip Nolan on key factors behind rising cases

EXTRACT

These are not the headlines I wanted to be part of almost two years since this pandemic started. I had hoped that this Christmas would be the Christmas we all got back to normal; that we would be able to meet up with our families and friends without fear or worry. But here we are again, facing into another Christmas with Covid-19 restrictions.

I know that this is not what anyone wants to hear, but we need to be realistic about the situation we are in. The Omicron variant is now the dominant strain of Covid-19 in Ireland, and it is much more transmissible than previous variants. This means that the number of cases is likely to continue to rise in the coming weeks. As a country, we need to do everything we can to slow the spread of the virus and protect our health service.

The good news is that the vaccines are still effective against the Omicron variant, especially in preventing serious illness and death. Approximately 92% of the population over the age of 12 are now fully vaccinated, and 3.3 million people have received a booster dose. This is a great achievement, and it has helped to protect many lives.

Whilst I am immensely proud of the Irish people and how we have responded to the pandemic so far, we cannot afford to be complacent. We need to continue to follow the public health advice and to get vaccinated and boosted. We also need to be mindful of the risks when we are socialising, and to take precautions to protect ourselves and others.

I know that this is a difficult time for everyone, but we need to remember that we are all in this together. By working together, we can get through this and protect our health service and our loved ones.

PLEASE, PLEASE GET VACCINATED AND BOOSTED. IT IS THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS.