Education minister isolates after positive COVID test

| 17/01/2022 | 116 Comments
Cayman News Service
Education Minister Juliana O’Connor-Connolly

(CNS): Education Minister Juliana O’Connor-Connolly is the latest member of government who has been forced into isolation after testing positive for COVID-19. The minister, who was one of the last MPs to get fully vaccinated, is said to have only mild symptoms of what is likely to be the Omicron variant, which is now the dominant strain in Cayman.

Around 5% of the population is currently positive, as the highly infectious variant runs riot through the community. In a statement from his office, Premier Wayne Panton said that so far O’Connor-Connolly is doing well and the government team wished her a speedy recovery.

“We know from all the research around the world that COVID-19 is not a fair fight for those who are unvaccinated,” Panton said. “We have seen that both the rate of hospitalisations and deaths are driven largely by unvaccinated individuals. Fortunately, Minister O’Connor-Connolly is fully vaccinated.”

Urging the unvaccinated to get their shots as soon as possible and the fully vaccinated to get their boosters, Panton said the government was trying to slow the spread, despite the significant levels of infection.

“The goal of our government is to protect our community, protect our healthcare system and slow the rate of transmission to ensure our schools and our economy can continue,” he said. “In order to do this we must continue to test, report positives, isolate when positive and get vaccinated.”

Panton urged people to take all the necessary safety precautions. But even with a high vaccination rate, reduced social gathering limits, enforced early closing of bars and nightclubs and mandatory mask requirements, the virus does hot yet appear to have peaked and is forcing hundreds of families into lockdown.

The government is now reducing the information it releases to the public about the virus, but according to data published last week, there are at least ten people currently in hospital who are positive for COVID-19.


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Category: Health, Medical Health

Comments (116)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    Now we know why the isolation rules are being changed at least…

  2. Anonymous says:

    So what?

  3. Anonymous says:

    This whole vaccinated/unvaccinated theory is all bull shit if you can still catch the virus-

    We just need to take care of our health ( eat healthy and exercise daily)

    • Anonymous says:

      A2:20:
      For the slow class:
      The vast majority of cases requiring hospitalisation are among those not vaccinated.
      The vast majority of Covid deaths are among those not vaccinated.
      Of those who are infected, global and local evidence says that the vaccinated will have less severe symptoms.
      Your moronic argument is the equivalent of saying that wearing a ballistic vest is bullshit if you can still get shot.

    • Al Catraz says:

      Why wear seatbelts if your car can still crash?

      Are people really this dense?

      Getting vaccinated gives your immune system a head start on fighting the virus if you do become infected, so that you have a lower chance of becoming seriously ill.

    • Anonymous says:

      No it’s not. The vaccine is proven to prevent serious illness and death and pressure on the health system, which it has been proven to do worldwide given every country reports 98 percent plus of ICU patents being unvaxed, and when you end up in hospital it is too late to ask for the vaccine anyway despite widespread reports of that being the first request the unvaccinated hospitalized ask for. The vaccines are proven to work in doing what they were designed to do – that is preventing death. No one ever said vaccines stop you catching it.

  4. Joe says:

    (Reuters) – Travelers to Sweden will no longer be required to show a negative COVID test before entering the country, the government said on Tuesday.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Can she isolate until 2025 election?

  6. Anonymous says:

    I don’t understand the snide remarks from people who are unhappy with this lady’s ministerial track record. Does it suck? Probably, but what has that to do with the fact that she’s ill?

    In fact, I give her kudos for urging others to get their vaccinations. It was brave to say she had been wrong and had changed her point of view. And I’ll be she saved a few lives in the process.

    Be kind.

    • Anonymous says:

      18 @ 10:20 am – you should review “this lady’s” track record since she’s been an MLA/MP. She’s a joke. She had to be convinced, and accompanied, by the Premier to get her vaccine. She’s a religious zealot, disloyal, (always switching sides of the aisle), inept Minister for Education who has been criticized for questionable public expenses relating to travel and paving private properties with public resources….among her “achievements”. “Does it suck?” Yes!

      Swampy type!

      • Anonymous says:

        So she deserves to get sick? Two different issues. Pray you are never in a position where you deserve some support for one thing but instead are harangued because of your bad judgment, inefficiency, whatever, at work, home, wherever. Not one of us is perfect. Campaign next time on behalf of her opponent if you think her track record sucks. Just don’t be a dick because she’s ill. Show some decency, for Pete’s sake.

      • Anonymous says:

        Brackers can trueful say she build plenty good roads on the Bluff, now tell me what the other Brac MP’s did.

    • Anonymous says:

      Hard to be kind To a religious fanatic who was responsible for education but clearly rules over one of the worst education systems in the world. Cayman spend more per child on education than the Uk, USA etc but have a school system nowhere near as good as those countries and rely on expats to run their economic growth as they come out of school failed.

      • Anonymous says:

        i think i calculated it at around 88k per child per year. CIS is around 25k i believe. we all know the answer except those elected fools.

  7. Anonymous says:

    This government can’t tell us it’s screening the public for virus when that’s not happening. There are absurd controls and logistics on the one hand, and equally absurd non-enforcements on the other. If PACT want to scavenge remaining public credibility, they need to roll out population scale LFTing, on a self-reporting basis. If they aren’t trying to find the asymptomatic community positives, then they are not trying to resolve our COVID experience. We are a small enough community that we could get a good handle on this in days….if the CIG wanted to try.

    • Anonymous says:

      But, but that would cause disruption to the business and tourism!

    • JTB says:

      For how long? We can’t keep it out. Why suffer the expense, inconvenience and economic damage of these controls to no purpose? What will they achieve?

    • Anonymous says:

      Can you just stop already. You’ve posted this on like every article. This LFT info is great for a moment in time but unless you think the entire population is going to LFT on a daily basis for 2+ weeks and report results, this absolutely does not work.

  8. Anonymous says:

    “Panton urged people to take all the necessary safety precautions.“

    Precautions? Viruses are like water.

    “Water always finds a way to move from its starting point toward sea level. It doesn’t have consciousness or emotional reactions to changing geography that cause it to stop its adaptive cycle. Instead it continuously releases one form to launch another as it moves toward its true purpose.”

    So are the viruses- always find the weakest person to infect.

    Cayman residents appear to be feeble in mind and body. So many sick, frightened people living in what is advertised as Paradise! Yet, no National Action Plan to Improve people’ Health exists.

    I’d recommend to start with environmental hazards affecting health and obesity. Just remember, to advocate for health one has to demonstrate health.

  9. Anonymous says:

    It will give her time to think on how to waste, sorry, invest the 200 million purse she has just been given.

  10. Anonymous says:

    The government puts the country at increased risk while at the same time telling everyone to do everything to protect themselves.

    • Two rules says:

      If everyone had to provide a negative test before travelling to the Brac this might not have happened. Stop the discrimination. Why only require the unvaccinated to be tested before travelliing to the Brac? If everyone had to do it she might not have gotten it. Hope she is ok and recovers quickly.

  11. Anonymous says:

    CNS, I want to donate anonymously. I am in the US. If I pay with a credit card, my name and address and telephone # are disclosed.

    CNS: You can send money anonymously via PayPal (see here). Otherwise, I’m not sure there’s a way round it, but we really appreciate the thought.

    • Anonymous says:

      BITCOIN

    • Anonymous says:

      The only true anonymous options are: pre-loaded debit card or visa gift card MAILED. ☹️

      GoFund me would work as well

    • Anonymous says:

      I am in the US as well (former cayman resident) and can afford to buy CNS 2 cups of coffee. (I wish I could donate more.) They do deserve recognition for the very hard work, I can’t even imagine how they find time to have life outside of business.
      The guy in the video in the link attached talks about how to donate anonymously, but not anonymously online. PayPal option is not really anonymous. Cayman Postal Service is the Dark hole where everything disappears without a trace.

      CNS: Thank you for your kind thoughts, though. We’re glad you’re still reading CNS.

    • Anonymous says:

      I think there are politicians that will process payments for you, for a fee.

  12. Anonymous says:

    If you follow US news on 5G rollout and possible catastrophic aviation crisis, you probably already switched your focus from COVID to “what I am going to eat if the planes delivering food stop flying.”
    Call me an alarmist, but I would be very afraid of that to happen.

    • lil Bobo in East End says:

      Well there is that invention called ships. We did okay with that in the past…

    • Anonymous says:

      These are the same airlines that for years said cellphones simply being turned on would cause planes to crash. They only want to resell the 5G services in-flight just like wifi today. Only then will 5G be safe. Call me a realist.

    • Anonymous says:

      16 Dec 2021: “Nine killed in Dominican Republic plane crash“

      Did they find out the cause?

      6 Dec, 2021: “Dominican Government announces official launch of 5G service in the Dominican Republic.

      Maybe just a coincidence. They say it is landing that will be affected. The plane that crashed aborted the flight.

    • Anonymous says:

      Quick! Get to Foster’s and buy all the tin foil for our hats!!!

    • Anonymous says:

      “ Airlines late on Monday were considering whether to begin canceling some international flights that are scheduled to arrive in the United States on Wednesday.”

      “ But the issue doesn’t just affect airplanes – they could also have a negative effect on the nation’s helicopters, including lifesaving medevac choppers.

      Under US law, all commercial helicopters must have a working altimeter in order to fly. Without them, officials warn, landing in remote areas or on hospital landing pads will be near impossible.”

    • Anonymous says:

      5G kills Covid.

  13. Anonymous says:

    Perhaps she need education in covid prevention.

  14. Anonymous says:

    In other news:

    Major airline CEOs warn of ‘catastrophic’ aviation crisis when delayed 5G roll out finally begins Wednesday: FAA warns 100,000 passengers could face delays or cancelations and some planes could be grounded PERMANENTLY

    I hope CIG pays attention, being nearly 100% import dependent.

    • Anonymous says:

      cns: time to delete the hysterical/doomsday/conspriracy posts from the usual troll

      CNS: Except this is a real issue – US airline officials warn of ‘catastrophic’ crisis in aviation with new 5G service

    • Anonymous says:

      C-band 3.7-3.98 GHz 5G “might” interfere with some radio altimeter equipment running at adjacent spectrum, at some airports (NOTAM for 50 airports), for some planes (Embraer E170,175, E190/195) relying on IFR ie. at night or in poor weather. Maybe.

      On December 9, 2021, the FAA issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) covering all transport category aircraft:

      “When operating in U.S. airspace, the following operations requiring radio altimeter are prohibited in the presence of 5G C-Band wireless broadband interference as identified by NOTAM (NOTAMs will be issued to state the specific airports where the radio altimeter is unreliable due to the presence of 5G C-Band wireless broadband interference):

      Instrument Landing System (ILS) Instrument Approach Procedures (IAP) SA CAT I, SA CAT II, CAT II, and CAT III
      Required Navigation Performance (RNP) Procedures with Authorization Required (AR), RNP AR IAP
      Automatic Landing operations
      Manual Flight Control Guidance System operations to landing/head-up display (HUD) to touchdown operation
      Use of Enhanced Flight Vision System (EFVS) to touchdown under 14 CFR 91.176(a)”

      http://www.alpa.org/resources/aircraft-operations-radar-altimeter-interference-5G

  15. Bracka says:

    God truly has a sense of humor for his leading Brac false prophet

  16. Anonymous says:

    Why isn’t this woman (and other leaders) looking at Novak in Australia and copying? The 6th greatest tennis player of all time kicked out of Australia for be8mg unvaccinated. Correct. Now in cayman please can we start banning unvaxed from entering our island, entering a store, being in public, having rights? There is no valid excuse to not be boosted and it is the unvaxed that cause these rules. Unvaxed? Then leave please. You are selfish and a disgrace,

    • Anonymous says:

      Because Novak is a hero!

      • Anonymous says:

        Not the hero we want, but what we deserve

        • Anonymous says:

          An individual exercising his god given right to refuse a drug that has many negative side effects and, at this point, dubious value.

          • Anonymous says:

            LOL

            A country deciding which foreign national is allowed across their own border, how absurd?

            And lying on immigration visa? imagine if you did that flying into the states.

            Novak can do as he pleases, but that doesn’t mean he is immune from any law in any country he visits.

            So if your famous, laws don’t apply, You must be a Trump supporter

          • Anonymous says:

            Were you wearing your tin hat when you wrote your drivel, 10:40?
            Here in the Cayman Islands…
            Not the loony world of anti-vax morons:
            With 80% of the population receiving at least one does of approved vaccines, we have virtually no moralities attributable tothe vax. No excess hospitalisations attributable to the vax.
            The vast majority of those hospitalised for Covid or dead are non-vaxed. Put on your tin hat and explain why this is so.
            The takeaway is that only morons say the vax is deadly or has little or no value regarding Covid.
            TIP: Save the tin foil. A stainless steel or aluminum salad bowl is washable and reusable.

    • Anonymous says:

      Effectively that is what is happening with the vaccine mandate for work permit renewals…

      You can’t kick a Caymanian out of their own country lol

    • Anonymous says:

      Imagine the first time in history a professional sports athlete gets his Visa denied and gets kicked out of a sporting tournament because he denied a drug… something very wrong here!!!

    • Anonymous says:

      This is a disgrace to the world what is being done in regards to mandates!

  17. Anonymous says:

    Guess closing the bars and nightclubs early really helped then? Maybe should have tried the churches instead.

    • Anonymous says:

      6.14pm Now they’re banning background music on Sundays. I didn’t know a Jukebox could cause Covid. Most ridiculous thing I ever heard.

  18. Anonymous says:

    “the virus does hot yet appear to have peaked and is forcing hundreds of families into lockdown.”

    Er, no. The virus isn’t forcing anyone into lockdown. The government’s nonsensical rules are doing that.

  19. Anonymous says:

    We have everything we need to end this and get back to 100% productivity through LFT screening. We are losing millions in lost opportunities every day. The preoccupation with waning inoculation status does nothing to weed-out the community asymptomatic positives, and neither do the infrared thermometers of early 2020. There is no widespread testing campaign for those that feel fine, and that’s where COVID thrives. We need be astute enough to note we already have the diagnostic screening tools to finish this scourge tomorrow, and for peanuts! This period of resigned cluelessness has been the hardest to weather by far.

    • Anonymous says:

      I mean, we are losing millions every single day to the Welfare State that is CIG… 500 million a year!

      Half of this country’s revenue goes on paying civil servants.

      Value for money that’s for sure.

  20. Anonymous says:

    Is she the one that gave teachers a raise after standardized testing showed the teachers had failed at teaching?

    • Believe it or not says:

      She is the one who set the all time expenses record for a Government jolly to a Postal Union conference half way round the world with shopping stopovers in New York.

    • Anonymous says:

      I guess she wasn’t wearing a mask.

  21. Anonymous says:

    Seems like the jabs did her good. Not.

    CNS:
    Try to comprehend, if she has only mild symptoms and is not in hospital, then the vaccine is working. In the US and UK and EU, it’s the unvaccinated that are taking up the most hospital beds. See These Charts Show That COVID-19 is Still the Pandemic of the Unvaccinated

    • Anonymous says:

      There are plenty of reasons. Main being the vaccine doesn’t do anything anymore. Israel just released a study saying that 3rd and even 4th shot barely provides any protection.

      https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/israel-study-4th-vaccine-shows-limited-results-omicron-82312196

      Faith in the vaccine at this point just shows ignorance or cult level gullibility.

      • Anonymous says:

        Lack of faith shows hospitalization and death. Your choice and you wear it. I’ll wear mine. Moving on……

      • Anonymous says:

        @10:12:
        Hey BoBo, last time I checked I and my family live in the Cayman Islands, NOT Israel. We could not give a tinker’s damn about Israel’s experience. What is relevant to us is what is happening here where we live.
        Stat here, you know, in the Cayman Islands where I live, say that the vast majority of those hospitalised for Covid and who have serous symptoms are non-vaxed. The dead are among the non-vaxed. Put on your tin hat and explain that. I will not be holding my breath waiting for you or any of your fellow tin hat morons to give us a credible explanation.

    • Anonymous says:

      Don’t be disingenuous CNS. Millions of people who were unvaccinated got covid in 2020 and had only minor sniffles too. In fact it was somewhere around 98%.

      Get some balance in your responses. And yes I am double vaxed and boosted.

      • Anonymous says:

        Correct.

        At least 15 people (18-84)in my family living in the US got COVID in June 2020. All recovered without consequences, including morbidly obese 40yo man who did not do anything to treat COVID. His full recovery took a year though, but he never stopped working. 84 an 60 years olds- mother and daughter, did receive treatments-mother in the hospital-mostly oxygen support, and daughter at home-some medication. All fully recovered.

        Other family members living in Europe got sick in November 2021-they traveled extensively in 2020 and 2021 and always tested negative. They tested positive and did get really sick in Nov. 2021, especially 61 yo previously healthy woman- she was very sick for 3 weeks, used vitamin D+zinc+ protocol…She had no pneumonia, but required 2 weeks of antibiotics injections and hydration IV which really helped her. Her husband, 68, had less severe symptoms, recovered faster but his D-Dimer was elevated and thrombocytes were low-he was given an appropriate medication. All treatments were done at home. Fully recovered.

  22. Anonymous says:

    Who cares?

  23. Anonymous says:

    The Education ministry will likely be more productive if this fair weather politician can’t come into the office. Hopefully she fully recovers.

  24. Anonymous says:

    Ok. Speedy recovery.

  25. Anonymous says:

    Mustn’t have washed her feet good.

  26. Anonymous says:

    she has been isolating out of office since she was elected so no change here

  27. Anonymous says:

    What do you expect? She hosted a foolish bush cutters gathering in Cayman Brac a week ago. Maybe her god did not hear her prayers.

    • Anonymous says:

      Yep and pictures on Facebook showed one man with no mask on at all and many others with masks beneath noses plus people in church not wearing masks.

  28. Anonymous says:

    I am not getting a booster. What is the purpose? To prevent death? To boost profits? We were pressured to get the so called vaccine, been there done that. Now a ‘booster’ and how many boosters thereafter? The CDC and such like can’t make up their minds on what is good and what is bad over and over and over again this is politicized, but if you disagree with the governments narrative, it is called misinformation. Tired of all the BS. The vaccinations have done nothing to prevent spread and neither has the government. Before the vaxaholics start posting statistics remember that we only have one side. Statistics less importance now even the CMO agrees with that. After the worlds biggest clinical trial of an experimental vaccine (yes I know it is now fully approved). Why is the FDA saying it will take 75 years to fully release the data. Why does no one question this?

    • Anonymous says:

      Just in case you didn’t know you need to get the two vaccination shots first….From your rant it certainly appears that the only thing you have taken is a little bit of conspiracy theorist kool aid.

    • Anonymous says:

      Nonprofit Demands Transparency of Pfizer/BioNTech Vaccine Data in Court

      “A Freedom of Information Request was filed seeking that data, but the FDA stated that it could take up to 55 years to process and release that information. That would be until the year 2076 when many of the people who made, approved, and received the vaccine would long be dead, the complainants argued.”

      Nothing to see here at all, right?

      • Anonymous says:

        That’s BS and conspiracy twist on the facts. The courts revealed that given the amount of data and info, and other requests for normal medical data, the entity responsible for processing FOI requests would basically take years – 55 was used. They literally have millions of requets every year for data. And the con. theorists’ requests overwhelmed the system for FOI. The decision was made to process specific requests while they look for a better way forward. However, conspiracy theorist, like yourself obviously, spun that to say that it would take 55 years. Talk about out of context, spin, half-truths, lies and BS. You either are too thick to understand what you read or again read only a conspiracy theorists version. Stay from the youtube underground sites. Likely a Donald Trump supporter. Next you will be asking me if I am a blue or red pill!

      • Anonymous says:

        @8:13:
        What do we see here in the Cayman Islands? Here we have an excellent easily observed clinical cohort who have been vaxed and Covid cases.
        This is what there is to see here:
        The vast majority of serious cases/hospitalisations/deaths are among the non-vaxed. No serious illness confirmed to have been caused by the vax.
        I hardly think we need others to tell us what is going on. We can plainly see in our own population, in the here and now, and do not have to wait for Big Pharma or the CDC or FDA to cough up data.
        The takeaway from our experience: The approved vaccines are safe and reliable.

  29. Anonymous says:

    Now we will see some quarantine changes.

  30. Anonymous says:

    She legalized the herb yet?

  31. Anonymous says:

    Surely time to just end all restrictions. The whole point of any restrictions is to prevent the vaccinated from getting ill and filling the hospital. If yo are boosted then omicron means no illness or symptoms, so why have isolation?

  32. Anonymous says:

    In other news:

    • America is lurching from pandemic to major recession
    • scale of devastation caused on volcano and tsunami-hit Tonga as death toll on cut-off island remains unknown with communications still down
    • Florida is hit by FOUR tornadoes on Sunday morning with speeds of up to 118mph that have left hundreds homeless

    • Anonymous says:

      Who cares about Florida? By the way, Trump is now after DeSantis calling him an ingrate because he plans to run against Trump..Can’t make this $hit up..

      • Anonymous says:

        DeSantis is not planning to run for the US President. We need him in Florida.

        Biden or whoever pulls his strings should clear the mess they created first

  33. Anonymous says:

    Unintelligent,dubious person.
    So many electioneering events in her past.
    Should we talk about them or does Jesus give her free reign?

  34. Anonymous says:

    Isolation is now at 5 days for vaccinated persons, testing positive for the virus.
    Luckily, Minister O’Connor-Connolly is only burdened with mild symptoms & is “doing well.” However, with the number of persons currently in quarantine across the Islands, “the virus does not yet appear to have peaked and is forcing hundreds of families 👪 into lockdown.”
    Oh, joy…[sarcasm]

  35. Anonymous says:

    Get well soon Ms Julie. Prayers

  36. Anonymous says:

    How can she have Covid19 if she is “fully Vaccinated”? What is the reason for the “vaccine” if it doesn’t protect you from contracting this disease? Why did I take the 3 shots, go through all these side effects and wear my mask everywhere if I can still contract it? Someone please give me legitimate answers other than the same “If you are fully vaccinated, your symptoms are far less severe”? It all seems like BS now to me!

    • Anonymous says:

      Clearly an idiot and not bothered ever reading about the vaccine.

      • Anonymous says:

        Clearly the OP was educated under juju.

      • Anonymous says:

        Well maybe he wants peace on his mind and spends his time on the beach?

        If he is an idiot so are the 80% of those who got the jabs.

        Reading everything doesn’t make one more intelligent these days. Quite the opposite.

        We were smarter when we were reading real published paper books.

    • Anonymous says:

      @2:38:
      For the slow class wearing the tin hats:
      Here in the Cayman Islands, the stats clearly point to the fact that the vast majority of hospitalised Covid cases are among the non-vaxed.
      The takeaway is that the approved vaccines work as intended in preventing serious morbidity. If you or your fellow tin hatters have another rational, legitimate explanation, please do share it with us. So far nobody has come forth with an alternative explanation.
      It would help you to seem less clueless if you were to be aware that NO vaccine for any illness is 100% effective in preventing infection. If that is your expectation, your expectation fails when exposed to the light of science and facts. Thus your silly argument fails. Sadly, it seems the only things that your cult’s tin hats prevent from getting inside your heads is rational thought.

  37. Anonymous says:

    And that’s the only positive that she’s going to get on any report.

  38. Anonymous says:

    I wish her a speedy recovery. Is she going to line up on the street in South Sound for her mandatory PCR? Will she be prosecuted if she does not?

    • Anonymous says:

      No. She’ll likely have a private-home visit from a public health nurse to administer her PCR Testing. After all, it’s imperative that she avoid crowds & exhaustingly long queues for her safety & well- being.
      Hope she’s well rested & keeping hydrated. I heard the those COVID-19, Flu-like symptoms be throwing some serious punches.

    • Anonymous says:

      South sound is not only place to have PCR test.

  39. Anonymous says:

    Make it 5 days isolation now! Ridiculous that positive boosted people with no symptoms who are no threat to the hospitals have to isolate for ten days. The Day 10 inbound traveller test is stupid as well as clearly if positive on day 10 it’s never linked to travel.

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