Over 5,200 people still in official COVID isolation
(CNS): The latest figures from the Public Health Department revealed that, as of Tuesday 25 January, a huge number of people were in lockdown after testing positive for COVID-19. As adults and children returned to work and school after the National Heroes holiday weekend, 5,220 people were still in isolation as a result of a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 positive test, even after government cut quarantine times to alleviate staff shortages in the business community and public services.
Premier Wayne Panton said at last week’s press briefing that the measures government was taking to curtail the spread of the virus were working. However, the reality is that Cayman does not appear to have reached a peak in transmission, given that there were an additional 444 positive tests on Tuesday, including another 13 on the Sister Islands, exceeding last week’s daily average of 391 cases.
This continuing spike in cases has fuelled an increase in people who have become seriously ill as a result of being infected, and 21 people are currently admitted to hospital.
According to the second situation report released by Public Health Wednesday, community transmission led to more than 19% of the population being infected during the course of last week. Between 16 and 22 January, there were 2,739 new confirmed cases, while 6,578 people were positive in total over that seven-day period.
This included 4,553 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant of the virus, which represents around a third of the 13,788 cases recorded here as of 22 of January, though that figure has now exceeded 14,000. Meanwhile, officials say that, although it is no longer the dominant strain, the Delta variant, which causes more severe disease, is increasing again.
Although Public Health officials are citing the increase in testing as a reason for the spike, the reality is that more than one-third of all tests are positive, reflecting a very high level of community transmission.
Hospital admissions due to COVID are also increasing and 29 patients tested positive for the virus last week. Several of them were people without symptoms who were admitted for other reasons and were tested as part of the routine screening. Four people were admitted to intensive care last week, one of whom was placed on a ventilator. Over 70% of those admitted were unvaccinated.
Vaccines remain the most effective way of protecting the community from severe illness and over 83% of the population has had at least one dose, which is the main reason why hospitalisations remain relatively low. However, there are concerns that with vaccine protection waning after several months and natural immunity even less sustainable, people need to get their second dose or get boosted if they were fully vaccinated more than three months ago.
Officials said that there is increasing evidence that boosters increase protection by 89% against severe disease. As a result, preparations are being made for a booster campaign to increase local coverage.
See the latest COVID weekly report in full in the CNS Library.
CIG COVID-19 information and resources
Report positive lateral flow test results
See current vaccine and testing schedule
An Isolation Support Line is available to help by delivering groceries or other essential supplies for people required to isolate suddenly, and who do not have other resources and support.
For Isolation Support call 946-3530 or 1-800-534-3530 or email isolationsupport@gov.ky
Operational hours 9am-4pm, Monday to Friday, and 9am-1pm on Saturday.
For mental health support, the Mental Health Helpline can be reached on
1-800-534-6463(MIND) from Monday to Friday, 9am-5pmIf you have flu symptoms contact the 24-hour Flu Hotline at 1-800-534-8600 or 947-3077
or email flu@hsa.kyIf you are having difficulty breathing, call 911
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Category: Health, Medical Health
The cure for this deadly scary virus is to stay at home for a week.
Just think about that for a second. What a load of BS
Detecting early and isolating hopefully reduces the R0 from 15 to just 1. Deliberately infecting others once you know or suspect you are positive, is psychopathic.
Take it easy with insults
No one is deliberately infecting anyone. Unless one is in a small room full of people, sneezing, coughing and talking much, chances are he isn’t infecting anyone especially if his viral load is barely detectable.
https://www.vox.com/22894978/covid-19-vaccine-lives-saved-deaths-avoided-omicron-chart
Are there really so many extra nurses on island that they can spend their days PCR testing everyone who already knows they have Covid from a positive LFT?
Please stop and turn these testing hours into a free clinic for the elderly and for people who need actual medical attention. The clinic is open. The nurses are there. Why not???
Anyone know why the quarantine requirements were changed for 11 and under but we can’t get kids vaccinated here? US is 17 years and under with a negative test.
Money
PACT policy is backed by an absentee crime fighting unit unable or unwilling to write the laughably small tickets for quarantine breaches. This regime is reducing the threat of fines to nearly zero. People can literally fly between islands without a PCR and/or boat and land illegally without one, between islands, and face only a $250 ticket, if there is an official there to notice, take issue, and write you that ticket. These are Panton’s “control measures”.
http://gazettes.gov.ky/portal/pls/portal/docs/1/13140607.PDF
Ok, chief. The reason no one is enforcing the laws is thet they’re for show only. If you think writing nonsensical tickets for standing closer than six feet from someone else will any measureable effect on the spread of covid I have news for you.
Get with the program. The plan, as everywhere else is to let this run its course. This isn’t Ebola. If you’re vaccinated, the chances of dying from a covid infection are like 1 in 100,000
I think 99% of sensible people dont want to be faced with a fine for going about their daily lives. Then there’s people like you, the Paul Blart of covid, making citizens arrests for “violations”. Have fun with that.
PACT policy = pandemic! We lost our way Cayman. Still NO tourists and who would want to come here with our lackadaisical approach to Covid? No teeth, no plan, just pandemonium and pandemic.
Why are only 60% prisoners vaccintated? where did they get any “right” to infect others? Why did the HSA allow 20% of staff (yes Hospital STAFF) to remain unvaccinated?? and please Mr. Premier, tell us how many Govt workers are still unvaccinated?
I’m soooo angry the schools did not enforce a LFT test to return after xmas break. My teenager caught Covid from one of those selfish families that refused to test or be safe and has missed two weeks of high school now and was very-very sick (but vaccinated thank goodness)
This is NO JOKE people………. How MANY need to die in Cayman before we wake up and be safe?
It is simple: WASH your hands- No, “really wash them” with SOAP and hot-hot water. I am so sick of seeing people just whisk there hands under a tap and return to Half-wearing a flimsy cloth mask???
Thanks. you selfish people got my child sick- and it WAS avoidable. I also have to keep my elderly mother safe with her high risk heart condition, but do YOU care when you cough on me at the supermarket? I really wish you did. Please THINK about others instead of your selfish self. Damn… Bring back Dr. Lee.
“This included 4,553 confirmed cases of the Omicron variant of the virus, which represents around a third of the 13,788 cases recorded here as of 22 of January, though that figure has now exceeded 14,000. Meanwhile, officials say that, although it is no longer the dominant strain, the Delta variant, which causes more severe disease, is increasing again.”
How is it possible by PCR or LFT to differentiate between what “variant” we have?
What is the process in determining exactly what variant we have?
Mr. Smellie must be a very busy man? Please forgive me for being skeptical. I want the truth as much as you do, but this is stretching the boundaries of my comprehension.
The LFT doesn’t tell you that info. Have you been in a FB cave?
Please leave the science to those educated in the matter because you clearly aren’t capable of understanding.
Some proportion of the positive PCR samples, of that moment in time, go out for more exhaustive sequncing, and that process takes 4-5 days in Cayman. It is not possible right now to complete the sequencing for every positive sample. Public Health base their proliferation assumptions on that data, prefacing that it looks back almost a week. If individuals want to know what flavour they have, they can send their own samples off island for further testing at their cost – but you’re supposed to stay in quarantine, so not sure how that would happen without a door side visit from a very loyal GP.
LFT cannot tell. Genomic sequencing tells you the variant, for sure but it’s been admitted only a sample here are sent for confirmation. The PCR tests however can tell if it’s Omicron or Delta by the presence of 2 or 3 genes (2=Omicron & 2=Delta).
Sorry 3=Delta
There is a warning from Chinese scientists about a new Covid variant called ‘NeoCov’ that has high mortality rate. People, it is time to start to take these things seriously and to stop being controlled by people who are unwilling to put people first.
CNS: The Indian Express – No, we are not faced with a killer ‘NeoCov’ virus now; here’s why
OMG, get off of Facebook! Start living in the real world.
Going into third year, have you not been vaxxed, wore a mask, distanced, went into lockdown, isolation, joined alphabet supermarket queues – start?
@CNS – regarding ‘Cayman has not reached its peak for infected numbers..’ Would you be able to establish what number does government considers a peak for this population?
It implies that they are comfortable with the community spread until it hits that target.
Kicking the ball away is not the answer…. learn to live with it or stay inside.
Gone 4 days and no word on exit PCR results. Must have lost it so now will have to go to DH to get it done.
We, people in the Sister Islands, want to know how many cases we have in CAYMAN BRAC, and how many in LITTLE CAYMAN.
HSA, SABRINA, any chance of getting that done.
We know you have numbers for each Island, please publish them, don’t just lump us together,why are you doing this?
Switch to monitored LFT testing for exiting quarantine!
Exactly. Travellers can do an online LFT certification, why can’t (honest self-reporting positive) Cayman residents do the same? Less work for an already- stretched Public Health, and less exposure risks, PCR, technician, and lab costs.
At least it’s calmed the traffic situation. 12 mins from Lower Valley to GT at 720am – quality!!
I can’t stress enough how poorly managed the PCR exit testing is. Unfortunately, there are not enough resources dedicated to exit testing as it takes 1-3 days to receive PCR results and if you leave isolation after 7-10 + days without your exit PCR, you will be prosecuted…
Just consider the above for a second, let it sink in…
With approximately 10% of the population locked away, you’d think HSA, Sabrina Turner and the Government would dedicate more resources to the exit PCR if indeed Government would like to continue with a policy which holds covid positive people hostage.
Talk about the economy, hahaha, I’m sure 10% of the population unable to exit because of delayed PCR results really helps boost an economy…
Ditch the unnecessary PCR testing. Exit after 10 days. Full stop. Government needs to be guided by the science (which they claim to be doing, but in fact are making up their own science).
The idea that PACT can be guided by the science is laughable. Many of them struggle to even read.
Agree with downgrading exit PCR to a LFT. But, at 10 days some hosts are still in the thick of it, unfortunately. The LFT has excellent reliability to tell for sure if you’re done. Not that it matters that much when the whole island is on fire with reckless self-absorbed transmission…
I do not believe those (10%) of the population who should be isolating are really doing it!!! There is no way to verify any of that, and I seriously do not believe it is happening – hence the rapid community spread. Cayman just doesn’t give a sh.t.
On a more logical thought, the spread will take care of those that chose to be unvaccinated and boosted. The quicker, the better.
Wishing death on your neighbour proves you don’t give a sh.t.
Only the ones I have to try to explain how stupid they are for being anti-VAX.
You are a horrible person
I am the horrible person? But yet you could just get vaccinated instead of letting the virus mutate in your body to make it harder for this to end….
News Flash! Vaxxed can catch and spread COVID also, causing mutations. Please don’t respond with “It’s less likely if you’re vaxxed” take a look around and tell me if you still think breakthrough cases are rare. With the majority of the population vaxxed, lots of positive cases are in vaxxed individuals. Can you prove me wrong?
The sentiment that “it’s only those people who will die” should not bring you comfort.
Putting aside the vacuum of humanity it takes to believe that and to declare it aloud, the societal acceptance of a class who deserves death means that everyone in that society is in danger.
Public Health has now authorized CTMH to do exit PCR testing.
not exit tho
This is how CIG expects the return of tourism to operate under. The Re-opening stage 4 is going good.
Stop the exit PCR testing.
If 6,578 people were covid positive during the last reported seven day period, all of their household members have now been exposed to Covid. If the average household has 4 people, that’s 26,312 people or over 1/3 of the island with Covid in their own home! Who is the exit PCR testing helping? It just doesn’t add up.
Nobody is isolating. Reality is setting in and nobody will adhere to the protocols as they change daily. This is a joke, and everyone is acting like clowns.
Of course, the household members could be included in the 6578, so your extrapolation doesn’t really work. But I would love public health to explain why if they have 6578 new cases, and the minimum quarantine period is a week, there are only 5220 people in isolation. We are not even taking about thos ethat test positive and don’t report to public health – we are talking about the cases it knows are positive and should be in isolation. Don’t they compare one list to the other?
For whom are we testing?
Not reporting.
Only a simpleton would.
#FREEDUMB
Being honest, avoiding prosecution, and getting a certified positive, for easier international travel are all smart choices by smart people. Being rewarded with sub-par exit PCR processing is the only part of this that is inconvenient.
Prosecution? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA
How many of those in quarantine are children who are required to be tested as part of a school’s testing regime?
If testing is so important, why are mostly children required to test? Why aren’t the elderly and vulnerable made to test twice a week? Throughout the pandemic all regulations have fallen most heavily on the children. Either require testing of everyone or no one. Which MPs are representing the children?
(Just asking for 5,200 friends and the parent currently homeschooling them.)
🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌
Yeah, how about they test the construction sites and other industry that don’t benefit from flaunting the rules.
Children and families bearing the brunt to support the economy.
We all know with rising interest rates the construction industry is set to be put on @life support@
Everyone planning to venture out into public spaces should be LFTing every morning with their cereal as a public courtesy. The daily economic, headline, and productivity costs of level 4 avoid travel cautions is many times the cost of free community LFT testing. Public health should have FREE 5 minute LFT testing tents all over the islands, if they are to be taken seriously with their self-congratulatory boasts of “control measures”.
We pay the fees so no one cares that we’re stuck doing our normal day-to-day job as well as the school work.
19%? That would be over 12k people…
For an island who was inviting everyone with little money to move in. What have just happened?
Covid was in the island long ago. Just greed and lies.
Life is not about money alone.
Serious question: what actions are the CIG taking to curtail community transmission? Evidently there is no political will for police ticketing, no 6 feet of distancing, and no wider community LFT campaign, so what is he referring to?!? Does anyone know?
That is so 2020.
The 6 feet was made up BS. Complete nonsense
We are in Season 3 and maybe you should watch the recap. Covid is spread as an aerosol through normal respiration, singing, talking, smoking etc. Even with masks, there can be leakage around the face, which is why 6 feet was the distancing scientists arrived at. With Omicron’s increased transmissibility, there are opinions that 6 feet might be inadequate – esp when standing near those not wearing fresh KN95 masks. Politicians have largely ignored this science, but smart people don’t have to.
Not a damn thing. No controls and sick people literally everywhere spreading the disease daily.
The vast majority of them are infected, rather than sick, which is one of the reasons people arent taking it seriously.
Why would political will be anything to do with ticketing by the police? Why the Actual F does political will have anything to do with the police enforcing the law, all day every day?
Actions from CIG? Don’t hold your breath. This is Cayman – NO ACTIONS!
U.S. reporting more than 2,500 coronavirus deaths a day on average, highest since February 2021. Nothing to worry about. We have an invincibility cloaking device to protect us.
How did we reach over 70% in hospital are vaccinated? Was this an error should it be read unvaccinated?
CNS: Yes, sorry, it was an error.
According to the CMO 95% of the over 12 population are vaccinated. So 5% of the population is generating over 70% of the hospitalisations. And yet we still have those that say this is a pandemic of the vaccinated.
“Over 70% of those admitted were vaccinated.” CNS per the report, 28% of hospital admissions were vaccinated not the other way around as stated.
CNS: Sorry. Typo.
Just like with almost every other country, this will run through the Cayman population, with smaller subsequent waves.
At some point, it is time to end remaining population-wide mitigation steps. Masks optional everyone, no gathering restrictions (which are wholly pointless at 100 or 250 or whatever they are), and no further testing for arrivals.
Popular delusion is that there is some achievable herd immunity that will allow us to ignore COVID and live normally. It’s mutating too fast, and not necessarily into a more benign form. Delta was not the last variant, and neither will be Omicron, already into a new BA.2 sub-variant with 20 more mutations. Taking a 5 minute courtesy LFT in the morning shouldn’t be a scary concept. It’s just good manners. Then we can live normally, fully open, and without epidemic community exposure with every new version.
So how does your logic chain run from a daily LFT test to “live normally, fully open and without community exposure”? You are seriously suggesting everyone will not only do the tests, but then self isolate if they test positive? Man you have a rose tinted view of man kind completely oblivious to the current community transmission rates – given LFTs are readily available – and the difference between positive tests and isolation numbers? Passing lightly over the fact that the CM says LFT tests are only good at detecting early stages of infection, so your negative LFT test may still mean you are positive.
Yup. And you can expand your cemetery plats. Sorry to inject some reality to your unreality.
A serious question here for CNS to follow-up on….
I believe that HSA is exaggerating the hospitalization numbers based on some inside information.
Can you please confirm with HSA that if I were to break my leg, and go to the hospital, test positive for COVID, and then stay a week in the hospital because of my leg… would I be considered a “COVID hospitalization” ?
I’ve heard that up to HALF of the 21 hospitalizations are not in the hospital BECAUSE of COVID, but rather are in the hospital and have tested positive for COVID (and are NOT receiving any form of COVID treatment)
CNS: Firstly, here is what the HSA said in its report verbatim: “A total of 29 COVID patients were treated during Epi. Week 3. Although the majority of these patients had COVID related symptoms, some had no such symptoms and were found to be positive on routine testing.” The link to the report in the CNS Library is at the bottom of the article.
So yes, if you were hospitalized with a broken leg and then tested positive you would be counted as ‘hospitalised and has covid’, but the HSA is acknowledging that this might be the case for some patients.
BUT, what your comment/question appears to not take into account is that we have known from the beginning of the pandemic that people who are already unwell (have comorbidities) or just elderly are particularly vulnerable to covid. So if someone is admitted for a respiratory illness or for heart problems or a multitude of other serious illnesses, the fact that they are also found to have covid is not a small thing but a serious and significant factor regarding their overall health.
You’ve chosen a very clear-cut example – a variation on the ‘if I died in a road accident and was subsequently found to be covid-positive, would I be a covid death?’ (To which the answer is no.)
However, though I’m not a health professional, I imagine that there is not a clear cut division somewhere along the line between a broken leg and pneumonia, which is why the HSA has not provided numbers saying X number of positive people are in hospital but are at no risk of covid and Y number are in hospital and have significant risk from covid.
Another point to consider is why those patients were not positive when admitted. Had they tested negative? Or had they not tested themselves because they thought the symptoms were something else, or they didn’t want to know, or because they have been taken in by the ‘covid is a hoax’ crowd, or because they couldn’t afford the test, or because they couldn’t get out to get one?
Wendy is trying very hard to get as clear a picture as possible and I certainly don’t want to play down the confusion. But ‘the HSA is exaggerating the hospitalization numbers’ sounds like a local conspiracy based on gossip.
Thank you for clearly following up on this. It is appreciated and I understand that HSA may not want to specify how many people are “at risk” versus not at risk, as they obviously care for all patients. I think it is helpful to know that a broken leg with COVID is counted in the 21. To be clear, this was not a gossip group philosophy, but rather a genuine concern about whether we were at 1/3rd of our hospital capacity for COVID patients, or whether we were counting some people that were admitted for other reasons.
FWIW my friend broke a bond, is in hospital with COVID, and is vaccinated. Extremely low risk and athletic guy under 45, but he was told that he’s included in the numbers which got me thinking. That’s much different than an unvaccinated 70 year old in hospital.
@11:06am:
We can waste time majoring on the minors and get sidetracked by fruitlessly trying to determine the exact percentage of vaxed/non-vaxed people hospitalised for/with Covid, or, we can focus on the more important numbers. The most crucial statistics relate to avoiding being seriously ill, hospitalised, or dying as a result of the effects of a Covid infection. Three rigorous studies published last week provide strong evidence that vaccine + boosters mount a strong defense against severe ill effects and resultant hospitalisation from Covid infections including the Omicron variant.
–January 21: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), analysis of more than 220,000 visits to emergency or urgent care facilities between August 2021 and January 2022 indicates that a third vaccine dose of Pfizer or Moderna was highly effective at preventing Covid-associated emergency and urgent care encounters (94 percent and 82 percent, respectively) and preventing Covid-associated hospitalisations (94 percent and 90 percent, respectively).
–A second report in the same MMWR issue and based on U.S. data collected between April 4 and December 25–while Omicron was gaining ground–indicated that protection against infection and death was higher among booster recipients, especially among persons ages 50 and older. The study also concluded that adults who were not vaccinated had a 5 times higher risk of infection compared with adults who were fully vaccinated + booster.
–January 21 in the Journal of the American Medical Association: taking into account over 23,000 Covid infections indicates that receipt of two doses of mRNA vaccine or receipt of two doses + booster was associated with greater protection against infection by both the Omicron and Delta variants versus those not vaccinated, albeit that the vaccines generally offered less defense against the Omicron variant. Still, any degree of protection reduces risk of severe illness.
Additionally, in their December 2021 Covid summary, the US CDC reports that compared to fully vaccinated persons in each group, the monthly rates of Covid 19-associated hospitalisations were:
-16X higher in unvaccinated adults ages 18 years and older
-8x higher in unvaccinated adolescents ages 12–17 years
-12x higher in unvaccinated adults ages 18–49 years
-18x higher in unvaccinated adults ages 50-64 years
-18x higher in unvaccinated adults ages 65 years and older
These very recent reports and statistics add to the already abundant quantity of high-quality evidence supporting the importance of being up-to-date with Covid vaccinations, meaning primary series + booster.
Cutting through the tendency to get sidetracked from crucial issues, we can safely conclude that if we reduce the numbers of Covid infections and reduce the numbers of those seriously ill as a result of a Covid infection, we then reduce the numbers of those hospitalised for the effects of Covid. Meaning that if you break your leg and test positive for Covid while in the hospital, your chances of the broken leg being your most serious affliction are far better if you are vaccinated.
“Another point to consider is why those patients were not positive when admitted. Had they tested negative? Or had they not tested themselves because they thought the symptoms were something else, or they didn’t want to know, or because they have been taken in by the ‘covid is a hoax’ crowd, or because they couldn’t afford the test, or because they couldn’t get out to get one?”
Or because they were asymptomatic, like the majority of people, and didnt even realise they had it?
or they were negative when they were hospitalized and then caught it from a hospital staff member or visitor
The last paragraph of the article is important. Stats from all over the world are clearly showing that those who have had the booster (3rd dose) have far less risk of serious disease. I would encourage all those who are eligible to get their booster ASAP.
Why aren’t we encouraging everyone to LFT themselves before releasing themselves out in the community every morning? Boostered or not, too many community positives are our problem.
$6 a pop, x5 people in my house, $30 a day x 365 = $10,950 a year in LFTs. Possibly the stupidest idea ever suggested on the planet. Just stop testing everyone all the time is the way, cats been out of the bag for +2 years now nobody’s stopping any spread. We’re wasting far too much time and valuable resources on pussying around.
Lololol you can pay for mine every morning. Should I also let you know if I go bathroom everything morning and… wash hands… Get over yourself.
There are ZERO controls being enforced and the infected are out and about daily in everywhere in every building. We are our own worst enemy.
We cannot afford LFT every day!! One test = one hours pay. I need that money to eat!
You Jest , 420,000 LFT’s every 7 days😅
Making somebody rich.
Agree that there should be routine LFT testing in the community, at least twice weekly, to get this under control. However, this should be provided by government. The tests come in very cheaply, under $3, but are being marked up ridiculously by retailers, and even a couple of distributors(one place I called wanted to charge me $7/test, even though I needed a couple hundred tests for my staff).
If government provided free LFTs, and mandated testing, they would potentially save millions in PCR tests. LFTs are not something that should be being sold at profit…
However, it is my understanding that some in high places are connected to businesses selling medical supplies, which speaks volumes.
I would encourage you to mind your own business.
Eat less fried food, avoid alcohol and exercise more.
A disappointing, but entirely expected response. And this is also why completely unqualified Ministers are elected – a poorly educated electorate. Sheesh, get educated!
LOL Prefer internal sanitization than paying for LFTs
You are like the media twisting words to suit your agenda. Cyril Cohen the top immunologist and adviser to their government says the boosters have done little. The last paragraph you quote says ‘increasing evidence’ not ‘clearly showing’ at all. Nothing is clear with this pandemic. Science + Politics = Politics. If the ‘stats’ were clear the FDA would not have sought a 75 year security of the clinical data from the public. Don’t you find that just a little suspicious? Yes, I think the vaccines have helped, but there is a lot more to be learned. Panton says the steps being taken are working but does not qualify it. Talk is cheap.
How is the asinine testing regime for travel between islands working out?
Do you mean the money making scheme designed to fleece anything that moves …. smh
Stop exit testing now.
Not ready. Not safe. Wreaking havoc on a previously functioning wider economy. Madness.
Blame the Reopen Cayman, CITA and CEREBA gang. Too impatient for a push to return to a normal that is gone. Money, money, money, money, MONEY!
What do you mean not ready, not safe? Over 80% of the population are vaxxed…. What was the point in getting vaxxed if it didn’t make it safer to have the virus….? Maybe it was just a prank?
Stop spreading this foolishness – it’s voices like yours that are fueling the governments paranoia and exacerbating their incompetence.