Health Minister Simon Harris has urged people to "not waste" the next three weeks of coronavirus restrictions.
He stressed there's "not going to be a magic point" at the start of May when life can return to its pre-pandemic normal, and that some degree of social distancing will likely remain 'part of life' until a COVID-19 vaccine or treatment is developed.
However, he urged people to focus on the "here-and-now" for the moment.
He also indicated the testing criteria for the virus is likely to be expanded in the coming weeks as the current backlog is cleared.
On Friday, the Government confirmed that the strict measures currently in place will continue until May 5th in a bid to limit the spread of the virus.
People are still being urged to stay at home wherever possible and to only leave for reasons such as grocery shopping, essential work, short exercise or medical appointments.
Meanwhile, the latest figures show the number of confirmed coronavirus cases here has risen to 9,655.
Speaking this afternoon, Minister Harris said the next three weeks are going to matter an "awful lot" in terms of the virus' development here.
He said modelling from Professor Philip Nolan, chair of the NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group, says we could have seen 120,000 cases in a single day here by the end of this week if social distancing measures hadn't been introduced.
However, the Health Minister said we must now 'stick the course' and get the virus R-number (reproductive number) - referring to the average number of people infected by people with COVID-19 - below one.
He said current data indicates the number is currently 'in or around' the one-mark, but stressed the next few weeks have to be used to get it lower again.
Minister Harris observed: “It is so important that we use the three week period we’re now entering… to do everything humanly possible to suppress the virus and save lives.
“Please stay the course, please stay focused - these three weeks really, really matter.”
Amid uncertainty over the degree to which restrictions will be lifted in the coming weeks and months, Minister Harris encouraged people to not get caught up in speculating what the situation may be like after the current period of restrictions.
He said: “We need to focus on the here-and-now - let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
“Let’s not waste these three weeks by anticipating what might come in the future."
Minister Harris said there's no guide about how things will be able to reopen, and that we'll have to look at factors such as the virus' reproductive number and the country's ICU capacity to determine what happens.
He acknowledged the current situation is not sustainable or normal - but that the reason the restrictions are currently in place is to keep people safe.
