Mask and telework recommendations restored in Uusimaa, Southwest Finland
FACIAL RECOMMENDATION has been returned to all 12-year-olds and older, regardless of vaccination status, in the metropolitan area.
Yesterday, the working group coordinating the regional control of the coronavirus epidemic decided to recommend the use of face shields in all public indoor areas and on public transport where there are other people.
The use of masks is also recommended in instruction beginning in the sixth year of primary school.
The recommendation entered into force immediately.
The working group also decided to reinstate the broad-based telework recommendation, which received an immediate response from some of the largest employers in the region. For example, Elisa announced that it intends to recommend teleworking to its employees both in the Helsinki metropolitan area and in Southwest Finland.
Employees who are unable to work remotely should be encouraged by employers to use a face mask in the performance of their duties, regardless of whether they are able to avoid close contact with other people.
“In the workplace, lunch and coffee breaks should be staggered and the need for face-to-face meetings carefully assessed,” its press release reads.
The recommendations were made on the basis of the deteriorating epidemiological situation in the Helsinki metropolitan area.
“The situation has changed since the early autumn” said Mayor of Helsinki Juhana Vartiainen (NCP). “High infection rates among non-vaccinees have also increased infections among those vaccinated. There is no prospect of a return to normal. “
Jari PetäjäThe acting chief physician of the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District (HUS) said that almost as many infections are currently diagnosed in the hospital district as last spring.
“People who have received two vaccinations are not completely safe from the coronavirus, and some of them have also ended up in hospital,” he said. – Every day we have to cancel four to five surgeries that require intensive care. The intensive care unit currently has 18 patients due to coronavirus.
In addition, the working group called on the government to tighten restrictions on restaurants and bring forward the third round of vaccination. It added that all restaurants in the metropolitan area must require a coronavirus certificate from all customers at all times of the day.
“Rising infection rates and the strain on hospital care require urgent action from both regional actors and the government. The management of the epidemic is a shared responsibility, the release says.
The hospital district of Southwest Finland also announced similar recommendations yesterday. According to the area, people should wear a face mask both indoors and outdoors, regardless of their vaccination status, whenever it is impossible to keep a safe distance from others.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT