Can Spain follow in the footsteps of Denmark or Norway and end all Kovid restrictions?
Denmark and Norway have decided to lift most of the restrictions imposed by the Kovid-19 epidemic in a call to regain everyday life. DoThis is a premature move Or will Spain soon follow in the footsteps of the Scandinavian countries? “El Periódico de España” opens the question for various experts. For some, this is clearly a premature decision, above all to follow political standards, not epidemiological or scientific ones. For others, it may be an initiative “Brave and not taken lightly”Men based on vaccine percentage and less aggression of the omicron variant.
How he catches it The sea Faraco, president of the Spanish Association for Foreign Health (AMSE), on questions about the decision, first in Denmark and later in Norway. In the next country, from Wednesday, bars and restaurants will continue to be able to sell alcohol after 11pm, with capacity restrictions and restrictions on public events Teaching centers And telework is no longer necessary. Only one measurement results: until 17 February Use of masks is mandatory Inside the house when security can not be kept at a distance. – We have gone from detailed rules to distance meters, masks and common sense, summed up Minister of Health Ingvild Keserkol.
In the case of Denmark, the end of all measures to be imposed to stop the development of the epidemic will come on Tuesday 1 February. From the coming weeks, the Danes will no longer have to use the mask outdoors, capacity and time restrictions will also be lifted unless establishment is required and Other entertainment venues They open the doors again.
High percentage of vaccine
Dr. Farco To make such decisions, Denmark confirms that they have a very high vaccination rate –Even in DiloReinforcement osis, precisely- and, also very many refer to the confidence of the people in dealing with the epidemic as the government. In this case, the doctor said: “It’s a risky decision, Men brave. Not taken lightly“I also think he is case tracking and a number of diagnostic tests are underway in the country.
Explained as follows, this decision makes sense. It is brave rather than negligent and takes into account important criteria in addition to the number of things that involve both health and social nature. ⁇ https://t.co/9j2uguTfAo
– Sea Faraco (mar_faraco) February 2, 2022
I follow Mar Farako, when it comes to Danish, the most important thing is According to opinion polls Maintained in the country, people trust the decision of health authorities. “I’m not sure what’s going on with her,” he said. “They are the first to watch. But they have popularity And that’s a starting point that does not seem insane to me, he continues.
The problem in Spain is that despite the high percentage of vaccines, most tests are not performed and cases are no longer closely monitored. “Even the general population is not very happy with the pandemic management,” he pointed out. In any case, he said, there are no more restrictions in our country, beyond consumption Outdoor face masks He felt incomprehensible.
Political decisions
“The situation must be very calm to get to that stage. Decisions are made with political standards, not scientific, “the doctor disagreed. Lorenzo Armenteros, A spokesman for the Spanish Association of General Practitioners and Family Physicians (SEMG) explained that he was «afraid» that such decisions would be taken at this time, given the epidemiological situation in Spain. And of course, this is not alarmism, it is reality.
The downward trend to the sixth wave continues in Spain with data provided this Wednesday by Health Minister Carolina Darias. Over the past few weeks, 3,400 cases were reported on January 21, a decline of 21%. At 2,564 this Wednesday. There have been 86,222 infections and 224 deaths in the last 24 hours, according to the health report. Occupancy in hospital beds fell by 13.9%, six tenths less than yesterday, and by 21.3% in intensive care units (21.7% yesterday).
Meaningless decisions
In that context Denmark or NorwayLorenzo Armenteros has none of the countries an epidemiological condition. Decisions of such magnitude: «It’s because they throw in the towel. They are not capable Control the epidemic And they prefer to take other measures, which are flexible and only follow political standards. “I it freely fallsAs anyone expected. It happened in South Africa, but the average age of the population there is much lower than in Europe. ”
Dr. Armenteros continues: This is not about pessimism. “Of course you have hope on the horizon, but those who see what happens every day scare us,” he said. The doctor said it was more High peak of infectionsThey see this in daily consultation and it is cases where many positives are obtained through antigen tests at home It will not be managed say.
But «it is definitely not The virus does not mutateThe number of cases has been controlled, there is no long-term reduction in hospital admissions or admissions to the intensive care unit ‘and he reviewed, Vaccination rate There is no guarantee that it will not be close to 70% worldwide Spain begins to lift sanctionsadds expert.
An “offensive” alternative
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Pronounced on the same line Manuel FrancoEpidemiologist and representative at the University of Alcala (Madrid) The Spanish public health community And health administration (SESPAS) ‘Such an epidemic is necessary A public health service And important epidemiology, knowing what is happening at any given time and making the right decisions. In that sense, Denmark is an epidemiologically developed country, they say they do not like it anymore. Reach all boundaries“, Add.
For Franco, this is a “risky” choice and he does not think it is the way forward. It shows, for example, the Spanish education system -Universities, institutions, schools… – Many infections occur. “Yes, we need to know how to take preventative measures, how to use the mask, the distances, how to ventilate, because we spend most of our time in closed rooms and the evidence says so. There are several issues. Take it and say: “Hands off, this is free will!”, It does not seem so smart to me, he concluded.