Local Quarantine – Positive Effects

Romanian authorities congratulate themselves that the zonal quarantine measures have been effective in curbing the number of Sars-Cov-2 infections

Roxana Vasile, 15.12.2020, 13:50

In Romania, the fewest new cases of Covid-19 in the last five weeks were announced on Monday – about 3,250. However, compared to the number of tests performed, of about 8,000, the rate of contamination is 40%, so the figure is far from reassuring. Bucharest continues to rank first in the daily reports, although the infection incidence fell slightly below 7 cases per thousand inhabitants.

The undesirable ranking is completed by Constanţa (southeast), with a rate of almost 6.5, just like Ilfov, a county bordering the Capital.Another 12 counties in Romania are considered red zones, with over 3 cases per thousand inhabitants, while 7 counties remain in the green zone, with less than 1.5.

There are also some counties where no new cases have been reported. Some epidemiologists attribute the positive evolution in certain areas both to the small volume of tests and to a better degree of compliance by the population with the rules: wearing a mask in open and closed spaces, washing and / or disinfecting hands and keeping a physical distance of 2 meters.

As for the central authorities, they have not provided any explanation for the declining number of tests lately. They have congratulated themselves, however, that the specific quarantine measures, implemented by the local officials, have been effective. Thus, the Department for Emergency Situations within the Government states that the importance of zonal quarantine results from the fact that the cumulative incidence in the last 14 days per thousand inhabitants has decreased by over 50% of the initial value.

For example, in the city of Sibiu (centre), in mid-November, when quarantine was enforced, there were more than 13 cases per one thousand inhabitants, and today the figure has dropped to 5. In Zalau (north-west), the incidence was 10 per one thousand inhabitants, dropping to 3 on December 3rd. That is why, the Department for Emergency Situations has called on citizens to observe all protective rules, to pay special attention to hygiene and to avoid crowded areas, especially since the winter holidays are drawing near.

In a post on social media, the epidemiologist and researcher Octavian Jurma says that the medical and economic benefit of testing the population is huge in comparison with any other measure to curb the pandemic, and that is why increasing the testing capacity in keeping with the number of infections should be a priority, and exceeding the threshold of 10% in terms of positive tests must be considered an emergency.

According to Octavian Jurma, a prevention policy is preferable to an increase in the capacity of hospitals to treat Covid-19, which does nothing but exhaust physicians and scare citizens. (M. Ignatescu)