Romania’s vaccination campaign – one year on

One year since the first dose of the Covid vaccine was administered in Romania, the country is in a good epidemiological situation but bracing for a new wave.

Corina Cristea, 28.12.2021, 14:00

One year since the vaccine roll-out began,
Romania has the second lowest vaccination rate in the European Union. Almost
7.8 million people are fully vaccinated, accounting for a little over 40% of the
country’s total population and 44% of its eligible population. Almost 2 million
people have had their booster shot. The pace of vaccination is again slowing
down, having only picked up during short periods of enthusiasm or fear. The authorities
and public health experts are expecting a new wave of the pandemic in January caused
by the spread of the Omicron variant following holiday travel, with many
Romanians living abroad coming back for the winter holidays.

Hospitals are
already preparing for a difficult period, which is expected to peak in February
and March. The manager of the Marius Nasta Institute of Pneumology in
Bucharest, Beatrice Mahler, explains:

We’re expecting a difficult period
for the healthcare system. Not just because we have a low vaccination rate, but
also because the country has many chronic patients who, for the past two years,
have rarely gone to hospital for regular checks. Some of them have even given up
treatment and they are much more vulnerable to infection with a respiratory
virus.

This autumn, Romania saw its most difficult
infection wave since the start of the pandemic, with record infections and
deaths, following the relaxation of most restrictions over the summer, despite
repeated warnings from health experts. 400,000 new cases and over 10,700 deaths
were recorded in October alone. The resulting pressure on the equipment used in
infection diseases wards also led to two tragic accidents in October, in which 11
people were killed. To prevent a similar situation, vaccination remains the
most important weapon, doctors and specialists keep saying. In Bucharest, the
coordinator of the mass vaccination campaign Valeriu Gheorghiță
has again urged people to get the vaccine, emphasising that empathy, honesty
and dialogue can help overcome disinformation, hesitancy, skepticism and
mistrust. (CM)