A different pandemic wave

More daily cases, but fewer hospital admissions, thats how the fifth wave of the Covid pandemic looks like in Romania.

Ştefan Stoica, 19.01.2022, 13:50

The coronavirus pandemic is far from being over, warned the World Health
Organisation, urging states to remain vigilant. The warning comes amid assumptions
that the Omicron variant, which is milder, may be spelling the end of the
pandemic. The number of cases has exploded in Europe, with France, for example,
recording almost half a million daily infections. Omicron is causing hospitalisations
and deaths, and even the less severe cases are inundating health facilities, said the World Health Organisation. Romania
is also in the fifth wave of the pandemic.

The number of daily
cases passed 15,000, the peak during the previous wave which was very deadly
and seriously tested the national health service. The situation is different
this time, with the increase in the number of daily cases still not posing problems
when it comes to ensuring the needed medical assistance to Covid patients or
other patients, says health minister Alexandru Rafila. He said all
230 promised outpatient evaluation centres would soon become operational and
that testing would be stepped up. As far as children are concerned, who began
the second semester on Monday with physical attendance, he said no significant increase
in infections was noted:

We don’t have an explosion of cases that blocks hospitals and intensive
care units as far as children are concerned. I think we must all be
responsible, must be aware that suspending school or moving to so-called online
teaching, something to which not all children have access, have very serious
consequences for the development of these children, and this must be understood
very well.

Half of Romania is in the red tier, with more than 3 cases per 1,000
inhabitants. What distinguishes the fifth wave from the fourth is the low number
of hospital admissions, which is a quarter of that recorded in the fourth wave.
The death toll, under 100 per day, on the rise in the past week, is still below
the level seen last autumn. There is also less pressure on intensive care units.

There are still reasons for concerns, warns the president of the College
of Physicians in Romania, Daniel Coriu:

What I see as a possible red flag is the fact that there are more infections
among children compared with the previous wave. This should worry us. The good
news is that despite the high number of new cases and the rapid increase, not
many patients need hospitalisation. What worries me concerning the number of
deaths, is that they are among the unvaccinated. Vaccination, even when it doesn’t
protect against infection, still protects us against hospitalisation, severe
illness and death.

The vaccination rate among Romania’s eligible population is under 50%.

(CM)