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- Regardless of administrative decisions in epidemic matters, we must behave rationally - commented the announcement of lifting the restrictions virologist prof. Włodzimierz Gut. Other experts, prof. Agnieszka Szulc-Ciesielska and Dr. Michał Sutkowski. Is resigning from the restrictions at this point a good decision?
Some restrictions lifted from March 1
At yesterday's press conference of the prime minister and the head of the he alth ministry, it was announced that the covid restrictions would be lifted from March 1, with the exception of:
- isolation and quarantine for co-householder,
- inbound quarantine for people without a covid passport,
- masks in closed spaces.
Experts react to the decision-makers' decisions. According to the virologist prof. Włodzimierz Gut "no matter what the administrative decisions are, one should behave rationally." - People examine themselves and do not report to a doctor. If they do not, it is known that they spread the virus - he added.
Prof. Gut also emphasized that the death rate in Poland is one of the highest in Europe. - Although deaths are an echo of cases from two or three weeks ago, the number of patients is sufficient to infect other groups. It's not 300 people a day, that's about 20,000. - he explained.
Poland is not like other countries
The differences between the pandemic situation in Poland and in other European countries are pointed out by prof. Agnieszka Szulc-Ciesielska. The virologist recalls that "Denmark is the first major country to lift all coronavirus restrictions in early February this year." - However, it cannot be presented as the only example for the lifting of restrictions or their maintenance in other countries - she added.
The expert emphasizes that "the possibilities of the he alth care system in each country will be different, as will the overall number of vaccinations and tests or the level of trust in the government and scientists". She also pointed to the differences between Poland and Denmark in terms of tests and vaccinations. "In Denmark, the testing system is very aggressive, in a good sense. In addition, around 81% of Danes are fully vaccinated, including 95% of those over the age of 65, and 62% of those receiving the dose."resembling. Poland does not look like Denmark in this respect, she concluded.
Is lifting the restrictions a good decision?
Virologist prof. When asked about the rightness of the decision on lifting the restrictions, Włodzimierz Gut emphasized that we would find out in the coming weeks. - If there is a further decline in the incidence, it means that the decision was quite right. And if they stabilize, it will be a bit too soon. And when the increase in infections is visible, it means that we have exaggerated - he explained.
The specialist also compared epidemics to playing tag. - We chase and pat the next one. The virus will always catch up with us since it is present in the population and will be there. The rest depends on our behavior. We hear, for example, that the virus is spreading more, but in fact, we are causing it by our actions. The virus doesn't behave anyway - he's dead, he said.
In the opinion of the president of Warsaw Doctors, Dr. Michał Sutkowski, the decision to restore normal work, e.g. in offices, and on the other hand, to leave quarantine, isolation and the obligation to wear masks seems right. In his opinion, the revocation of the applicable limits is a sanctioning of what actually takes place, because in most cases the restrictions were not respected. On the other hand, Dr. Sutkowski emphasizes that population immunity will decline and the he alth of Poles is in poor condition, so you should still use common sense.
- Never enough caution. I would say that a virus is a bit like an invasion in the East. You do not need to be afraid of it, but you have to act against it. To be strong and in solidarity. Strong in the sense of vaccination, the principles of DDM (disinfection, distance, masks - summed up the president.
- So far, we are witnessing the fall of the fifth wave, but it is not yet possible to talk about the end of the pandemic. The media reports of the Ministry of He alth about the approaching end of the pandemic certainly contributed to the decline in interest in vaccinations - said Prof. Agnieszka Szuster Ciesielska. In her opinion, in the face of the announced lifting of the restrictions, we must remember that "they will ensure our security, even if the virus is in retreat in late spring and summer".
The virologist also emphasizes that "for now it is difficult to predict what autumn will bring us, the coronavirus will not disappear for sure." - The question in what form it will appear, because viruses do not always evolve towards milder ones - she added.
COVID-19 is not the flu
Dr. Sutkowski emphasizes that in an epidemiological sense the coronavirus may become a seasonal flu at least in Europe, it will remain clinicallymore dangerous. He recalled that COVID-19 is "a more dangerous disease that affects not only the lungs but the endothelium." - It affects more thromboembolic complications, on the psyche. The flu is not able to arrange our life like this - he added.
- 300 people a day don't die of flu, and let's not say COVID is flu. Statistics say about 150 deaths per flu season, but probably more people die from it, but certainly not as many as from COVID-19. In an epidemiological sense, coronavirus infections can become an endemic, i.e. permanent disease effects that appear from autumn to spring, provided that no new variant, + new variant +, that destroys all of this, and provided that we are vaccinated more than against the flu . It will not be 4%, but more than half of patients once a year - he said.
In turn, prof. Agnieszka Szulc-Ciesielska in an interview with PAP emphasized that reports on variant B.A.2 are increasing. - The BA.2 sub-variant is even more transmissive and more immune escaping from both convalescents and vaccinated persons. Therefore, reinfection is expected if BA.2 becomes comfortable in Poland. Hence, the continuation of the vaccination program is so important - she pointed out.
According to the virologist, the autumn situation will be the result of factors such as: the emergence of new variants (transmissivity, virulence, escape from the immune response), the percentage of people exposed to the virus, the level of vaccination of the society and the persistence of the post-infection and post-vaccination response.
Let's not give up the masks
Prof. In his speech, Gut emphasized that we should wear masks not because it is compulsion, but a matter of reducing the risk of infection. - Do we really have to put on masks because there is a compulsion, or because we are part of a group of people we know nothing about and reduce the chance of infection? I will say reduce, not zero, because it is, of course, also a matter of wearing the mask correctly: putting it on and taking it off, wearing and storing time. The mask can be more dangerous than the environment in which we find ourselves - he said.
Still the most important thing is fighting the pandemic.
Experts remind that the pandemic is still going on, which is why it is so important to work on a greater degree of vaccination of Poles in the coming months. - The pandemic has not been canceled. Much humility towards nature has been shown. This makes me happy, the more so as the level of deaths and infections in Poland is high, and the degree of vaccination, i.e. the best protection against deaths, is not so anymore - emphasizes Dr. Sutkowski.
The specialist referred to the data on dt. the level of inoculationin particular age groups. He said that it amounts to "65.6 percent. in the 18-plus age group, and for example in the 70-plus age group, only 77 percent. " - It is not enough - commented Dr. Sutkowski. In his opinion, the next six months we need to work on getting more people vaccinated, because "we are undoubtedly moving from a pandemic to an endemic, but the endemic can also be different."
The president of Warsaw Family Physicians warns that "the number of deaths may be 100-120 a day or 50". - And if there are several, it can be understood, because they will also be dictated by other he alth considerations - he added. He also noted that we are in the phase of slowing down the epidemic, but at too high a cost, and indicated what he alth goals we must focus on.
- He alth goals must stand on the social, political and economic paths. They should stand like signposts, mile poles, chapels. This he alth goal is the fight against the pandemic, with complications of COVID-19, with the covid tail caused, for example, by the omicron, which we know little about because we know it for three months - said the president.
Dr. Maciej Sutkowski also defined another important he alth goal, i.e. defrosting he alth protection. - Defrosting he alth protection is very important, it is also a he alth goal. We are to move along these paths towards autumn, enjoying it and being rational. The virus should be treated as cool and cold as a Swede in ice - let's look at it carefully and carefully. The point is not to get choked with Polish zero-one. It is our Polish ailment that we move from wall to wall - he warned.