Now: Positive signals from healthcare

Now: Positive signals from healthcare

During Christmas and New Year, various diseases put a lot of pressure on health care.

The spread of Covid-19 and RS virus, winter sickness and flu have led to extreme conditions in many cities.

However, Svenska Docbladet reports that the number of people being treated at emergency hospitals is getting lower and lower.

– We had a lot of pressure during the Christmas and New Year holidays, but now it has eased somewhat on Epiphany. Johan Pratt, chief physician in regional Stockholm, says fewer people are applying to emergency departments.

“Fixed Place”

Ahead of Epiphany, the Stockholm region strengthened its emergency hospitals with 100 additional beds.

Five of the six emergency hospitals are still in staff mode, with reduced pressure still unchanged.

– The staffing situation will be over the weekend and we will make a new assessment early next week. Johann Pratt says that RS virus and influenza are not constantly increasing, but are more stable.

Respiratory infection occurs

The RS virus has been a contributing factor to the increased pressure on healthcare in recent times.

RS virus is a paramyxovirus that causes an acute respiratory infection with symptoms ranging from a mild cold to severe pneumonia or bronchitis.

– The first symptoms of the disease are usually fever, runny nose, cough and sometimes shortness of breath. At the first instance of infection, more than a quarter of children develop symptoms of respiratory problems such as pneumonia or asthma, according to the Public Health Agency.

A new variant

The new Covid variant XBB.1.5 has been launched in several countries after it was first discovered in the US.

The variant has spread rapidly in the United States and Great Britain, but the health system in Sweden has not yet become an emergency.

Then you should be home

Although the number of hospitalized patients with Covid-19 is lower than the previous week, the public health agency believes the spread is still large.

– Next week, many people will return to their workplaces after the holidays and schools will start again, so it is important that we all help each other now. State epidemiologist Anders Lindblom says in a press release that sick people with symptoms of respiratory infection should stay home and avoid close contact with others.

Photo: MedicAlert UK

Text: Compilers