A disastrous situation in the Lublin region. «We have a record number of infections and this will escalate»

In recent days, the largest number of COVID-19 infections have been recorded in the Lublin region. There, the fourth wave of the coronavirus hit the hardest. – Scientists and doctors, including me, have been talking about this for months and warned about what the situation will be. Unfortunately, this works 100%. – says prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska from the Department of Virology and Immunology at the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin.

1. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Health informed about 144 infections in the province. Lublin, on Thursday – at 120. This is the highest number in the country
2. There are 122 covid patients in hospitals, 9 require the help of a respirator
3. The level of full vaccination in the Lublin region is less than 43 percent. This is the third result from the end in Poland
4. Now we are bearing the consequences – says prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska, virologist and immunologist
5. We have established an association that not only gives advice on how to avoid vaccinations, but also sends letters warning against vaccinating children to school principals and parents’ councils – adds prof. Szuster-Ciesielska
6. More information can be found on the TvoiLokony home page

Adrian Dąbek, Medonet: The Lublin Province has been at the forefront for several days when it comes to the number of COVID-19 infections, but on Wednesday it broke the record. This is probably not a surprise to specialists.

Prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska: Unfortunately, this is not a surprise. Scientists and doctors, including me, have been talking about this for months and warned about what the situation will be. Unfortunately, this works 100%. The eastern provinces, and more specifically Lublin, were in the last, and then the penultimate place when it comes to the level of vaccination against COVID-19. We are now bearing the consequences. We are in the first place when it comes to getting the coronavirus. We have a record number of infections. On Wednesday, there were 144 cases, 8 deaths. Unfortunately, this will escalate if we take into account the fact that vaccination coverage is not improving at all and that vaccination of children in schools is not very popular.

This Friday, at the initiative of the Lublin voivode, Mr. Lech Sprawka, we will have a meeting with school principals and parents’ councils to counteract this trend, otherwise infections among children will increase. Let’s take a look at what is happening in the United States, and especially in Florida. There is a similar level of vaccination and the statistics are inexorable, more and more children are ill, the growth is even exponential.

I am aware that mortality and severe COVID-19 in children are rare, but the more cases there are, the more often complications will occur, such as long covid, which prevents children from functioning normally. It is estimated that 10 percent. children experience one of the symptoms of long covid, and research from Our Country shows that this affects up to 1/4 of children with symptoms lasting up to 5 months. This is no longer a joke. This has to be counteracted.

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How can this be done? There are two options. Vaccinating children from the age of 12 is one thing. And for children who cannot be vaccinated yet, we can cocoon them in those who are vaccinated and act as a physical barrier to the virus. Unfortunately, it is very difficult for us. As a result, both adults and children will experience more and more infections.

The most important thing, that is vaccination, has been neglected in Lublin. What can be done at the moment?

It is never too late to get vaccinated. Of course, the best period is over, we were talking about vaccinations during the summer holidays. Given the vaccination course and the building up of immunity, it takes about five weeks. It’s not like we come out after the first or second dose and “kick your soul” because we are safe. No, it takes time. And we are almost in the middle of a storm. At the moment we have over 700 infections and the rates will increase day by day. But you can still get vaccinated and follow all the rules, including wearing masks. Even outside, people standing at bus stops or in populated parts of the city, I would recommend wearing a mask. The virus can still spread in such places, especially when it comes to Delta. Despite being ordered to wear masks in confined public spaces, it can be seen that this has become a fiction. In shops, buses and trams, the majority of young people do not wear masks, and older people do not wear them correctly. It will take revenge.

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Is the anti-vaccination movement more visible in the Lublin region than elsewhere? There is going to be a march on Friday, and a congress of these circles on Saturday. A strong attack is getting ready.

In fact, such initiatives appear, but I do not think they will be more visible than in other cities, such as Warsaw, Wrocław or Poznań. It is there that the nucleus of the anti-vaccine is more organized and acts quite aggressively. But I must say about the recently established Polish Association of Independent Doctors and Scientists. This is our Polish pain and shame. This association includes doctors of various specialties and scientists such as a historian of philosophy, physicist and bicycle constructor. Interestingly, there is not a single virologist or immunologist so important in the current pandemic and vaccination. Members of the Association not only publish leaflets about the harmfulness of vaccinations or provide advice on how to avoid vaccinations, but, curiously, send letters warning against vaccinating children to school principals and parents’ councils. In the present world and with such advances in science, such behavior is irrational and harmful. I don’t know why nobody reacts to this. I can see that similar attitudes are tolerated in Poland, even if they are doctors.

I read an interview with a doctor who believes that those anti-vaccine doctors should be stripped of their professional rights. And I agree with that, everyone in medical studies must have learned about such an enormous and unquestionable achievement of medicine, which is vaccinology. Doctors who oppose vaccinations are distrusting this science. How do people who turn to them for advice about immunization behave when they hear in response that it is harmful? So who are they to trust?

I looked at the specialization of one active professors from the Catholic University of Lublin, who is to take part in the weekend anti-vaccine meeting. He is a literary scholar.

It has already become a symbol of our times that literally everyone speaks with knowledge about the coronavirus and vaccinations. However, the greatest harm is done by people with degrees or degrees in a field far removed from biology or medicine, who, using their status as a scientist, express themselves on matters which they simply do not know each other about.

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And such experts refer to the vaccination of children as an “experiment”.

And this is where a complete lack of knowledge comes out. Inability to find information from sources. First of all, the current vaccine administration campaign is not a medical experiment, as it ended with the publication of the results of Phase 3 clinical trials and approval of the vaccine by regulatory authorities such as the European Medicines Agency. As for adults, the vaccine for children 12 plus has been officially approved for use. There is indeed a medical experiment underway to administer vaccines to children under 12 years of age. We hope to have these vaccines on the market within a few months. I would like to add that the course of clinical trials involving children is strictly governed by strict regulations, both in European and national law.

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Do you expect regional restrictions to appear in the eastern provinces?

It is very likely, although I expect a lockdown on the regional level rather than the entire province. There are 11 municipalities in our region with a vaccination coverage of 30 percent. or even below. Given the speed and ease of spread of the Delta variant, there is an extremely high risk of the virus hitting these very areas. The number of infected may rise to several thousand a day. This, in turn, threatens to block the healthcare system, which we already dealt with last year. I am thinking not only about the care of covid patients, but also about the extremely difficult access to doctors for all other patients, even those who require rapid medical intervention. There will be redundant deaths again.

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Now Lubelskie may become a similar case to Silesia in the previous wave. At that time, patients from hospitals were transported to neighboring provinces.

Exactly. And conclusions about it should be drawn. All indications are that after a certain threshold is reached, the communes will most likely be closed. It is rather inevitable.

But have we actually learned this lesson? How does it look in the province. Lublin?

Some of the temporary hospitals have closed back, but I suppose they will be able to restart in a short time. I hope we will be better prepared than for the second wave as far as the bed and respirator base is concerned. However, the situation is much worse when it comes to human resources, we are unlikely to multiply specialists. Unfortunately, the new wave has coincided with a very difficult situation in many areas related to health protection.

We will pay for the COVID-19 epidemic for a long time in the future. In terms of health and economy.

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