We are following Sweden’s path without restrictions and lockdown. Virologist: The Swedes admitted that this strategy was a mistake

Coronavirus infections in Poland are growing rapidly, according to many virologists it is high time to introduce restrictions at the local level. For the time being, however, the government has not announced such actions. – Nothing is happening that could indicate that the pandemic is actually managed. Rather, the opposite is true. The epidemic is managing us – says prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska from the Department of Virology and Immunology at the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin.

1. At the beginning of November, the daily number of COVID-19 infections in Poland exceeded 10. A week later it was nearly 20 thousand. cases
2. Health Minister Adam Niedzielski announced that decisions on new restrictions will be made at the beginning of November
3. The currently applicable rules, such as an order to wear masks in public spaces, prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska describes it as “cosmetic”
4. We can limit virus transmission either through lockdowns or by enforcing covid passports – notes the virologist and immunologist
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

COVID-19 infections are on the rise. We stopped managing the pandemic

On Monday, the Ministry of Health informed about 9,5 thousand. new coronavirus infections. On November 11, however, there were already over 19 thousand. cases, and the daily average for the past week is over 14 thousand.

For weeks, the worst situation has been in the east of Poland, especially in the poviats of the voivodeship Lublin and Podlasie. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced that the government is not planning to introduce nationwide restrictions, but the premises – mentioned by Health Minister Adam Niedzielslki – for introducing restrictions at the local level have long existed. But nothing happens.

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– Minister Adam Niedzielski announced in August that the government is prepared for the fourth wave and if there will be a thousand infections a day, restrictions will be introduced. Meanwhile, we hear from the most important Polish politicians that no actions will be introduced, comments prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska from the Department of Virology and Immunology at the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin.

– The ones that have been announced, i.e. the enforcement of wearing masks by uniformed services, the police or municipal police, are a cosmetic change that will not change anything at this stage of the pandemic. Especially since some people put on the masks when they see the policemen and take them off immediately. We can all see what is happening in public spaces – masks are not worn, distance is not kept – adds prof. Szuster-Ciesielska.

The rest of the text is below the video.

In a few European countries with a higher percentage of vaccinated people than in Poland, the restrictions are back. Polish specialists pay attention to this.

– Infections are increasing exponentially in some provinces and linearly in others. Of course, some people are vaccinated, but this percentage is unsatisfactory, i.e. 52%. It is not even comparable to Austria, where it is above 60%, and very serious restrictions on unvaccinated people have been introduced since midnight. How does it look in Poland? Nothing is happening to indicate that the pandemic is actually managed. Rather, the opposite is true. The epidemic is managing us – says Lublin-based virologist and immunologist.

Infections are on the rise. What can you do?

According to forecasts, the number of new COVID-19 infections will reach up to 30. daily. This is to happen in the next two or three weeks. According to prof. Szuster-Ciesielska, there is still time for the government to act.

– What can you do? We are still ahead of the summit, which is forecast at the turn of November and December or directly before Christmas. We can limit virus transmission either through lockdowns or by enforcing covid passports. They are not required in our country, contrary to what we observe in the West, where the use of passports is now natural. Without presenting such a certificate, it is not possible to use public facilities. And with us it is another fiction – emphasizes the virologist.

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– We have adopted an observing, anticipatory strategy that can take revenge. Mainly because hospitals will be occupied by unvaccinated and infected people. We are facing further excess deaths, resulting from the inability to provide medical services to vaccinated people, which will require diagnostics or medical intervention – alerts Prof. Szuster-Ciesielska

– I do not know why restrictions are not introduced. From the point of view of a virologist, I do not see any medical or epidemiological justification to maintain the current state of affairs, but I do not undertake to ponder what other reasons for this may be – he adds.

The Swedish model did not work

Many virologists talk about the necessity to introduce any restrictions. Otherwise, we will have to go through the fourth wave of the pandemic in the Swedish way, as Dr. Aneta Afelt from the COVID-19 Team at the President of the Polish Academy of Sciences mentioned in an interview with Medonet.

– If we do not introduce restrictions, we do not limit people’s social activity, we implement, in a sense, the Swedish variant of exposure to infection (natural immunization) – she said recently.

However, as Prof. Agnieszka Szuster-Ciesielska in this way of dealing with the coronavirus ended in failure and a large number of deaths.

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– The Swedish model has not worked. The Swedes themselves admitted that the strategy proposed at the beginning and implemented was a mistake. It resulted in a huge number of deaths of elderly people. Chief epidemiologist Dr. Tegnell himself admitted that they failed in this case – says the immunologist.

– Recently, on Twitter, I shared a graphic that shows the cumulative number of deaths of residents in the Nordic countries. Sweden has nine times more deaths than Norway and seven times more than Finland. In this list, Poland is even higher than Sweden – emphasizes prof. Szuster-Ciesielska.

Also read:

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2. Grzesiowski: the virus has not yet said the last word, where there are many infections, we expect new mutations
3. Experts: This group should not take the third dose of the vaccine
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