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An analysis was published in the Financial Times showing how the Swedish model of combating the coronavirus worked in this country and how the decisions of Anders Tegnell, Sweden’s chief epidemiologist, influenced the perception of the Swedish strategy by other countries. According to Tegnell, the restrictions introduced in the world are like “using a hammer to kill a fly”.
- The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has made Anders Tegnell, a Swedish epidemiologist, one of the most famous experts in the world. His approach to stopping the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus was different from that of most European countries
- Tegnell admitted that he and his colleagues focused on sustainable development, assuming that they would fight the disease for a long time, so you need to focus on building appropriate systems
- “You can’t close and open schools, restaurants and other places where people work forever,” said Tegnell, who in June said that, watching other countries tighten quickly, thought that “the world has gone mad”
Anders Tegnell – the star of the Swedish COVID-19 epidemic
Until January 2020, Anders Tegnell was one of many officials in Sweden with 10 million people. He headed the department dealing with the collection and analysis of public health data. The 64-year-old planned to focus in 2020 on helping Somalia to set up a public health agency and on sending questionnaires to Swedes to assess various aspects of their well-being.
However, it quickly turned out that Tegnell will have to verify his plans due to the global SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic. While other countries, led by China, ordered a sharp lockdown – schools, some factories, restaurants and cultural institutions were closed. The whole world gradually stopped. Almost all, because Sweden went against the tide. The government made recommendations to its citizens, limited the number of people allowed to attend assemblies, but otherwise allowed Swedes to live a normal life: schools for the youngest children remained open, as did restaurants, cinemas, shopping centers and national borders.
Tegnell gained the support of the majority of Swedes, who believed that his decisions were rational and that he was guided by understanding, not by feelings, as in their opinion it was in the case of other countries’ governments. Some even went so far as to tattoo Tegnell’s likeness on their body.
Zobacz: Coronavirus in Sweden. The country’s chief epidemiologist receives threats
Of course, it is not that Tegnell has all his followers. Swedish Democrats called on him to step down after the number of COVID-19 deaths in Sweden continued to rise, especially among nursing home residents. Tegnell himself called the COVID-19 death record “terrible”, but admitted there was little evidence that the death toll was related to the absence of a blockage. After the coronavirus outbreaks were discovered in nursing homes, the Swedish government allocated additional money to raise employment standards in these facilities.
Speaking to the Financial Times journalist, Tegnell defended Sweden’s approach to tackling COVID-19, saying: “At the beginning, we talked a lot about sustainable development and I think we will stick to it. We also tried to be immune to any fixes and realized that it wouldn’t be easy, it wouldn’t be short term, it wouldn’t be fixed by a single blocking agent. We see a disease with which we will have to deal with for a long time and therefore we have to build appropriate systems ».
See: Tegnell defends his idea to fight the pandemic. “Some countries should have thought twice”
As noted by the Financial Times journalist, Tegnell’s strategy seems to be working. Across Europe, with France, Great Britain and Germany at the fore, the number of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infections has started to rise again. Meanwhile, in Sweden it remains at a low level. Currently, per capita in this country is 90 percent. fewer infections than during the June peak. Sweden also has fewer infections per population than Norway and Denmark.
Zobacz: The epidemic in Sweden is slowing down and Norway and Denmark are struggling
Tegnell said during the spring meeting with the journalist that the autumn will verify the successes and failures of individual countries in the fight against the pandemic. He himself believes his country will have low levels of coronavirus spread, with local outbreaks. «I think other countries may find themselves in a critical situation. They are likely to be more susceptible to spikes in the disease, ”says Tegnell, adding that this is because other countries’ societies do not have a level of immunity that would, in a sense, stop the epidemic.
At the start of the pandemic, Tegnell was accused of not having a blockade because society wanted to achieve herd immunity, a state where most people would have antibodies to the virus, preventing it from spreading further. The epidemiologist has repeatedly denied this, saying that the immunity of part of the population is only a side effect of policies to fight the coronavirus. He also admits that immunity may be partly responsible for the decline in infections in Sweden. He also wonders how other communities will do without this resilience.
Atypical country management and the approach to fighting the pandemic
The approach to fighting the epidemic in Sweden is also largely related to the management in that country, which is unusual for other countries. It is not politicians who make the important decisions, but Swedish agencies that are not related to the political camps. As a result, decisions are made on the basis of the best available knowledge. In practice, this means that the Swedish public health agency had the decisive say in establishing a strategy to combat COVID-19, and “the government has adopted the strategy without asking questions”.
Tegnell’s reluctance to block the blockade by other countries is obvious. “It looks like using a mallet to kill a fly,” he said in an interview. His approach was to create a strategy that could run for years if needed.
Otherwise Tegnell
We believe that closing, opening and closing this drastically is not profitable. He cannot open and close schools forever. It will be a disaster. You probably can’t keep closing and opening restaurants and other similar services. People will be very tired and businesses are likely to suffer more than if they shut down once and for all
The Swedish authorities focused on trying to maintain the proper functioning of the healthcare system and on a broader view of public health. Therefore, outdoor activities, meetings with friends in restaurants and schools were not banned.
Tegnell points out that despite the lack of official regulations, the Swedes have limited travel, and signs have appeared in supermarkets and restaurants to help maintain the correct distance from others. The tourism and hospitality industry has been severely hit by the pandemic. In Sweden, there is also no obligation to wear face masks, but some people just do it.
«We tried to focus on places that are really dangerous and could become the source of epidemic outbreaks. Visiting a record store and buying a CD will not infect hundreds of people, ”added Tegnell.
“I am wary of easy solutions to complex problems”
In June, Tegnell said that the rush in which other countries introduced further restrictions and blockades looked as if “the world has gone mad.” Now, while his judgments appear to be more balanced, he is still surprised at the strategies adopted by other countries. He has doubts, among others when it comes to wearing face masks. “Masks are an easy solution, and I am deeply wary of easy solutions to complex problems,” he explained in an interview with FT journalist.
Tegnell also cautions against treating the COVID-19 vaccine, if it ever emerges, as the final solution to the pandemic. “Believing that when there is a vaccine, we will come back to life as before the epidemic is dangerous, It won’t be that easy,” concludes Tegnell.
The second wave of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infections is probably ahead of us. For now, Sweden is coming out of it unscathed. In fact, only in a few years will it be possible to assess the successes and failures of the strategies adopted by individual countries.
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