Summary crisis info 9 April, 2020

 

This is a summary of what is currently important to know about the Corona situation in Sweden. The summary is based on what Folkhälsomyndigheten – The Swedish Public Health Agency, the government, Krisinfo.se and the Lund municipality have conveyed as of April 8,  2020.

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The spread of the Corona virus in Sweden

The graphs in the picture below (to the left) show how many cases of illness per age group have been confirmed and (to the right) how many people per age group have died. It is only the confirmed  cases of the disease that are shown in the diagram on the left. This means that far more people have had or have the disease right now. For the vast majority, the Corona virus is a harmless and mild disease. It is mainly for elderly people with underlying diseases that the infection is dangerous.

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The Corona infection is now present in almost all parts of Sweden, but the worst affected so far is the Stockholm area.

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To “flatten the curve”

You cannot completely stop the spread of Corona virus. Both in Sweden and the rest of the world, most people will be affected by the virus and for the majority this will not be dangerous. In order for the healthcare system to be able to care for both “ordinary” patients and those who need care for Corona, it is of the utmost importance that the infection spreads slowly, so that too many do not fall sick at the same time. This is what they call “pushing down the curve/flattening the curve”.

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The state of health care

Healthcare professionals in Sweden are currently working very hard. Many new intensive care units have been developed. There are problems in ensuring safety equipment for healthcare professionals in the long term. In the short term, however, there is enough safety equipment. At present, there is room for all patients who require intensive care. It is important that the society continues to flatten the curve for it to remain so.

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Individual responsibility

In order to flatten the curve, the whole community needs to take responsibility. For individuals, this means:

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• to stay at home if you have cold symptoms, even if these are mild. After the symptoms disappear, you should stay at home for another two days.

• to maintain a good physical distance from other persons, both indoors and outdoors.

• to cough and sneeze in the arm fold.

• to wash your hands often and carefully with warm water and soap (if you do not have access to water and soap, then hand sanitizer also works).

• to work from home, if you have a job that allows this.

• to not visit or meet people over 70 years of age.

• to avoid all social contact if you are over 70 years of age, including going shopping and travelling by public transport. It is good to go for a walk, but you have to avoid going near other people.

• to avoid parties and other social events.

• to avoid travelling in rush hour traffic.

• to not travel to other parts of the country, partly to avoid carrying the infection and partly to ensure that you stay where you are registered, if you yourself need hospital treatment.

• not to travel abroad (currently applicable until 15 July).

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Advice and rules in society

• Public gatherings of more than 50 people have been banned.

• Upper secondary and adult education held online.

• Visits to nursing homes have been banned.

• Sports clubs should, where possible, hold outdoor training sessions and other activities, postpone matches; friendly matches, competitions and cups and limit the number of spectators.

• Non-profit organisations should, if possible, postpone annual meetings and the like, if the meeting requires participants to meet at the same venue.

• In public transport, the number of passengers should be limited and the number of routes adjusted to avoid congestion.

• Employers should ensure that staff and visitors keep their distance, that employees work from home and avoid unnecessary travel.

• Shops, shopping centres, and malls should limit the number of customers staying in the premises at the same time. They should also develop alternative solutions to checkout queues or indicate how far customers should stand between each other.

• Congestion between people in queues, at tables, buffets or bar counters in restaurants  must not occur and visitors should be able to keep their distance between each other.

• Takeaway food can be handled over as usual, as long as it is possible to do without causing congestion between people.

 

These advice and rules apply until 31 December 2020 but may be repealed earlier or extended, if necessary.

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Miscellaneous

• Pre-schools and primary schools are still open as usual, so all healthy children should go to school. This is very  important for children’s health and development. It is very, very rare for children to become seriously ill from the virus. Do not transfer your own concerns about the situation to your children, but instead answer objectively to the questions the children ask. Try to stick to the usual daily routines and give the child hope by telling them that there are many adults working to make the situation better. If your child is home for a long time due to symptoms of illness, keep in touch with the school to find out what schoolwork the child should work with at home. Show your children how to wash their hands and remind them to do so.

• It is very important to stay at home when you feel sick and for as long as you are sick, so as not to risk infecting others. Wait at least two days after you recover before resuming work or school. If you are unable to recover from self-care at home, call 1177 for medical advice.

• It is important and healthy to train and to be outdoors and move about, both for children and adults. The important thing is to maintain physical distance from other people and observe hand hygiene.

• Because of the Corona situation, the government has launched several “crisis  packages”, i.e. economic support to companies, regions and municipalities.

• Sweden has a good food supply and the current situation with the virus outbreak Covid-19 has not affected Swedish food production to any great extent.

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Sources:

Public Health Agency, Folkhälsomyndigheten: https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/smittskydd-beredskap/utbrott/aktuella-utbrott/covid-19/

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Krisinfo.se: https://www.krisinformation.se/detta-kan-handa/handelser-och-storningar/20192/myndigheterna-om-det-nya-coronaviruset

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Municipality of Lund, Lunds Kommun: https://lund.se/kommun--politik/kommunens-organisation/kommunens-krisorganisation/coronavirus-covid-19/

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Government: https://www.regeringen.se/regeringens-politik/regeringens-arbete-med-anledning-av-nya-coronaviruset/regeringens-beslut-och-initiativ-med-anledning-av-nya-coronaviruset/