Covid shoots up in Araraquara (SP) and city hall resumes exclusive service

The new increase in Covid-19 cases in Araraquara (273 km from São Paulo) led the city hall to create again this Friday (27th) a health unit for the exclusive care of suspected or confirmed cases of the disease.

Vila Xavier’s UPA (Emergency Care Unit) was used during much of the pandemic as a service center for Covid. With the cooling of cases after the advance of vaccination, however, the place also started to treat other diseases.

The city, however, had a new high of the disease in May. There were 5 deaths and 5,833 confirmed cases, against 1,573 cases and no deaths in April. Even so, the situation in the municipality remains better than in January, when 19,485 cases and 33 deaths were recorded.

​Since the beginning of the pandemic, in March 2020, Araraquara has 71,121 confirmed cases, with 685 deaths.

The health scenario in the city is even more complicated due to another problem: a dengue epidemic with 9,240 cases and 13 deaths.

“We decided to resume service at the Vila Xavier UPA exclusively for Covid in view of the great demand from people with flu syndrome and the increase in the number of confirmed cases of the disease. today is that we will be increasing the number of people to carry out the collection, as well as we will leave three exclusive doctors for the care of Covid”, said the secretary of Health of Araraquara, Eliana Honain.

According to the secretary, the difference is that now the municipal structure will be more focused on the attendance and testing of the population.

Due to vaccination —more than 90% of residents have a complete vaccination schedule—, cases of disease complications and hospitalizations in wards and ICU (Intensive Care Unit) have dropped in recent months.

There are three people hospitalized with Covid in the ICU and 29 in wards in the city today, a very different scenario from that recorded at the height of the disease in the municipality.

In early 2021, with the circulation of the P.1 strain, Araraquara became a symbol of the spread of the disease in the country, having more than 200 people hospitalized and having to transfer patients to other cities.

“We know that the vaccine does not prevent the disease 100%, but it prevents complications and, consequently, deaths”, said the secretary.

With the exclusive use of the Vila Xavier UPA, care for patients with other diseases was transferred to two other UPAs, Central and Valle Verde.

The situation meant that the field hospital created to serve patients with Covid and which had been deactivated was reopened exclusively for dengue cases.

The place is open daily from 7 am to 9 pm, especially for the hydration of dengue victims.

“With this, we are sure that we are organizing the best possible way to assist the two pathologies. Today Covid with a higher incidence, second dengue”, said the secretary.