The endurance of the National Health System will be tested for the 4th year by the covid-19 infection, as well as by other respiratory infections whose spread has recently registered a leap in the community and their peak is expected in the coming weeks, while the opening of schools is expected to further increase cases.

“It is likely that we will once again experience situations of limit resistance both for the National Health System and for the patients”, “the occupancy of hospital beds already reaches 100%”, says Dr. Stamatoula Tsikrikas, pulmonologist at the ‘Sotiria’ Hospital and president of the Union of Pulmonologists of Greece, describing the situation that has developed, as well as the possibilities of the NHS.

A cocktail of respiratory viruses has made 2024, with a large portion of the population in the early hours of the year, either standing in line outside a pharmacy to buy a seasonal flu or coronavirus diagnostic test or waiting in line outside an Emergency Department Cases to be examined and possible treatment to alleviate the symptoms”, says Mrs. Tsikrikas.

Hospital bed occupancy reaches 100%

“The vertical jump in the number of coronavirus cases in our country, combined with the seasonal flu, the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), as well as other respiratory viruses, is numerically reflected in occupancy that reaches almost 100% in hospital beds and in increased admissions to Intensive Care Unit beds throughout the territory”, emphasizes Mrs. Tsikrikas.

According to the latest epidemiological report of EODY, 1,818 patients are being treated in hospitals with covid-19. Imports showed a 44% increase over the average weekly number of imports in the previous 4 weeks (n=1,259) and was higher than the number of imports in the corresponding week of 2022 (n=1,519).

Festive gatherings have played a key role in the increase in cases of viral respiratory infections and in addition for covid-19 the sub-variant JN.1. To date, 179 strains of JN.1 have been detected in our country.

According to WHO guidelines, the fastest growing subvariant JN.1 of the “Omicron” strain of the coronavirus is highly infectious and disseminates in the community with a significant impact on morbidity and mortality in susceptible and vulnerable population groups.

Seasonal flu and RSV

In addition, the Organization warns of the need to protect Public Health and especially people with increased co-morbidities from seasonal influenza and RSV which are expected to peak in cases in the coming weeks.

The specific respiratory viruses, reminds the president of the Union of Pneumologists of Greece, are transmitted in a very relevant way and present similar symptoms, such as, for example, high fever, dry or productive cough, difficulty breathing, hoarseness of voice, headache, breathlessness, odor, myalgias, arthralgias, manifest weakness and payment. Some more specific manifestations such as sleep disorders or “brain fog”, i.e. reduced ability to think and concentrate, are observed to varying degrees during the progression of a viral disease, including the covid-19 infection.

The opening of schools will lead to more growth

The bet of the next few days is the return to desks and educational activities which “will lead to an even greater quantitative increase in cases, without being able to accurately calculate the real number of infections in the community”, notes Mrs. Tsikrikas.

EODY recommends the observance of basic measures to reduce the risk of transmission of infections at all levels of the educational system:

  • Regular hand washing with soap and water, alternatively, the application of an alcoholic antiseptic solution is recommended.
  • Good ventilation of indoor teaching areas.
  • Avoiding gatherings of many people – keeping physical distances.
  • Avoiding touching your face, nose, eyes and mouth and washing your hands well before and after.
  • Cough or sneeze into elbow or tissue. If a tissue is used, it should be carefully disposed of after a single use followed by hand washing.
  • If a student shows symptoms of a respiratory infection (sore throat, cough, runny nose) or has a positive laboratory test result for a respiratory pathogen such as SARS-CoV-2, influenza virus or RSV, it is recommended to stay at home and limit contacts of with other people.
  • Staying at home is recommended until the symptoms subside or improve and at least 24 hours have passed since the fever has completely subsided (without taking antipyretics).

Strengthening of the NSS

“Although we are in the fourth year after the arrival of the covid-19 infection, we must recognize that in no case is the medical community at the same level of knowledge and therapeutic management. Nevertheless, little seems to have been assimilated from the painful health experience of the pandemic at the staff level and it is likely that we will once again experience situations of limit resistance both for the National Health System and for the sufferers, as a result of burnout and feelings of stress on both sides and irritation from health professionals and patients”, says the president of the Union of Pulmonologists of Greece.

“There is an urgent need, the immediate planning and organization of a new health map across the territory, the targeted strengthening and restructuring of health service providers, the staffing of all Health Levels, especially Primary, as well as the proper management of human and logistical resources which will decompress the already understaffed NHS and significantly improve the level of provision of health services to citizens”, he adds.

Ms. Tsikrikas concludes that “for those nostalgic for restrictions and lockdowns, it became completely clear and understandable that daily life cannot continue with continuous obligations and prohibitions. The mental, socio-economic and health effects are particularly painful and terribly unpredictable, while everything shows that we have already passed the stage of living with viruses rather than isolation and sterilization. With climate change just around the corner, the aggressiveness and emergence of newly emerging pathogens is undeniable, a fact that worries and alerts the scientific community around the world.”