Doctors with strange criticism of Corona: “Too many things are being tested” – Coronavirus Vienna

Doctors criticized the current testing strategy in Austria on Friday in Linz: Too many tests are being carried out and too much “not reflected”, for example, in gastronomic and tourism screenings. In addition, they appealed at a press conference to the Upper Austrian Medical Association to return the tests to doctors and asked patients not to be afraid of doctors’ offices or hospitals.

The doctors present, some of them renowned, urged a return to normal operations at the ordinations. “We can mark the hope that we can eradicate the virus with strict measures,” said Franz Allerberger, head of AGES ‘public health division. In the future, SARS-CoV-2 “will join the other winter infections. You have to be prepared for that.” A child who has a temperature of 39 degrees should definitely be a doctor, he asked everyone not to avoid doctors’ offices because of Corona.

Health scientist Martin Sprenger emphasized that the principle of proportionality always applies in medicine. The benefits must outweigh the side effects, referring to the “side effects” of the lockdown: “Unemployment doubles the risk of death,” he said, noting that many people suffer from other ailments, from cardiovascular to psychological problems. – He didn’t go to the doctor.

“If we reawaken fears now, the insufficient supply will increase again,” he warned against the fact that many might again shy away from attending ordinations for fear of infection. Nor does it consider that the restrictions on celebrations announced by the federal government on Thursday are proportionate: “Do we ban parties because of other health risks? No.” A different way of dealing with infectious diseases must be established, said Sprenger, who also believes that vaccination is “not an exit scenario.”

Doctors also criticized the current testing strategy in Austria: Petra Apfalter, director of the Institute of Hygiene, Microbiology and Tropical Medicine at Ordensklinikum Linz, spoke out against the current practice of testing asymptomatic “cross-bred” people in various industries. “We are currently measuring a characteristic that does not necessarily mean that someone is sick,” he said. After all, 90 percent of infections “do not follow a serious course.” Wolfgang Ziegler, president of the general medicine section of the Upper Austrian Medical Association, says: “Too many things are being tested.” The decision of whether someone should be tested should rest with the doctors again and not with the 1450 hotline, both believe.

In addition, doctors fear that other diseases, including serious ones, will take a back seat due to Corona. Especially in the first phase, many were afraid of the hospital, said Rainer Gattringer, a specialist in internal medicine, clinical microbiology and hygiene at the Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic. But hospital hygiene in Austria is one of the best. “Dare to go to hospitals,” he appealed. General practitioners have also learned a great deal in terms of managing the ordination and treatment of potentially infectious patients. According to Ziegler, there is now a management of spatial and temporal distance, etc. “We can manage that,” Sprenger said. “Dear politician, don’t panic, it will go down again!”