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To curb the rapid increase in numbers, yesterday it was decided to take another strict measure: from tomorrow there will be a two-week ban on visits to nursing homes and hospitals. “The situation is serious, even very serious,” stressed the health official Christine Haberlander (VP) and the regional social representative Birgit Gerstorfer (SP) in a joint broadcast and once again called for compliance with the protection measures.
Exception for end-of-life care
There are exceptions to the prohibition of home visits as part of the palliative and palliative care movement, pastoral care, and “accompaniment of critical life events.” Residents can leave home, but must have a medical checkup upon return. Also, employees must wear a FFP2 mask while on duty, outside service providers cannot enter homes. The prohibition on visiting hospitals does not apply to companions who are dying, children, or companions at birth.
- Video: No home and hospital visits
Especially vulnerable and sick people need to be protected, according to Haberlander and Gerstorfer. The visitation ban is known to be severe, but: “We continue to request your understanding and adherence to the guidelines.” If it fails to curb the number of infections, there will be a “much more painful price” to pay. Currently 333 employees and 350 residents in 84 Upper Austria nursing and retirement homes have tested positive for Covid-19. Across Austria, the number of infected nursing home residents is 1507 and there are 877 confirmed cases among employees.
More testing in homes
Since there are “too many” cases of infection in households, the number of tests has been “greatly adjusted”, Health Minister Rudi Anschober (Grne) said yesterday. Last week 100,000 antigen tests were delivered to nursing homes and nursing homes. Another three million have been ordered and are going to be moved into homes step by step.
1,631 new infections in Upper Austria
Yesterday, Sunday, 1631 people in Upper Austria tested positive for the corona virus. There are currently 12,550 cases in the state. 17 people died of Covid-19 over the weekend.
Yesterday 5,933 positive tests were carried out throughout Austria. Upper Austria has been the federal state with the highest number of new infections for days.
One explanation is the many tests, it is said on request. Compared to other federal states, they rely less on gargle or antigen testing, but adhere to the “gold standard,” PCR testing. Due to the higher precision, you can also find more positive cases, so the reasoning. There is little joy in the statement by Health Minister Rudi Anschober (Grne) on Twitter, who sees “a lot of parties” as a reason in the last weekend before closing.
The development is also clearly reflected in hospitals. On October 30 there were 369 people with Covid disease in the hospital, until yesterday there were 694 people. The increase is even more evident in intensive care units, where the number has nearly tripled from 31 to 91 in a ten-day period. There are currently 27,604 Upper Austria in quarantine.
