From beds to tests, the 6 ES strategies to combat Covid-19

The shares were announced at a press conference on Monday afternoon (30) by the Secretary Nésio Fernandes and Undersecretary for Health Surveillance, Luiz Carlos Reblin, who, together, presented the panorama of the disease in the State. The expansion of the supply of beds is already taking place gradually, as the pressure on health services increased, which now also meet a high demand for other diseases.

Reblin says that, since the beginning of the month, more than 90 beds have been made available to exclusively care for Covid patients, totaling 983 places between ICU and nursing by the Unified Health System (SUS). At least another 160, according to Nésio Fernandes, should be available to the population by the end of December, in the program to expand the network itself.

“We are going to publish, next week, the ordinance that will bring the details of the beds by region and hospitals. This week, we are reopening beds from Santa Casa de Colatina to Covid-19 and reorganizing some beds in the South and Metropolitan Region” , advances the secretary.

Nésio Fernandes says that the expansion plan will be divided into four phases, but will have different characteristics from those adopted in the first Covid-19 acceleration curve in the state. The secretary observes that, for the moment, he does not have the same number of beds in the private network, for example, nor can he reduce the supply of places for other diseases.

“Nor will we be restricting economic and social activities as much as the first time. Therefore, the inaugurations that can be made and the new adjustments designed in the hospitals themselves will now take place, which were not foreseen in the first stage. Espírito Santo prepares new works, new constructions and adaptations in hospitals of direct public management ”, he points out.

The secretary adds that, at this time, the planning also points out that the expansion does not take place by fixed dates, but by triggers. In some cases, Nésio Fernandes acknowledges, if the pressure on the health system is greater than the capacity of the network to care for patients, some elective surgeries can be suspended again. “But, even in a worse scenario, we hope to be able to withstand the behavior of the disease,” he stresses.

In relation to the tests, Sesa plans five strategies: to pass from 2,000 to 3,000 tests per day; accredit private laboratories; perform antigen testing; organize the sorting center; and reuse rapid serological tests.

“We decided to postpone it for 21 days, and we did not cancel it because we are adjusting the organization of the tests; we are going to introduce these other ways of testing ”, he explains.

The extension of the tests allows to identify more cases that, in this way, are isolated to interrupt the chain of transmission of the disease.

Asked about the validity period of the tests received from the Ministry of Health, given that there are many kits with an expiration date in the States, Reblin clarifies that the situation in Espírito Santo is different, and that all supplies will be used in their original validity . although, according to him, it is possible that the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) does what they call “reprogramming”, that is, analysis of the material to establish a new expiration date.