On the 17th in Tokyo, 822 new coronavirus infections were confirmed, which is much higher than the record. Governor Yuriko Koike issued an emergency meeting in the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and issued a “Special Crown Warning of the end of the year and New Year.” At events like dinner, homecoming self-control, countdowns, and illuminations, he called for self-control and time reduction. For the first time, all four levels of alert regarding the health care delivery system in Tokyo have reached the highest level of “hardening”. In the capital Tokyo, the fear of medical collapse due to an explosion of infections is becoming a reality.

◇ ◇ ◇

The number of newly infected people in Tokyo rose from 678 on the 16th the day before to 144. High record for 2 consecutive days. At the meeting, Governor Koike emphasized: “A number that strongly emphasizes the need to have a sense of crisis more than ever. The virus has no calendar. It strikes at Christmas or during the New Years and New Years holidays. special moment”. He pointed to the monitor that was displayed in bright red as a “special New Year’s holiday wreath warning” and strengthened his morale.

Already in collaboration with the governors of the three metropolitan prefectures, we have asked the railway companies and the government to stop the operation of Omisoka overnight. It also aims to refrain from running annual countdowns and lighting projects, and shorten the time. He also gave concrete messages to the citizens of Tokyo, such as “I always spend time with people” and “Avoid going home as much as possible and refrain from eating dinner two weeks before going home.” We will continue to ask restaurants serving alcoholic beverages to reduce business hours. He also called on companies to take decentralized vacations and establish telecommuting.

At a monitoring meeting in Tokyo prior to this, Masataka Inoguchi, vice president of the Tokyo Medical Association, noted that “it is difficult to balance medical care for patients with corona infection with conventional medical care.” For the first time, the alertness of the health care delivery system has been raised to the highest level of “appears to be tight.” The decision was made assuming a situation in which the number of patients would inevitably increase, “to prepare for an almost definitive future.”

If the rate of increase in new infections is the same as it is now, it will exceed 1,000 per day by the end of the year. About 1% have become seriously ill and there is a risk that the number of seriously ill people will increase in the future. He called for the number of beds to be increased from the current 3,000 to 4,000, but “medical institutions have exhausted all their spare capacity. The only thing left is to reduce the number of new positives.” Mr. Inoguchi also revealed his real pessimistic intention.

Takao Omagari, director of the National Center for International Medical Research, also said: “There is a good possibility that it will increase explosively.” Concerns about the collapse of healthcare have become a reality before the end of the year and the New Year, when the position of medical institutions weakens.[Naohide Kamada]