Proposals by R.Šimašius and V. Matijošaitis on the management of CODIV-19: what should the Government and the municipalities take?

On Saturday afternoon, R. Šimašius wrote on Facebook that the Vilnius city municipality had analyzed the restrictions of 20 different European and global countries, which aim to stop the development of the COVID-19 virus.

According to him, this analysis has led to a series of conclusions and proposals, which he presents to all and will send to the responsible authorities early next week.

Ask for consistency

R.Šimašius writes that we are currently living the consequences of chaotic decisions: one day everything is allowed, the next, local quarantine is introduced with partial but inconsistent restrictions.

There is also talk of universal quarantine, but no one knows in advance what it means: would there be the same measures as in the spring, when everything is closed, or will we have a different quarantine this time?

It is proposed to follow the practice of other European countries when drawing up a restriction plan for security levels 5, defining clear criteria of when we have the first level, when we change it to the second, etc.

This will allow both residents and businesses to predict what further restrictions are possible if the situation continues to deteriorate. As the situation improves, everyone will clearly know which restrictions will be lifted first.

It is noted that there must be consistency and clarity in the restrictions.

“We urgently need to review the existing restrictions, they are inconsistent, which cuts across public confidence in the effectiveness of these restrictions. If we restrict the chess club and do not allow more than 5 people to gather, but at the same time allow thousands to enter sands (until yesterday, but today we still allow hundreds), we must understand that such ambiguous restrictions destroy the entire system, “said R. Šimašius. plan.

If we restrict a chess club and do not allow more than 5 people to gather, but at the same time allow thousands to enter the arenas, we must realize that such ambiguous restrictions destroy the entire system.

According to him, we cannot claim that two weeks are enough to radically change the situation. Some foreign countries do not hide the seriousness of the situation and speak of restrictions for at least one or two months.

It is said that the educational system is not closed.

“Even in the most disadvantaged countries, the education system has been left to work; We all understand that its closure would also limit telecommuting, which would have even more painful consequences for the economy. This should be a last clear front, such knowledge would help everyone to plan their time and telework, ”says the mayor of Vilnius.

The Vilnius City Municipality also proposes that the restrictions be realistic, justified, clear and easy to implement.

“I will give another example: mandatory masks in the field, and the exception only applies if there are no people in a radius of 20 m. And at the same time we carry out events with 200-400 spectators. Trust the citizens, tell them to wear masks outside among people, but if a person walks or runs on the street or in the forest alone, he can assess for himself whether a mask is really necessary, “writes R. Šimašius.

Request required

The Vilnius City Municipality also highlights a contact tracking app.

Lithuania has been creating it since spring, the latest public promise from the NVSC was heard: the application will appear at the end of September.

“It just came to our knowledge then. The vast majority of European countries have applications of this type, they all work on the same principle: record contacts via bluetooth. It is not a miracle elixir, but seeing as how we are late to inform the who have had contact with the infected person about the necessary self-isolation, this technology would help eliminate a large part of the workload of the NVSC that is broken, ”explains the plan.

The communication of restrictions, according to the proposals, must be clear.

It is also believed that unnecessary elective surgeries should be stopped and a group of doctors established.

“Seeing the rapid growth in the number of patients and the burden on hospitals, we must now stop unnecessary planned surgeries and mobilize a group of doctors, who we can direct to where there is the greatest shortage of doctors,” says R. Šimašius in his Facebook account.

Epidemiology nebespėja

According to the Kaunas City Council report, V. Matijošaitis reacted to the information that appeared on Friday that by registering more than 700 cases of coronavirus infection in the country every day, NVSC specialists were unable to call some of the people diagnosed with COVID-19.

There is no intention to explain the circumstances of your infection, epidemiological studies will not be conducted.

According to the press release of the Municipality of the city of Kaunas, it is estimated that during this week about 800 people were disconnected, who will no longer receive calls with information on self-isolation and other requirements and recommendations.

V. Matijošaitis publicly addressed the heads of other municipalities in the country, calling for a joint effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

One of the most important factors, he said, is the proper investigation of all identified COVID-19 cases.

“If a municipality does not cope with the increase in numbers, it would be the simplest, but not good, way to write them down. The number of cases will continue to increase, so if we ignore them now, control will soon be completely lost. Not only the army, but also the municipalities themselves should help their regional NVSC units, ”explains the mayor of Kaunas.

He took over the investigation

The report indicates that a week ago, specialists from the Kaunas City Municipality Public Health Office took over the investigation of COVID-19 cases in the city from specialists from the Kaunas region of NVSC.

Every day 20 to 40 public health specialists delegated by the city of Kaunas work.

They allegedly successfully investigated all registered cases submitted to the NVSC on the same day.

It is explained that, if necessary, employees of the Kaunas city municipality administration are also willing to assist public health specialists.

During the last week, specialists from the health offices of all the other municipalities in the region joined the initiative of the city of Kaunas.

They also assist regional NVSCs in diagnosing COVID-19 cases in the population.

“If together we ensure the investigation of cases in the Kaunas region, together we can do it in the rest of Lithuania as well. 700 or 1,000 boxes a day, spread over 60 municipalities, is certainly not an insurmountable task. Now is the time to think not only about the affairs of your city or district, but to look more broadly. I offer to come together and make a joint effort to ensure that the work that has been done for so long does not fail and that all cases are investigated smoothly, without interruption, ”said V. Matijošaitis.

Ask that the investigation not be reduced

The mayor of Kaunas also asks not to reduce the workload of the mobile checkpoints.

According to the report, V. Matijošaitis criticizes the decision taken on Friday not to allow municipalities to identify groups of people under investigation.

“The situation is different in each city or district and it is better for local specialists to see it closely. Therefore, it should remain possible for municipalities to provide additional population groups, for which preventive examinations are more necessary in a certain moment, “he explained.

It should continue to be possible for municipalities to source from additional population groups for which preventive examinations are more necessary at some point.

It is stated that in Kaunas more than a thousand tests are performed daily by the PCR method, taking nasopharynx smears. If necessary, the mobile checkpoint is ready to further extend your reach.

Proposes the introduction of universal quarantine

In Lithuania, 1001 new cases of coronavirus were detected on Friday.

Eight new deaths have also been reported.

This is the highest number of coronavirus deaths and infections recorded per day since the start of the pandemic.

The Vice Dean of the Vilnius University Faculty of Medicine, Professor Vytautas Kasiulevičius, drawing on the experience of Ireland and Israel, recommends that the Government adopt a multi-step action plan..

Among the measures offered by him: quarantine for 3-6 weeks, tests, hospital care.