Coronavir survival plan: individuals in three risk groups, targeted tests

Follow the comments on the approved coronavirus management strategy here:

According to S. Skvernel, we want to congratulate all the people who have contributed to a good enough situation due to the coronavirus in the country.

At the same time, he said that the reality is that there is no vaccine or medicine for coronavirus, so we have to accept the reality that we will have to live next to COVID-19.

Today a strategy has been approved that will be accompanied by other documents.

S. Skvernelis indicated that the coronavirus management strategy will be implemented according to five key principles.

These include: the storage of high-risk individuals; proactive case finding and prompt implementation of necessary measures; society informed punctually and objectively; decision making based on evidence and facts; international cooperation, in particular at the level of the European Union.

When asked if the highest-risk people may work remotely for two years, Skvernel said it could only be predicted.

At the same time, he noted that teleworking is not a disadvantage, there are opportunities for that. It is said that a lot will depend on the recommendations of the doctors. If they did not recommend it, it would be possible to work normally, not remotely.

Skvernelis said these are tools that are still used today, as high-risk people need to be protected. These include working remotely, wearing masks, and avoiding contact.

Three risk groups of individuals

The strategy distinguishes three levels of risk for individuals: high (over 60 years of age, with significant comorbidities, individuals with direct contact with people infected with coronavirus and the like), medium and low.

It is stated that the higher the degree of risk, the more intense the protection measures must be.

Low-risk people would be subject to standard public health measures.

“The application of the second principle, the proactive location of cases and the prompt implementation of the necessary measures, allows the location of viral cases, control measures are taken.^{Proactively test and, if necessary, ring quarantines to stop the virus from spreading. Localization can be applied to an entity of any size and organizational form: it can be a family (home), a company or institution, a kindergarten, a hospital, a store, a city district, a municipal area, and the like “indicates the strategy.}

It is argued that the application of extremely strict quarantine conditions, especially throughout the country, is the last resort to control the spread of the virus when epidemiological data confirms that other measures taken are not effective enough.

Therefore, proactive testing measures will aim to identify virus infection cases as soon as possible and locate cases. Cases will be located and appropriate quarantine conditions will be established for the regimen based on the results of the control. Epidemiological: When applying ring quarantine, compliance with the established quarantine conditions becomes an essential and more important aspect to stop the spread of the virus in a large part of the country’s territory or throughout the country, “the strategy states.

Therefore, proactive testing measures will aim to identify and locate cases of virus infection as soon as possible.

New outbreaks of the virus can occur.

The strategy assumes that decreasing quarantine conditions and a gradual return to active social, economic, and cultural life for people at lower risk can lead to an increase in the number of people infected with the virus, as well as the occurrence of of new and different shoots.

Therefore, it is very important to ensure the timely operational investigation of people suspected of being infected with the virus in all regions of Lithuania. It is also necessary to strengthen epidemiological controls and implement measures that can facilitate and accelerate control processes.

Targeted proactive testing is considered one of the key elements of the virus management control mechanism.

Such tests, as described in the document, will be conducted in hospitals and other personal health care facilities, nursing homes, and nursing homes where people at high risk for personal risk factors and physicians are most at risk.

“Specific inspections will be carried out in shops, pharmacies, welfare homes, educational institutions and other places with a high concentration of people and close contacts. Specific criteria will be established based on which target groups or objects should be selected for proactive specific testing.

In addition to specific tests, national and regional random tests will be carried out to minimize the possible spread of the virus. The mechanism will include the full sequence of actions necessary to identify an infected person during the test: quarantine and testing the contact ring of the infected person, “says the strategy.

Specific inspections will be carried out in shops, pharmacies, welfare homes, educational establishments and other places with a high concentration of people and close contacts.

Based on the results of proactive tests, specific locations in the country according to the spread of the virus can be declared as high risk or, conversely, safer areas where the requirement to meet or eliminate infectious security requirements could be relaxed.

Review system availability

It is observed that, in view of the projected future global pandemic of the virus and possible epidemiological crises in individual countries, as well as an objective evaluation of the experience of the country’s health system in March-April 2020, a major review is planned. The readiness of the Lithuanian health system for such situations, to strengthen the capacity of the health system, to prepare plans on how and who should act.

“It should be noted that to avoid the extremely painful consequences of the new coronavirus, and deaths from the virus, a major review of the healthcare delivery model is planned to assess whether healthcare should be complemented by a new permanent group of healthcare services. , dealing with the consequences of COVID-19, in addition to emergency care and planned services, ”says the COVID-19 strategy.

Lithuania is said to be already actively participating in the ongoing research on effective drugs and plans to participate in the development of a vaccine against the virus.

Participation in such research will be guaranteed and will be developed proactively, as one of the priorities is to provide the country with effective and innovative tools for disease treatment and virus prevention as soon as they are developed and validated.

“With the proper infrastructure and other necessary conditions, Lithuania would undertake the production of diagnostic tools and their components,” indicates the strategy.

In the social field, the challenges posed by the viral pandemic include a review of the way social and other services are delivered, new opportunities to provide services in such a way as to minimize any risk to high-risk people, while responding appropriately to users of the service. needs.

The strategy establishes that, in the economic field, financing must be allocated to human capital, the digital economy, innovation, economic infrastructure and energy.

Concentrating investment in these areas would help build an intangible and physical infrastructure to increase the long-term participation of high value-added companies in the country’s economic fabric, sustainable growth regions, and a sustainable and climate-friendly economy. “the document said.

The strategy will be reviewed when a vaccine against the virus is developed; drugs developed for viral diseases; scientifically proven to develop immunity to the virus.

Prepare for possible waves or outbreaks

Health Minister Aurelius Veryga said at a press conference on Wednesday that the new coronavirus management strategy is not so much about bans but about the measures necessary to ensure the normal and sustainable operation of the country and all its sectors, as well like medical care. running

“It just caught our eye then. Prepare for possible future waves or outbreaks of infection again. But we are not really talking about some kind of restrictions, but more about how the country could face this great challenge, which, of course, is a challenge not only for Lithuania, but also for other countries in the world, “said A. Veryga.

But what is really at stake here is not necessarily some kind of restriction, but how the country can face this great challenge.

Skvernel told Seimas on Tuesday that the coronavirus crisis management strategy will likely reflect a two-year period: how we will have to behave and by what criteria we will divide the population into risk groups.

“It just came to our attention then. We will have to store them as well. These ways can be found in several ways: from wearing protective gear to minimizing contact. That part of educators is also included in the group where they will probably have to follow those recommendations. “, said.

Shapes can be found in several ways: from wearing protective gear to minimizing contact.

S. Skvernelis explained that we will have a new reality in which we will have to live for years, not months.

The Prime Minister stressed that even after the quarantine is lifted, there will be recommendations and instructions on how people should protect themselves and others.