Quarantine officially lifted in Lithuania: experts warn: it’s too early to celebrate

Status during quarantine is compared to war.

Head of the Vilnius City Mental Health Center, psychiatrist Martynas Marcinkevičius Delphi He said that the coronavirus crisis is extraordinary worldwide. According to the expert interviewed, he referred to the essential and most important aspect: the feeling of security.

“It just came to our attention then. This crisis, let’s say it was like that, was special and exceptional. People have survived several crises. However, it was more a crisis that affected economic and social life. This crisis is unique, since who first touched on the basic human need: security “, – M. Marcinkevičius highlighted the distinguished feature.

According to M. Marcinkevičius, security was affected on two sides. First of all, direct, when you are afraid of your life and the lives of your loved ones.

“We have this fear of getting sick, also, due to the economic high, the feeling of insecurity for everyone on the economic side.” The fears combined here, and something else, which was not the case with the previous crises, was contributed by the third element: social isolation ”, the interlocutor emphasized one of the elements of the quarantine.

“The world has not survived such a crisis, where all three elements would be mentioned, probably since the years of World War II, speaking on a global scale. Because similar things happen during the war, I am not talking about the soldiers sitting on the trenches, but of the people who remained in the cities during the war, “said M. Marcinkevičius.

He said he had observed similar effects in people living in eastern Ukraine.

According to him, the greatest fear and anxiety was felt at the beginning of the quarantine, the first month. Research conducted in Lithuania has shown that people rate their mental state 3-4 times worse.

Similar studies have been conducted in countries heavily affected by the coronavirus. In Italy, for example, 62 percent of respondents said they were thinking of helping psychological health professionals.

Mr. Marcinkevičius said that Lithuania should not feel any long-term consequences, because the strict quarantine did not last as long.

“This great fear and anxiety can already have long-term consequences if the condition persists. In this place, Lithuania, as the wave of virus was not great, did not reach alarming heights, there will be significantly less long-term consequences than in Italy or Spain Because it simply took a shorter elementary period, “explained the expert.

He argued that it is for this reason that high post-traumatic stress should not be observed.

“I think most people will not have that post-traumatic stress, depression and the like, as psychiatrists in highly affected countries point out,” said the psychiatrist.

What will happen next is unclear

M. Marcinkevičius, head of the Vilnius City Mental Health Center, said that the economic crisis, which was just beginning, did not allow us to clearly answer how long the effects of the quarantine would be felt.

“Perhaps the element of social isolation will fall, that danger to health and life, it seems to fall. But the economic element can really last a long time and have serious consequences. According to the forecasts provided, this crisis may be deeper than in 2008 –2009 ”, M. Marcinkevičius shared the forecasts.

“Anxiety prevails right now, but it is declining in society at large.” Another thing we face after social isolation is the long-term problems of alcohol use, “he said.

According to M. Marcinkevičius, there are two reasons for this. First, we alleviate anxiety with alcohol, and second, the right conditions are in place: telecommuting, no need to drive, no need to work, “why not drink in the morning.”

The director of the Vilnius City Mental Health Center stated that if we had overcome the economic crisis along with the quarantine, we could expect its consequences to disappear within 3-4 months. But now it is much more difficult to predict.

“It just came to our attention then. Most importantly, we didn’t feel much about the effects of the economic crisis.” Delphi M. Marcinkevičius said.

“Where’s the victory we’re talking about?”

Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor Vytautas Usonis Delphi He said celebrating the end of quarantine is pointless. According to him, the infection has not yet been overcome.

“It just came to our attention then. But I say: what has happened so much that we mention it? Where is the victory in question? Where does that caution come from? The cornerstone of epidemiology says that infections spread when there is a Source of infection, ways of spreading and a receptive society Here are the three corner elephants on which the world of infectious diseases rests.

Have we affected the source of the infection? Certainly not, because we detect each other a new case every day, and that says that viruses are circulating in our country. There is also no progress in jumping the paths of diffusion and talking about a receptive society. We are waiting for the vaccine, we do not know when it will be, there is a great discussion here. But it is clear that today it does not yet exist, it is the immunity of the society formed only by the sick, ”he assured.

Mr. Usonis cited the Swedish case as an example. The measures chosen to control the spread of the coronavirus in the country were extremely slight. This was expected to shape public immunity. However, this plan did not work.

“It just came to our attention then. They highly hoped that through that gentle quarantine, self-isolation measures for at-risk groups, high public immunity would be achieved. But they themselves admitted that their strategy did not work. (…) About One week, a study was published in Stockholm and, when analyzing public immunity, the results they received were 3 times less than expected.

In other words, there is no necessary level of public immunity, it remains the intermediate link: transmission routes. We have learned a lot here, both through quarantine and general hygiene, “said the professor.

Delphi recalls that at least 23% of the Stockholm region was expected to be reached at this time; universal immunity, where a large part of the public already enjoys immunity. It turned out that according to the latest research, that immunity is only 7.7 percent even in the Stockholm region.

Professor V. Usonis also made comments to prepare for the crisis.

“What did we see during the quarantine? That we were not prepared for emergencies. Masks were missing, lack of protective equipment, lack of disinfectants. Like people’s understanding of the threat and infection. (…) Public awareness is changing a little, but not as much as we would like, because everyone is happy to say that we will celebrate the end of the quarantine, because the officials allowed it, “V. Usonis was surprised.

When will we feel safe?

Professor V. Usonis was also surprised by anger at the discrimination of the elderly.

“But where do you see that (discrimination, aut. P.)? This is a poorly communicated message. After all, this infection is more dangerous for the elderly. No, I have been dangerous since I was 70 years old, but the environment is dangerous to me. Because if I get infected, I run the risk of contracting a more serious form of the disease, “said the doctor.

Speaking to Delphi He emphasized that there was also a lack of clear communication that was supposed to help residents make life decisions during a pandemic.

“The public must be properly informed, accessible and understandable to avoid distortion. (…) The point is: I have to understand, I have to explain. I have to decide if it is worth going to a concert or a cafeteria. We are excited about opening airports, but the question for me is how safe will I be, and I have to decide if I need to fly that much. (…) I have to make that decision, “said V. Usonis.

He argued that the element of responsibility must be adequately balanced.

“Although our mentality continues to be such that we are more inclined not to hold ourselves responsible, but more to ourselves (acceptable, aut. P.) than the officer allowed or did not allow, as prohibited, adequately or not. “In this place, quarantine was a time to discuss these issues and observe the classic things that are a little bit different,” he said.

When asked how long we will keep the lessons learned during quarantine, V. Usonis said as long as we don’t feel completely safe.

“I will make sure that I am safe when I receive information that the virus is no longer dangerous to me. How can this be? When I am tested and antibodies are found, I will be vaccinated with a modern vaccine. Because then, going back to the classics, I would no longer belong to a receptive society and I no longer care if the sources of infection or the routes of spread exist, I am no longer at risk. But perhaps other hygiene requirements are maintained, “said the interlocutor.

V. Usonis assured that we will feel safer only after developing a vaccine for this virus. And until then we will have to wait a long time.

“I do know that it is no longer relevant for me to wear a mask or disinfect my hands, but I could do it out of inertia, a culture of hygiene that has developed in society, but not because it is about safety.” And if we have to name the terms, then the very optimistic predictions of the vaccine (appearance, aut. Then we will be safer ” Delphi Said Doctor of Medical Sciences, Professor V. Usonis.

What strengthened the positions is immediately clear

There were also changes in the political arena during the quarantine.

Algis Krupavičius, dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Vytautas Magnus University (VMU), political scientist, assured that, firstly, the position of the Union of Lithuanian Peasants and Greens (LVŽS) was strengthened.

Its Deputy Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis and Health Minister Aurelijus Veryga played the first violin in this situation.

“First, the quarantine and the challenge of the pandemic strengthened the positions of the rulers. Because they had the responsibility to control the coronavirus. They have been at the epicenter of all important decisions, both in terms of quarantine and in terms of measures. and its duration. ” Delphi the political scientist spoke.

A. Krupavičius said that the strengthened positions of the rulers during the pandemic should not be surprising, it was noted throughout Europe, this concept is called “unification around the flag”. Therefore, the biggest aspect of government support must be seen in the context of other countries.

“Lithuanian government support from the public is unequivocally greater than before. While in Lithuania government support is around 60 percent, in other European countries these figures reach 80 percent. It is in this context that unification of society around the government is, I would say, even moderate, that of the smallest, “said the political scientist comparing the situation with other countries.

A. Krupavičius added that we cannot evaluate all rulers equally.

“Prime Minister S. Skvernelis demonstrated the most rational position. Minister A. Veryga is much more critical, a large number of health care institutions did not have sufficient evidence and protective measures at the start of the coronavirus pandemic due to their fault It is obvious that planning to prepare for the pandemic was not successful, “summarized the political scientist.

In the face of the crisis, many observers have lost the contribution of the country’s leader, Gitan Nausėda, to resolve the situation. According to A. Krupavičius, the President acted exactly in accordance with the responsibilities assigned to him by the Constitution.

“At the beginning of the quarantine, the president was looking for his role, a place under the changing political sun. He took certain steps, called the State Security Council. And those actions were certainly in line with the powers conferred on the President by the Constitution. But under the conditions of the crisis, with a two-headed structure of the executive branch, it really is not possible for the President to behave as he was, “said A. Krupavičius.

The rhetoric and actions of G. Nausėda and his team could also be criticized by the successor, the country’s outgoing head Dalia Grybauskaitė.

“As society in Lithuania is clearly oriented towards the president’s leadership in various situations, they may have been absent at the beginning of the quarantine.” The other thing is that President G. Nausėda’s management style is quite different: G. Nausėda follows the path of dialogue and commitment, not with the fists of order and blows. But later, he apparently found his niche: he was active in international and internal politics, “said the political scientist.

A. Krupavičius said the president’s promise to plant political leaders at a table for discussion was lost.

Predicts a blitzkrieg just before the Seimas election

In the context of recent information on the coronavirus and quarantine rules, the opposition has been overshadowed and has made no direct decisions on the situation. According to the Vytautas Magnus A. Krupavičius University political scientist, the opposition can be evaluated in a more controversial way than the criticisms expressed.

“The opposition was much less visible in the pandemic situation, and their actions and criticism were also much more controversial. Because much of the public expected government concentration and support. The latter found themselves in a slightly more complicated situation,” he said. the political scientist.

At the same time, he emphasized that increased activity by the Homeland Union, representatives of the Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), was visible.

The quarantine also affected the upcoming Seimas elections. According to A. Krupavičius, due to these challenges, the electoral campaign will be different from usual.

“The Seimas election campaign is out of sight. She really should become more active. The campaign is already different from the previous ones; firstly, it will be shorter. Because in Lithuania we were used to the fact that the election campaign begins between 6 and 9 months before the elections, it will be different now.

Summer break and voters are less concerned with politics. This will probably also be a factor that will deter parties from extremely active agitation. “We will probably see Blitzgriek, a rapid war just before the elections,” he said. Delphi shared by A. Krupavičius.

At the end of the quarantine, an electrical emergency will be maintained.

However, the fact that the quarantine has been lifted does not mean that the requirements for daily life no longer exist.

The nationwide state of emergency declared on February 26 will continue in force in the country.

And after June 16, some border controls remain. Control of the cross-border movement of power will continue, and the arrival of scheduled flights and ferries to Lithuania from countries affected by the coronavirus will be restricted.

Also, some guidelines for companies. In public places of service and commerce, a safe distance of 2 meters must be observed (it can be less if there is a partition or if personal protective equipment is used), the distances in the queues must be at least 1 meter.

Leisure and entertainment areas must also have a minimum distance of 1 meter in the queues, and it is prohibited to work with symptomatic workers or if they are assigned isolation.

Catering establishments are subject to a safe distance of 2 meters between people seated at tables, there is no restriction on the presentation of food (buffet, buffet), there is no longer a limit on working hours.

The number of participants and / or spectators allowed for cultural, entertainment, sports or other events from June 17. increased to 150 people indoors and 700 outdoors, and since July 1. until July 16. – up to 200 closed spaces and up to 1,000 open spaces. From June 17. the closed spaces cannot be filled more than 50%, the places of the participants (spectators) must be organized according to a chess principle.