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When the first case of infection was known in Oslo on February 26, the district chief physician, Irene Teslo, was on duty. She raised the alarm about the spread of the infection the next day.
– They notified me of five cases and I called them. They knew 10, 20, 30 or 40 people with whom they could have had close contact. Then I realized that there were many to call, he said at the time.
Still, he thinks the tracking job is more demanding today than it was in March.
– Bigger job now
While the challenge at the end of March was, among other things, the large number of hospitalizations, it is now the need for resources to track infections that may be difficult in the future, Teslo believes.
– The amount of work to try to limit the spread of the infection is now greater at the municipal level. Now the goal is to keep the society open as long as possible, among other things to take care of the social, and that is important, he believes, but he also adds that the population has to improve even more in compliance with the infection control rules.
Nakstad before autumn: – Worried
The district superintendent says that she experiences that all district superintendents and municipal superiors contribute a lot and that it is perceived as necessary.
– We have worked a lot. Looking ahead, it is important to focus on having enough resources to support the infection detection work, which now consists of up to 100 times more people than before.
Infection among the elderly
14 of the 15 districts of Oslo are now “red” and cases of infection have been confirmed in 20 schools. At the same time, the FHI is extending the lip service recommendation on public transportation and the municipality is considering tightening infection control measures further.
Teslo is the chief doctor of the Old Oslo district, the district that as of Friday has the highest number of infections in the capital with 100 infected per 100,000 inhabitants. While young people generally lead the infection statistics, in this district there are also a growing number of older people who are infected, he says.
– In our district, we have seen a clear increase among those up to and including 70 years old, Teslo tells Dagbladet.
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Admissions can occur
The district superintendent says the reason for the increase in infection should be attributed primarily to social gatherings. She explains that in an environment where, for example, twenty people gather in a room where a distance of one meter is maintained, the infection can still spread to many.
She believes that increased infection among the district’s older farms may lead to hospitalizations in the future.
– Disturbing broadcast in Oslo
– The consequences of this are that they are more vulnerable to developing serious diseases. We know there will be some admissions soon, he says.
Unclear infection
While in Bergen, Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad outbreaks have been seen to a greater extent in certain places, the route of transmission in Oslo is less clear. This, Teslo believes, makes the situation demanding.
– It is a slow increase, which worries us considering that it has almost doubled on weekdays in recent weeks, and we see that the trend continues.
She says that this increase, combined with the degree of openness of society, means that municipalities must spend more resources on infection-tracking work, as there is closer contact between people.
The need for resources is increasing
FHI allows more face masks
– When there are many unclear routes of infection, it may be because people have been in many places with the infection, and it may also be that many of those who are infected do not know they are infected, he explains.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, much attention has been paid to the so-called super-spreaders, that is, those who have no or very mild symptoms and who are in contact with many people. Teslo believes that there may be a few of these different places in Oslo.
What is also happening now that society is so open, with schools, workplaces and social spaces, is that many are in quarantine to limit the outbreak, says Teslo.
The district superintendent explains that they then have to talk to each individual to make sure they understand what this means, make sure people get tested if they need it, and are followed up if they develop illness.
– And more and more people do that.
