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“Family reunions have been responsible for 67% of the cases reported in recent days in the country,” said the general director of health, Graça Freitas, at the press conference on the situation of the pandemic in Portugal this Friday, referring to to the number of cases of new infections that have arisen after weddings, baptisms or others.
“When the health authorities carry out an epidemiological investigation, they find this type of interaction,” revealed the director general of health, calling on families “to refrain, in this phase of increasing transmission in the community, from having these festive gatherings.” which obviously lead to relaxation, multiple contacts and close contacts. This is often accompanied by meals, food and drink intake, the masks are removed, further increasing the risk. “
Graça Freiras was very clear: “We appeal to everyone’s collaboration, we are not in 2019. It is up to us to counteract the spread of the virus in Portugal”
“Natural concerns” regarding the number of cases
The figures leave little doubt: in the last 24 hours, there were 1,394 new covid-19 infections in Portugal and 12 deaths, which translates into a fatality rate of 2.5% in relation to the total population and 13 % in the population over 70 years of age.
In addition, according to the Minister of Health, Marta Temido, the incidence rate of covid-19 is 67.4 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants; however, it has risen to 115.4 in the last 14 days.
These indicators “inspire natural concerns” due to the pressure exerted on the National Health Service, admitted the Minister of Health, however, she insisted on highlighting that at this time the NHS and the country are much better prepared to respond to the pandemic .
In terms of testing capacity, it went from an average of 2,500 daily tests in March to 19,600 daily tests this October. On October 7, a new test record was set: 28,392 tests were performed.
Also in terms of the number of fans, to the 742 fans available in March, another 713 are added (of the 966 already delivered).
And finally, Marta Temido highlighted the investment made in the SNS24 Line. At the beginning of the pandemic, the phone line could only handle 67% of calls and the average waiting time was 26 minutes. This week, 97% of the calls were answered with a waiting time of 57 seconds (“at a pressure level close to 18,000 calls”).
The minister also highlighted the installation of specific hotlines for outbreaks by video call, the psychological support line and also the Trace COVID application, which she considers a “fundamental tool” to combat the spread of viruses.
Primary care and humanization: what needs to be improved
Despite everything, there are “many things to continue improving,” he said, such as “telephone attention” and waiting in primary care, areas in which he hopes to advance “in the next two months.” “We are talking about complex interventions and old NHS problems that have worsened in the context of the pandemic,” he said.
Another aspect to improve is the response to non-covid assistance needs. In August, primary health care registered 920,000 fewer consultations than usual, a figure that was still less than more than one million unanswered visits in May, June and July (this, taking as a point of comparison 18 million consultations in 2019 ).
“This is a balance for which everyone must be counted on, although it requires stress levels higher than what would be a simple option to cancel non-urgent activity,” said the minister. “This is not the time for anyone to give up and I’m sure we can count on the best.”
Finally, Marta Temido recognized that another aspect to improve is related to the humanization of health care, something that must be preserved in this difficult context. In this regard, the general director of health, Graça Freitas, stressed that with regard to pregnant women, the DGS directives are that “hospital units must ensure the conditions to guarantee the presence of a companion during childbirth.”
28 outbreaks in schools
Regarding schools, currently 28 outbreaks are identified in educational establishments, corresponding to 75 confirmed cases.
Finally, regarding the flu vaccine, which at this time of year is usually made available to the most vulnerable populations, Graça Freitas guarantees that “everything is going according to plan, even better.” Vaccines are now available and the home vaccination campaign has started.
