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Even through the mask, it is clear that the topic of conversation is almost always the same. In the last week, in Paços de Ferreira, Lousada and Felgueiras, the number of people infected by the new coronavirus became worrying and led to the imposition of more restrictive measures. As a result of seeing the virus settle for the second time in her city, a waitress at a cafe in Felgueiras says: “They look at us like the black sheep of the north, but we are used to it.”
The main explanation for the numbers will be the social interaction among the younger population. The Prime Minister ruled out the possibility of a health fence, but other measures were applied, such as the duty to stay at home after midnight on Thursday, the obligation to telework for all functions that allow it, the ban. of any event with more than five people, as well as the closure of commercial establishments at 10 pm – in addition, of course, the prohibition of movement between municipalities between October 3 and November 3, which applies throughout the country.
Circulation between municipalities prohibited from October 30 to November 3
The Tâmega e Sousa Hospital Center, which serves these and other municipalities in the region, is under pressure, with emergencies reaching 800 daily assistances and with 100 Covid patients hospitalized in 500 available beds. Schools have infected teachers and students, but also quarantined employees, their operation may be at stake due to a lack of non-teaching staff. In companies, the number of positive cases is still modest, but contingency plans have already been triggered and industrialists ask for responsible behavior on the part of the population so as not to end the activity. Among small businesses, from butchers to hair salons, many are even considering closing their doors because they can’t pay the rent. The terraces are practically empty, as are the benches in the garden.
On March 2, 2020, the first infected with the new coronavirus emerged in Portugal. He was a cardiologist who had come from northern Italy, where he had spent the Carnival holidays. “It started by having typical symptoms, that is, fever and cough. At 6 in the afternoon of March 1, we had a positive test, but at that time it was mandatory to do a second test, so at 3 in the morning they gave us confirmation that he was really infected, “he described at the time the director of the infiologist to the Observer. Santo António Hospital, in Porto, where the 60-year-old man was hospitalized for 13 days.
Patient zero in Portugal was a cardiologist and worked in Penafiel, more precisely at the Tâmega e Sousa Hospital Center, which is now under pressure again because of Covid-19. “We were the first hospital to suffer the effects of the pandemic and also the first to get rid of it. In the first phase we had 80 infected inmates, but for now we already have 100 hospitalized and seven in the intensive care unit“Says Carlos Alberto Silva, president of the Board of Directors.
The hospital serves 14 counties in four districts and has been experiencing “unexpected pressure” in recent weeks. “We serve about 5% of the Portuguese population, which corresponds to 520 thousand people, and we are under intense pressure that forces us to reorient professionals and redo internal circuits,” he underlines.
Carlos Alberto Silva does not want alarmism nor does he admit that the hospital is reaching its maximum capacity, of 500 beds in total, and guarantees that there is still flexibility in the services to manage the number of hospitalizations. However, “This flexibility is not infinite either, we have to convince the population to adopt more responsible behaviors”. This is precisely the reason that points to the increase in the region. “We were counting on growth thanks to the return to work and classes, but there are people who have not yet realized the seriousness of the situation.”
The summer was “quiet” and even allowed to recover the waiting lists for consultations and surgeries, but now the situation is more “difficult” and “complicated”. “We were forced to manage unexpected numbers, we expected this dimension at a later stage, not in October,” he reveals. His main concern is related to the emergency service, which already reaches 800 daily visits. “This number exceeds the peak of attendance that we register with the flu. It is more than we could imagine ”, he says, adding that“ it is necessary for the population not to go to the emergency room to get tested, but to contact the Saúde 24 line or the family doctor ”.
