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In European countries such as Spain, France and the United Kingdom, the spread of the infection has increased again, but in Sweden the situation is more favorable. There are fewer and fewer new infections, isolated deaths every day, and just over 10 covid patients receiving intensive care.
However, autumn may present new challenges, according to the Director General of the Swedish Public Health Agency.
What worries you the most before fall?
– What has worried us all along when it comes to this virus: the unpredictability and the tendency to over-spread the local outbreaks that have constantly driven this pandemic. First to Korea, then to Italy, to other parts of Europe and then to Sweden, says Johan Carlson.
– That it can also happen anywhere in Sweden and that we must have a high level of preparedness to quickly detect local outbreaks. We work very hard with that.
Who is responsible for finding local cases of cluster infections?
– It is the health service that must find the cases, but we have several other systems that we run in parallel. The Swedish Public Health Agency has previously worked extensively with online influenza surveillance, where we look for special words that people search for that are associated with disease, says Johan Carlson.
The public health authority controls Groups selected to see if there is a spread of infection in the community. Information on special circumstances in which the infection has spread is also collected to more quickly detect new similar situations. It may be about connecting the infection to a specific location and finding out which people traveled there or from there. In this way, a super transmitter can be called.
Last week, Finland launched an application that warns of an infection. Are there any such plans for Sweden?
– We constantly look for different possibilities, but we still do not believe that there is an optimal solution. Applications in Germany and South Korea, among others, have had data integration issues and several have been discontinued. We want to be sure that it works in a Swedish context, so that the invasion of privacy is not too great. If we find something that fits, we will definitely try to get hooked.
Is it time to wait and learn from the mistakes of others?
– Yes, if we had been hooked at the beginning of the process, we would have had to close several times. Many countries have made attempts that have not worked since.
Last week was completed 126,000 covid tests in Sweden. According to Johan Carlson, the record sampling is proof that regions have started tracking infections.
– It is not just about the people who have sought care, it is largely an effect of the infection tracking chains that have been started, says Johan Carlson.
In Norway, one is currently underway big bud in Sarpsborg. More than 200 people have been infected after a 10-day celebration of a Muslim holiday. More than 2,500 people have been quarantined in Sarpsborg and the neighboring municipality of Fredrikstad. Johan Carlsson believes that we will see many similar cases in the fall. and follow developments closely.
– This is a typical case, as is the limited outbreak in Gällivare. This is a special group that celebrated a holiday. It’s these situations, which aren’t always obvious in society at large, that we need to be on the lookout for, says Carlson.
