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In last Thursday’s “Aktuellt”, Anders Tegnell was interviewed about why Sweden differs markedly from the rest of the Nordic countries in terms of death rates from covid-19. The response of the state epidemiologist has been questioned and defended.
– There are a number of differences that are very obvious. These are countries that are relatively sparsely populated and have small populations. Small groups of immigrants that have been very active in many countries. So there are a number of differences between us and these, and that makes us much more like the countries of Europe, Tegnell said.
Anders Tegnell has later explained in Aftonbladet that “driving” It was an unfortunate choice of words, but that foreign-born people have been more affected by the virus than other parts of the Swedish population. Experts from the Public Health Agency have also clarified that “The risks of getting sick are higher among people who live in a situation of greater socioeconomic vulnerability”.
Also overrepresented in Norway
Frode Forland, director of infection control in Norway, partly agrees with his Swedish colleague. Even in Norway, immigrants have been hit hardest by the virus, he says.
– I don’t think it’s a complete explanation, but it’s an important issue. In Norway we received early information from Anders Tegnell that immigrants were particularly affected in Sweden, which meant that we could draw attention to these groups. Also in Norway, the group has been over-represented in terms of infections, hospital care and deaths. We have worked very hard to have good communication in these environments.
This spring, the Expressen survey showed that there has long been a lack of information about the coronavirus in several common languages in the Stockholm suburbs. The measures were delayed despite alarms about the increasing spread of the infection.
Sweden also has a slightly higher proportion of foreign-born, with almost 20% compared to 15% in Norway, according to the statistical authorities Statistics Sweden and Norwegian Statistics Norway.
– In total, Sweden has slightly more immigrants than Norway, which may be an explanation. It should not be stigmatized, but should be discussed openly about this to find measures that limit infection among immigrants, because they have been the most vulnerable, says Frode Forland.
See another explanation
However, he notes that there are some important differences in the population shortages of the countries, in addition to the Greater Stockholm region. Frode Forland sees a more obvious explanation for why the coronavirus affected countries so differently.
– I mainly think that the spread of the infection is different because they did not hit hard in the first phase in Sweden. They took it easy for the first few weeks. Since then, it has also had a smoother entry. It gave a further spread of the infection throughout society. The infection has been hidden for the summer, and when it broke out in a second wave, all Swedish regions are at a higher average than Norway. Sweden has also kept its borders open during the pandemic and likely received more infections from other countries.
– One of the success factors in Norway is that we had strong pressure to end local outbreaks, with testing, infection tracking, isolation and quarantine. This has been our strategy from day one. Municipalities have also had the opportunity to introduce legally binding local regulations, which is not the case in Sweden.
Is it correct to compare Sweden and Norway?
– Yes, I think you have to be able to do that. Our countries have very similar health systems, although we have slightly different government structures. We trust our politicians and systems. At the same time, in Norway we have distributed power to more institutions and people, which I think has been good, says Frode Forland.
