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Retirement homes use staff with Covid-19
In the corona pandemic, Swiss nursing homes are increasingly reaching their capacity limits. As the research from “SonntagsZeitung” shows, sick people are now also being used to keep the care business going. Several nurses at a retirement home in the canton of Bern tested positive for Covid-19, but were detained to continue working anyway. The Bern Health Directorate approved the extraordinary measure. Yvonne Ribi from the Professional Nurses Association condemns this approach. Letting infected staff work violates not only the employer’s duty of care, but also that of the home. The BAG provides strict isolation for sick people.
Most ski camps canceled
Most of the ski camps in Switzerland have been canceled for this winter due to the corona pandemic. While in normal years more than 100,000 children and young people per season participate in one of the 2,300 snow sports camps that receive contributions from the Youth and Sport organization, this year only 111 camps have been registered there, as the “NZZ am Sonntag ”. The Swiss Snow Sports Initiative, which runs winter camps, is not looking good either. According to managing director Ole Rauch, more than half of the 250 originally reserved warehouses have been canceled. According to an NZZ survey, eleven cantons currently have prohibited camps. Four other cantons recommend an exemption. Only volunteer camps are allowed in the canton of Zurich. The city of Zurich wants to run all those camps where the protection measures of the crown can be observed.
Mountain railways defend themselves against protective measures
Health Minister Alain Berset asks the tourist cantons to take new protection measures. Ski areas would have to restrict their capacities so that there are no crowds. According to the “SonntagsZeitung”, this leads to a reduction of capacity to less than half of normal occupancy on holidays. The mountain railways want to fight back. Protection measures prevent some tourists from skiing. However, apartment bookings in Swiss ski areas are doing very well, according to “NZZ am Sonntag”. Compared to 2019, 43 percent more apartments were rented through the Swiss platform E-Domizil for this month of December. E-Domizil has a portfolio of 14,000 properties in Switzerland.
Sommaruga on the doubts of the Federal Council
Federal President Simonetta Sommaruga wants to carefully analyze the reasons for the high number of deaths due to Covid-19. I was very concerned about the many deaths. When asked if the Federal Council acted too late, Sommaruga said in an interview with “SonntagsBlick” that it was always an interaction between the Federal Council and the cantons. That is difficult sometimes. Your task is to improve the interaction. Political decisions are always a reflection of the population. Perhaps a certain pandemic fatigue contributed to the fact that the political reaction took longer than in the spring. In early October, he pointed out that the federal government needed to be more present again. But the signals from the cantons were not clear.
Corona’s protection measures on construction sites partially ignored
In the corona pandemic, the claims of the builders and the health of the workers collide. While the builders demand that the deadlines established before the crisis be met, the construction companies transfer the pressure to the workers. According to “SonntagsBlick”, this means that protective measures are no longer observed on many construction sites. The Unia union insists that the measures be implemented. Periodic testing and effective controls are needed. It is currently carried out by the Suva accident insurer. But Suva’s resources are limited. 45 inspectors are responsible for 350,000 workers at 30,000 construction sites. No more than 600 samples per month would be possible.
Years of protection against the crown after illness?
People who have recovered from Covid-19 lung disease can have years of protection against a recurrence of the disease. This is indicated by two large studies from the United States, as the “SonntagsZeitung” writes. Researchers have found cells of the immune system that “remember” the coronavirus even after six months or more and that could very quickly trigger an immune response if they discover the virus again. From other infections, memory B cells have been known to patrol the body for up to ten years or more. However, these cells do not protect against a new virus infection, but only against disease.
SMEs are especially suffering from the Crown crisis
Independent companies are the weakest link in the Corona crisis. A study by the Enterprise for Society center now shows, according to the “NZZ am Sonntag”, that many SMEs are worse off financially in the second wave than during the spring close. Companies anticipate a massive drop in sales averaging 19 percent for 2020 as a whole. Every third entrepreneur, corresponding to 200,000 SMEs, fears for their economic existence. The University of Lausanne and the Center for Economic Research (KOF) at ETH Zurich are behind the study. The study is based on a survey of nearly 800 independent businesses and business owners from all industries and parts of the country.
Half of the National Councils and Councils of State have been threatened before
More than half of the National Councils and Councils of State have been threatened, confronted with attempts at blackmail or blackmailed. The “SonntagsBlick” learned from a poll of 102 MPs. This corresponds to about 40 percent of the Federal Assembly. Almost one in three national or state councils activated the police or judiciary. The survey also shows that female politicians face threats much more often than their male colleagues. Two-thirds of the participants stated that they had already been threatened or blackmailed. For men, the percentage is 20 points lower. The national advisor of the Vaudois FDP, Jacqueline de Quattro, now calls for those exposed to be better protected. He will file a motion on Monday.
The role of women in Islamist terror is growing
Women are playing an increasingly important role in Islamist terrorism, according to the “NZZ am Sonntag.” Its importance in jihadism has increased by leaps and bounds in recent years. Today, women are also spreading propaganda, recruiting jihadist travelers or carrying out attacks, the newspaper quotes expert Max Hofer, who published a study on radical Islam in Switzerland last October. For her part, Nicoletta della Valle, Fedpol director, urged vigilance in an interview with the “SonntagsZeitung” following the knife attack of an IS sympathizer on Tuesday in Lugano. Jihadist terror also targets Switzerland. Jihadists often reached very young people from difficult backgrounds or people with mental health problems.
Almost no flu cases in Switzerland
Several countries in the southern hemisphere, including Australia, have had a virtually flu-free winter in recent months. Experts are cautiously optimistic that this could be repeated in the Northern Hemisphere. According to the latest weekly report from the Federal Office of Public Health on influenza viruses, the influenza virus has not been detected in any region of Switzerland in the last two weeks. The number of infections due to the flu virus is much lower than in previous years, confirmed Ana Gonçalves, a biologist at the National Reference Center on Influenza in Geneva, in front of the French-speaking Swiss Sunday newspaper “Le Matin Dimanche”. However, he does not rule out that flu cases may come later.
