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In mid-October, Schwyz Hospital raised the alarm: critically ill corona patients, full beds, and more and more would have to be ventilated. In an emotional video, the hospital staff addressed the population with a cry for help. “As a hospital, we can no longer handle that if the number of cases continues to increase,” said Franziska Föllmi, director of Schwyz Hospital at the time. The chief physician of internal medicine, Reto Nüesch, even spoke of one of the most serious coronavirus outbreaks in Europe.
Schwyz Hospital sounds the alarm: “The development is dramatic”(01:54)
One of the culprits for the misery was a yodel musical in late September, which became a superpreader event and caused a sensation around the world. Even the “New York Times” and the “Frankfurter Allgemeine” reported on it. The little canton suddenly became a hot spot in the crown.
One month later everything is different: the number of infections suddenly dropped massively. With 523 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the last two weeks, the canton of Schwyz is at the bottom of the national ranking. So the risk of contracting the virus in this country is not as low as in Schwyz.
For comparison: the canton of Geneva, which is currently in partial closure, has 2,172 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. How do you explain the Schwyz miracle? From the point of view of epidemiologist Marcel Tanner, the Schwyz case is very interesting: “It is a textbook example of the fact that the surveillance and intervention strategy works,” as he told the “NZZ.”
Infected contacts had been reported
According to Tanner, the canton of Schwyz was first surprised with the virus because there were only a few infections before. But then the authorities were able to determine exactly where the infection had occurred. As a result, it was possible to take specific measures and stop the transmission, ”he says. The population also got involved: because the contact tracing did not work completely, some of the infected people simply informed their contact persons.
Roland Wespi, the head of the Office of Health and Social Affairs, also sees a relaxation in hospitalizations. Government measures with a focus on events would certainly have helped defuse the situation, Wespi tells “NZZ,” but advises against giving the go-ahead too early.
Contact tracing works again
The decline in the number of infections and hospitalizations is not the only good news for the central Swiss canton: contact tracing has been back to work since the first week of November. This has only been possible to a limited extent since mid-October.
Schwyz also scores well compared to areas with a similar population and structure. In Glarus, but also in Obwalden and Nidwalden, infection rates are higher, although comparable superprocessor events are not known in these cantons. (support)
