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On Thursday afternoon, the Basel-Stadt health department will hold a press conference to provide information on the current coronavirus situation in the canton.
Present are the government councilor Lukas Engelberger, the canton doctor Thomas Steffen, Peter Indra, chief of health and Werner Kübler, director of the Basel University Hospital.
The canton of Basel-Stadt is doing relatively well in Switzerland, but it is also at a delicate point. Lukas Engelberger, Health Director: “The situation is unstable and serious. With the anticipated time lag, Covid hospitalizations are now increasing dramatically. We are doing a lot to expand capabilities. But they are not infinite. We have to prevent hospitals from collapsing in the next two weeks. “
Urgent call to home office
Lukas Engelberger pointed out that the population is currently too mobile. Use all home offices now if you can do it from work. In this way, you help reduce the number of potential contacts. ”If the number of new infections cannot be permanently reduced in the coming weeks, hospital capacity will continue to increase with a lag.
There is great respect for that. “Now it is important that we all continue to obey the rules. I ask everyone to follow the rules of hygiene and behavior. I would like to thank people for their patience, discipline, and perseverance so far. We continue to depend on them. “
Strengthening the contact follow-up team
Canton physician Thomas Steffen focused on strengthening the contact tracing team. The team has expanded in recent weeks and has moved to a larger facility. The contact tracing team is currently made up of employees from the health department and members of the civil defense.
The health department recently recruited about 30 people from spontaneous requests from the population. The contact tracing team is gradually being created by employees from the entire cantonal administration. Currently, the focus is on caring for people who have tested positive and are isolated. At the moment, attention to quarantined contact persons is being expanded again.
The canton’s information line with the number 0800 463 666, which has existed since the beginning of the pandemic, is also being expanded with administrative staff. It is integrated at the local and organizational level with contact tracing to achieve synergies in the organization and in the construction of knowledge.
The situation in Basel hospitals
In his comments, Peter Indra, Head of Healthcare, described the network concept, that is, the cooperation between Basel-City hospitals and the intensive care capabilities agreement with the Canton of Basel-Landschaft. Based on current development, it must be assumed that the number of hospitalizations and treatments in intensive care units will be significantly higher than in spring.
The maximum for the health area in both Basles is about 300 people hospitalized at the same time, about 50 of them in intensive care units. There is confidence that treatments can be performed up to this capacity without compromising quality. If the number of hospitalizations increases beyond that, there is a risk that quality will be compromised.
He and Werner Kübler, director of the Basel University Hospital, find the situation in intensive care units worrisome. The load in normal rooms is increasing considerably. Cases are expected to increase over the next two weeks with a trend of doubling per week.
The patients are younger than in spring, still
Until now, hospitalizations have tended to be shorter than in spring, but the average age was younger. That is changing at the moment and it can be assumed that the duration of hospital stays will be as long as in spring. Covid patients are in the hospital for up to several weeks. People who have had to be intubated face a long second rehabilitation before regaining strength.
