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Hospitalizations, overloaded contact tracing and vaccination campaign: the most important points of the BAG media conference.
Situation in the hospitals: According to Rudolf Hauri, Zug canton doctor and president of the association of canton doctors, there has been no wave of hospitalized patients since the spread of the omicron variant. But there are regional differences. There are more hospitalizations, especially in western Switzerland, said Hauri. However, the hospitals are still prepared for a high load. There is currently no reason to give the all-clear with regard to hospital admissions, says Virginie Masserey, head of the infection control section at the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG). Persistent bottlenecks in hospitals – except in special areas such as adolescent psychiatry – have not become known in acute care, according to Hauri. However, the staff is sometimes missing due to illness, isolation and quarantine. Regional or Switzerland-wide relocations have so far hardly been necessary.
Current case figures: According to Masserey, the number of corona cases is currently stagnating at a very high level. “It is possible that we have reached the peak.” In the past few days, only a “very slow increase” has been observed. In particular, she pointed out that there is currently a high number of unreported cases of new infections. It is quite possible that three to four times as many people were actually infected as officially reported. This makes forecasts very difficult.
Contact tracing: According to Hauri, the high number of cases meant that the test capacities and contact tracing could no longer carry out their work to the same extent or at the same pace. This led to a reduction in repetitive series tests. There are also restrictions on contact being made by the contact tracing teams. People who tested positive would now automatically receive an SMS so that they could inform their contact persons themselves. “The considerable virus activity leaves no other choice.” The cantons are still busy providing vaccination options and contact tracing.
For vaccination: Soon, 12 to 15-year-olds will also be able to get boosters. According to Virginie Masserey, the federal government is currently working out a recommendation for this age group. Studies have shown that a booster vaccination helps to be better protected against omicron. At the moment, however, under 16-year-olds cannot get boosters because the booster vaccination is not yet approved for young people. This could change soon. According to Masserey, a new recommendation should be available by the end of the week.
The federal government is planning a campaign to motivate hesitant people to get a booster vaccination. Such a campaign is currently in the works, says Masserey. In some cases it has already started on social media. In particular, if the number of booster vaccinations could be increased, the epidemiological situation would improve.