The differences between Omikron and previous variants of the coronavirus cannot be denied. It is not only the symptoms, the severity of the disease or the protective effect of the vaccination that differ: A British researcher even dares to claim that Omikron is a completely different disease than the coronavirus, which was up to mischief last year.
John Bell, a professor of medicine at Oxford University, said that while hospital admissions have increased in the UK, the disease appears to be “a lot less severe,” according to The Guardian. Much fewer patients would also need ventilation. In addition, the average length of stay in hospital has dropped to three days.
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“We should be reassured”
Studies from Germany, the USA and South Africa confirm Bell’s assumption that there will be fewer hospitalizations. Other British scientists also rate Omikron as less dangerous – despite the increasing number of cases. Bell continues: “The horrific scenes we saw a year ago, when the intensive care units were full and many people died prematurely, are now history in my opinion, and I think we should rest assured that this is likely to continue . “
He said that over the course of several waves of Covid, including Delta and Omikron, “the incidence of serious illness and death from this disease has basically not changed since we were all vaccinated.” Environment Minister George Eustice also said that the government will “very carefully check” the extent of Covid hospital admissions, but that he also expects fewer hospitalizations. For this reason, the British government is waiting with tightened measures.
Worry that medical staff will be absent
Meanwhile, other experts have sharply criticized the British government because no stricter measures are planned for New Year’s Eve. Some refer to this as “the greatest divergence between scientific advice and legislation since the beginning of the pandemic”. Your worries are mainly about the many infections for which Omikron is responsible. Although the variant actually appears to be milder, it is “highly” transferable. This means that the number of hospitalizations and deaths without intervention could rise rapidly.
Chris Hopson, managing director of NHS Providers, is also cautious. It is still unclear what will happen when the infection rates in older people begin to rise. “We had a great mix of generations over Christmas, so we’re all waiting to see a significant increase in the number of patients hospitalized with serious omicron-related diseases,” he told BBC Breakfast.
The absence of medical staff due to quarantine is also a major problem for the British health care system. Experts suspect that up to 40 percent of the workforce in London could be absent because of Omikron. «We are now seeing a significant increase in the absence of staff. And some of our executives say they think this is likely to be a bigger problem and challenge for them than the number of people who need treatment for Covid, “said Hopson. (chs)
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