Portugal Situation Report Wednesday 15^th December 2021

Good morning – This morning I would cover the topic of risk, the factors that influence risk and how to reduce the risk of contracting Covid-19, avoiding self-isolation, or worse, during the Christmas period.

In the lead up to Christmas we are undoubtedly planning for the occasion, with additional shopping and deciding what events, family gatherings and other events we will be attending. Compared to last year there are far fewer Covid-19 restrictions in place, so far greater freedom in deciding our activities. However some activities may present greater exposure to contracting Covid-19 than others. It is all to do with risk.

Nearly all the eligible population (except those 11 and under) have already been fully vaccinated and some have received the booster and flu vaccines. There are others, however, who still have no, or limited, protection against Covid-19, due to poor immune system for instance which is not capable to react to the vaccine stimulus.

There are activities and areas of the country that pose greater risk than others. We are learning to live with covid-19 among us. Even with some limitations, you can go to a restaurant, gym or cinema.

However, the emergence of new variants of the virus and current increases in incidence rates again pose a challenge and may force the cancellation of some of this seasons events, as has already happened in some municipalities. For now, the number of admissions, both in intensive care and in wards, remains far from the limit established by experts consulted by the Government and far below the same period last year. The Christmas and New Year periods will be decisive.

The desire for a gradual return to normality does not mean that the virus has disappeared from our lives. Every trip to the restaurant, supermarket, cinema or participation in a social event carries a risk, which varies depending on your health condition, whether you have already been vaccinated, where you live and, of course, how many people will be with you and how they behave.

If you undertake these activities, the above risk factors determine the level to which you may become exposed to contracting Covid-19 and the potential level of seriousness. A major factor is health and if you suffer from: hypertension, diabetes, asthma, kidney disease, heart disease, lung disease or cancer these are the types of conditions that according to DGS increase the risk; plus factors such as being overweight or if you smoke.

A low risk does not mean that you cannot suffer any harm from the disease, just as a high risk does not mean that you will suffer.

Keep in mind that, even if you are not at high individual risk, there is always the risk of infecting others who are more vulnerable and causing them harm (the extent and severity of which you cannot predict or foresee). Precaution in managing the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection is a collective responsibility.

For example, if you are over 70 years of age, have various diseases and have not fully completed a Covid-19 vaccination and thinking of going to a gathering in a group with others, in a municipality with a high incidence rate, where people may not all be wearing masks all the time and social distancing is not possible, then the risk is likely to be very high.

However, if you are going shopping, in a municipality with a low incidence rate, are younger in age, no health conditions, fully vaccinated and will be wearing a mask all the time then, the risk in comparison is low.

These are just two examples, the purpose being to illustrate when considering what activities you wish to undertake in the lead up to, and over the festive season, to also consider the risk factors together with your potential exposure to others who maybe more vulnerable.

Please have Safe Day

Headlines

Covid-19: Over 50s will receive third dose of vaccine – Government

Lisbon, December 14, 2021 (Lusa) – The third dose of the vaccine against covid-19 will begin to be administered to people aged 50 and over, announced today the Assistant Secretary of State for Health.

“The update of the standard of DGS 002/2021 will be carried out during today, changing the eligibility range from 65 years old or over to 50 years old or more”, said António Lacerda Sales, on the side lines of the ceremony for the taking of possession of the first president of the Order of Physiotherapists, António Lopes.

Thus, he indicated, “people over 50 years old will also be boosted with the vaccine” against covid-19.

2021: Three waves of covid-19, three variants and mass vaccination of Population

Lisbon, December 14, 2021 (Lusa) – Three waves of infections, which put professionals and health services to the test, new variants of the more transmissible coronaviruses and the mass vaccination of the Portuguese marked the covid-19 pandemic in 2021 in Portugal.

Portugal is ending 2021 as it started: a wave of cases that has already led to more measures to contain the growth of infections and the threat of a new variant, despite doubts whether it causes more severe forms of covid-19 and whether its effectiveness is diminished of vaccines.

If in January 2021 the threat was the Alpha variant, associated with the United Kingdom, now the concern is with Omicron, detected in dozens of countries after being reported in southern Africa.

In between, Portugal faced the Delta variant, associated with India, considered 60% more transmissible than the original virus, and responsible for all infections in the country and which in 2021 gained ground to all others in Europe and the world.

But 2021 is also marked by the biggest wave since the beginning of the pandemic, in the first two months of the year, with Portugal surpassing, at the end of January, 300 daily deaths and 16 thousand cases.

With vaccination still in its infancy, the pressure on hospitals has been increasing since the beginning of the year, which most experts attributed to the easing of restrictions during the Christmas period, culminating in a peak of more than 6,600 inpatients and 850 patients in intensive care at the end of January.

Read more here: https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/2021-three-waves-of-covid-19-three-variants-and-mass-vaccination-of-the-population/

Covid-19 DGS Situation 14^th December 2021

Confirmed: 1.200.193 (+ 3591 / + 0.30 %)

Admitted: 953 (-41 /-4.12 %)

Admitted to ICU: 142 (-2 /-1.39 %)

Deaths: 18.687 (+ 14 / + 0.07 %)

Recovered: 1.115.749 (+ 6358 / + 0.57 %)

Active cases: 65,757 (-2781 /-4%)

Trends

Deaths (14) decreased compared to yesterday, and is slightly below the average of the last 30 days (14.4 deaths).

Welcome moderate decrease in the number of Covid-19 patients hospitalised

Also reduction of those in ICU

Active cases decrease considerably by 4% after several days of increases.

Very high level of recovered cases for a single day – over six thousand

Health

Vaccination of 10 – 11 year olds – about: “about 27 thousand” appointments have already been made

The self-scheduled vaccination for children was available late yesterday afternoon.

Until 1:30 pm on Tuesday, “about 27 thousand online requests” were made for the vaccination of children between 11 and 10 years old. An option that, it should be noted, was available at the end of the day yesterday on the Online Scheduling Portal for vaccination.

These appointments were set for the next weekend, December 18th and 19th, which will be exclusive to the vaccination of this age group.

Pfizer’s covid-19 drug reduces hospital admissions and deaths by 90%

Pfizer confirmed this Tuesday that its pill against covid-19 reduces hospitalizations and deaths in people at risk by about 90% when taken in the first days of symptoms appear.

The drug maker says, in a statement, that the conclusion about the drug’s effectiveness resulted from clinical trials involving more than 2,200 people, and supports what was announced in early November based on preliminary results.

According to Pfizer, no deaths were recorded among those who received the treatment.

Participants in clinical trials were unvaccinated and were at high risk of developing a severe case of covid-19.

Pfizer also announced that the antiviral treatment, which will be marketed under the name Paxlovid, should maintain effectiveness against the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, which causes covid-19 disease.

“This underscores the potential of this (drug) candidate to save the lives of patients around the world,” said Albert Bourla, head of Pfizer, quoted in the statement.

“Concerning variants such as Omicron have exacerbated the need for affordable treatment options for those who contract the virus,” he added.

Antivirals work to decrease the ability of a virus to replicate, which also alleviates the disease.

These treatments represent a key complement to vaccines in protecting against covid-19, namely because they are very easy to administer.

69 cases of the Omicron variant in Portugal and possible community circulation

Portugal registers 69 cases of the Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, with the latest data revealing a “trend strongly indicative of the existence of community circulation”, said this Tuesday (December 14) the National Institute of Health Doctor Ricardo Jorge (INSA).

“To date, a total of 69 cases of the Omicron variant have been identified by targeted search for mutations and/or viral genome sequencing,” says the INSA report on the genetic diversity of SARS-CoV-2, which causes covid disease. -19.

According to the institute, within the scope of real-time monitoring of the “failure” in the detection of the S gene, which allows the identification of the Omicron variant, carried out in collaboration with several laboratories, it was possible to gather data for the period from November 25th to 12thDecember.

“This analysis points to an increasing trend in the proportion of positive cases with S gene failure since December 6th, reaching a relative frequency of 9.5% by December 12th,” the report said.

According to INSA, this trend, particularly that observed in the last three days, is “strongly indicative of the existence of community circulation of the Omicron variant in this period, in strong parallel with the scenario observed in other countries” that are using the same approach for surveillance of this variant, the case of Denmark and the United Kingdom.

This new variant, classified as “worrying” by the World Health Organization (WHO), has been detected in southern Africa, but since the South African health authorities raised the alert on 24 November, infections have been reported in more than 60 countries from all continents, including Portugal.

Schools

Government has already updated the school calendar, affected by measures to combat the pandemic

The Government confirmed through a dispatch in Diário da República the school calendar announced by António Costa. The prime minister, when he informed the country that new restrictions would be imposed to contain the advance of covid-19, said that there would be changes to the Christmas and New Year holidays that would have repercussions in the remaining school year.

With the forced closure of schools in the first week of January — motivated by the prevention of contacts after the end-of-year festivities period — the Government had to make changes to the school calendar. These were confirmed through an order in the Diário da República, published this Monday.

According to the document, the Government considers that “it is still possible to accommodate the suspension of in-person teaching and non-teaching activities”, so “it is chosen to adapt the 2nd and 3rd academic periods to the said suspension” – not moving forward, thus, for distance learning.

This order changes the calendar for the functioning of educational and teaching activities in public establishments of pre-school education and basic and secondary education and the school calendar for private establishments of special education”, it reads.

The 1st period ends on December 17th and classes will only resume on January 10th. As a result of this increase in Christmas holidays, the Carnival holidays will be limited to just one day — March 1st — with the 2nd period running until April 8th.

The interruption between the 2nd and 3rd periods will be reduced to one week, between April 11th and April 18th. The end of the school year will be determined by the level of education and whether or not exams are taken:

9th, 11th and 12th grades end on June 7, 2022

5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 10th grades end on June 15, 2022

Pre-school education and 1st cycle of basic education ends June 30, 2022

Special education follows the same rules as regular education, but with one formal exception, as it can “ensure face-to-face teaching activities in the period between December 27, 2021 and January 7, 2022”, that is, to continue the classes, but only “at the request of the guardians” and “provided that the necessary safety conditions are guaranteed in accordance with the guidelines of the General Directorate of Health”.

Enforcement

Covid-19 GNR closes cafe in Viana do Castelo with around 150 people inside

The GNR closed a cafe in Santa Leocádia de Geraz do Lima, in Viana do Castelo, with about 150 people in the interior, in disregard for measures to prevent the Covid-19 pandemic, the GNR stated on Monday.

In a statement sent to the newsrooms, the Territorial Command of the GNR of Viana do Castelo, said that the operation was initiated following “a complaint of noise in the aforementioned establishment”.

At the site, the GNR military verified that there were about 150 people inside the cafe, which “worked outside the permitted hours, and where a party was also taking place with the use of an unlicensed dance space, in complete disrespect for the measures in force in the scope of the Covid-19 pandemic”.

According to the GNR, “all the interveners were identified in order to proceed with the issue of the respective infraction notices.

To those responsible for the cafe “for failure to comply with the duty to verify the digital certificate or covid-19 test, and to the 137 customers for failure to comply with the duty to present and hold a European Union (EU) digital certificate in the form of proof of test or recovery or laboratory test with negative result”.

The action, which was attended by 32 GNR soldiers, was reinforced by the territorial detachments of Arcos de Valdevez and Valença and the intervention detachment of Viana do Castelo.

Other news

UN validates record temperature of 38°C in June 2020 in the Arctic

A new “Climate Change Warning Sign”.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) today validated the record temperature of 38° Celsius in the Arctic, recorded in the Russian city of Verkhoyansk in Serbia on June 20, 2020, a new “warning sign on climate change” “.

“This new Arctic record is one of the observations reported to the WMO Extreme Weather Archive, a UN agency, which is sounding the alarm about the changes our climate has undergone,” noted WMO Secretary General Petteri Taalas, noting that in the same year Antarctica also registered a record 18.3°C.

Verkhoyansk lies about 115 kms north of the Arctic Circle and temperatures have been measured there since 1885.

This region of Eastern Siberia has a very dry continental climate, resulting in very cold winters and very hot summers.

“This survey highlights the rise in temperatures in a region that is important to the rest of the world in terms of climate”, so it is important to monitor it continuously, said WMO rapporteur on climate and climate extremes, Randall Cerveny.

WMO researchers are trying to “verify a temperature of 54.4°C recorded in 2020 and 2021 in the hottest place on Earth, Death Valley in California, and also validate a new European heat record of 48.8°C C established in Sicily this summer,” said Taalas.

The group of experts responsible for certifying these records examines the validity of the instruments used for measurement and their consistency with current weather.