The experience of the previous pandemics shows us that states that have not been affected in the early stages may experience an outbreak during the second wave.
This was stated by the Director of the European Region of the World Health Organization Hans Kluge in an interview with The Telegraph.
According to him, it is unacceptable to believe that the pandemic has passed only because in Italy or France there is a reduction in the number of infected. Removing quarantine restrictions, countries must be aware that now is “time for preparation, not celebration.” Kluge encourages the wise use of time, strengthening the health system and building the capacity of medical institutions.
“This is what the Scandinavian countries are doing – they do not exclude the second wave, but they hope that it will be localized,” he notes.
Kluge drew attention to the fact that now the European epicenter of coronavirus has shifted to the east, and by autumn the disease can deliver a new blow, which will be exacerbated by other infectious diseases.
“I am very concerned about the double wave – in the fall we may have a second wave of COVID-19 and another wave of seasonal flu or measles. Two years ago, we had 500 thousand children who did not have the first measles vaccine, he continued. – People think the lock is complete. Nothing changed. A complete disease control package must be present. This is a key message. ”
He hoped that governments would learn the lesson and that health would take its rightful place on the political agenda.
“We always thought that health is the driving force of economic prosperity, but worse – where there is no health, there is no economy,” concluded Dr. Kluge. – Public health deserves its place at the top of the agenda. And sometimes, when a leader suffers personally, it helps. ”
So he hinted at Boris Johnson, who at the dawn of the pandemic denied the danger of coronavirus, but then he ended up in the hospital with COVID-19.