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Dr. Zoe Dorothea Pana: “We are in a phase where we may need to review the protocols”

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Dr. Zoe Dorothea Pana:

The balance with which we manage to keep society open should not be disturbed, said Zoe Dorothea Pana, Lecturer in Pediatrics at the European University of Cyprus and a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee (SCC) of the Ministry of Health, noting that the discussion on possible relaxations should takes into account the fact that we are still going through a pandemic wave, while we have steadily increased rates in hospitals.

In her statements to KYPE and asked if on Tuesday, during the meeting of the TEU, any possible relaxations will be discussed, Ms. Pana said that “we are in a phase where we may need to review the protocols, the regular laboratory tests and in general the way Cyprus operates within the framework of the security that we must have, since we are still going through a pandemic wave”.

“We have to have a discussion on the whole and see what we can simplify, how we can help the world that has suffered so much and together we can find a harmonization in this context,” he said.

Regarding the possibility of giving a fourth dose, in addition to the discussion about immunocompromised people and the elderly that is taking place abroad, Ms. Pana said that such a question has not been asked for the general population yet.

“Do not upset the balance”

“What we said last week was to see a little again how the situation is stabilizing and what is new in relation to the executive that prevails in Cyprus, Omicron,” said the member of the TEU.

Ms. Pana said that we must take into account the fact that we are going to face a situation “which is special” as the Delta mutation has not been eliminated and on the Delta came and prevailed Omicron. “Yes, we are seeing a stabilization at this time in terms of the epidemiological picture in the community, on the other hand we are seeing a steadily increasing pressure on the part of the Hospitals” with the in-hospital indicators being particularly high.

And this balance of stabilization, continued Ms. “We must not disturb it at this stage, I think.”

He further referred to the ECDC Risk Assessment Report of 27 January which stated that “we are still going through a pandemic wave of Omicron, that although we now have data showing that Omicron strain is associated with a milder disease in the general population it does not mean that due to the spread of the disease, even later in time we can not see a pressure from a serious illness and an increase in the serious illness, especially in people aged 60 and over “.

So, continued Ms. Pana, “I think we need to have a discussion on the whole and see what we can simplify, how we can help the world that has suffered so much and together find a harmonization in this context.”

Regarding specific suggestions, he said that “we must always discuss it as a group, as an Advisory Committee and substantially submit our recommendations to the Minister”.

He also said that we should not ignore the recommendations of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, as “they have the big picture from all Member States” while at this stage “the immunization subsoil of the Member States and the time they spend in relation with the rise of Omicron it is a little different “. He explained that at this stage we see a slight divergence in national strategies and a difficulty in harmonizing a protocol, so “management is not very easy”.

According to Ms. Pana, the common denominator is “a discussion on simplification, harmonization of protocol, facilitation of the world” and the message is that “we must adapt and live with the coronavirus”.

“Let us not forget that we are still going through a pandemic wave, let us not forget that we have steadily increasing rates in our hospitals and that this balance that we achieve by keeping society open, we must not upset it too abruptly, because there is still some knowledge gap. tail of the Omicron outburst, “he said.

Answering a relevant question, Ms. He reiterated that the number of infections within the community “will remain relatively high for some time”.

“Because we are very supportive of the vaccination and booster dose, because also a percentage of people have been immunized through natural disease, we hope not to see a similar increase in hospitals in the near future, which are also trying to keep up. their own balance “, he noted.

As he mentioned, so far we do not have any situation, which is extreme.

Asked if the possibility of a fourth dose of vaccine is being discussed, Ms. Pana said that “for the part of the fourth installment, what we know is that studies and knowledge and documentation are running on if and when and to whom it may be needed”.

“Some discussions abroad take place only at this stage for people who are immunosuppressed. There, however, the fourth dose is not exactly a booster dose “but” is characterized as an additional dose, “he said. So there is a difference in what we mean when we say to give a fourth dose to the severely immunocompromised, he said.

He also referred to the separate discussion that mainly concerns the elderly with underlying diseases and especially in closed spaces, such as nursing homes.

As Mrs. Pana, “I think that the decision and the evaluation of the data will be discussed by the National Vaccination Committee that we have and it goes without saying that we assist in this whole process of evaluation of the existing data”. “I do not think that for the general population, for all of us, such a question has been asked yet,” he concluded.

KYPE

Source: politis.com.cy

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