Last week, Maclean’s reported on a group of University of Ottawa researchers who had found, to their consternation, that each province offers different advice to people who think they might be showing coronavirus symptoms. “Even in a cross-Canada pandemic as devastating as this, there is not a single, evidence-based Canadian standard of care simply for self-assessment,” the researchers wrote.
It is important to realize that lockdowns take a human toll, sometimes fatal, just like coronaviruses . Emergency room doctors are worried about their lack of business nowadays, the National Post’s Richard Warnica reported Friday. “Doctors believe … patients who are afraid of contracting COVID-19 are just waiting and getting sicker,” Warnica reported. The head of a Vancouver ER department noted that opioid overdose deaths are up, even as his hospital treats far fewer.
It’s a mildly outrageous defence. Public health officials are supposed to design responses for reality, not some perfected version of it. But he might not be entirely wrong, and the rest of the world shouldn’t dismiss the Swedish model out of hand. Sweden’s deaths per capita figure is considerably lower than Switzerland, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain and Belgium. And its cases per capita figure is virtually identical to Norway’s and Denmark’s .
In Sweden, meanwhile, where agencies like public health are constitutionally autonomous — “ministerial rule” is considered verboten — they have groups of scientists begging and petitioning politicians to usurp Tegnell and clamp down.
Suggest watching this interview on the Swedes approach..
Sweden has had 1,511 deaths in a total population of about 10 million. Canada has had 1,346 deaths in a population of about 36 million. I think Canada made the right call.
If Sweden follows the US approach, they will spike
I don’t know answer but I do wonder if overall impact may end up being less after all of the waves have concluded. Time will tell
Absolutely! Their deaths per million not far off the USA’s. The minority populations got it really hard. If they had done better job of educating the minority population perhaps in their own language and an iron ring around nursing homes they would have better numbers.
Good luck Sweden!
I honestly think people are praying that Swedes die just so they can say “I told you so”!
As long as they have a plan B...