How to avoid another epidemic wave like in European countries?

• The vaccine incentive remains the priority to convince the 5.5 million French people who still refuse to be immunized.

  However, the vaccine is not the only lever to halt a further increase in cases.

• Not giving up barrier gestures and keeping good reflexes such as ventilating enclosed spaces remain essential as winter approaches.

• The French health system still seems today unsuited to a health situation that risks becoming established over the long term.

While Covid-19 contaminations are exploding in some European countries, France is also seeing an increase in cases.

If it does not want to find itself in the same situation as Russia, or more recently than Germany which reached a new record rate of infections on Sunday with 289 cases per 100,000 people, the next few weeks will be decisive.

Several solutions would make it possible to stop a fifth epidemic wave of coronavirus.

What solutions have already been adopted by the French government?

Faced with the epidemic resumption observed in all regions of France, the government has already implemented several measures. After being lifted for a few weeks, the mask is once again compulsory in all schools since Monday. In his last speech, Emmanuel Macron also announced that from December 15, the health pass would be conditioned on a third dose of anti-covid vaccine for those over 65. “It's an obligation that is fairly easy to meet because these are people who have already been vaccinated. That's a lot, but that's not what will prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed, ”underlines Anne Sénéquier, co-director of the global health observatory at Iris. For the expert, it is above all necessary to accelerate the vaccination of people who are not at all.

And penalize the unvaccinated?

"We feel that there is a red line that the government does not want to pass, especially during an election period, it is the generalized vaccination obligation," said Anne Sénéquier, author of the book

.

However, the government could consider new restrictions to encourage or force unvaccinated people to walk through the door of a vaccination center.

The possibility of a new confinement was considered on Saturday evening by Gabriel Attal.

On the other hand, Christophe Castaner, the boss of LREM deputies assured that the presidential majority “does not want” the measure to apply only to the unvaccinated, as is the case since Monday in Austria.

In this regard, France, which has one of the best vaccination rates in Europe, does not have to be as drastic as Austria and its 35% of unvaccinated people or even Germany, which cannot manage to exceed 70% of people vaccinated.

“70% on 83 million people, it does not have the same impact as the 75% of vaccinated on 67 million French people, explains Anne Sénéquier.

In France, that's 5.5 million unvaccinated people compared to 27 million in Germany.

"

What are the other levers to stop the fifth wave?

As vaccination does not prevent being a carrier of the disease, nor transmitting it, the vaccination campaign cannot be the only shield against the coronavirus. The barrier gestures "are effective in the face of highly contaminating variants", assures Anne Sénéquier who observes a certain weariness of the French with these constraints and a certain "relaxation" of the vaccinated people. “People tend to wash their hands, but a lot of people kiss each other again,” she explains.

The co-director of the global health observatory at Iris also fears that with the arrival of the cold, the French will no longer think of opening the windows.

“Ventilation of enclosed spaces is essential, especially during this period as we enter winter.

There is a tendency to underestimate airborne transmissions of the virus too much.

The expert invites you to re-adhere to these barrier measures in order to stay the course and especially to get through the winter.

Are the solutions in the hands of the French?

While we had not seen them too much last year due to barrier measures and containment, other viruses such as bronchiolitis, gastro or influenza are circulating a lot at the moment and are found in the hospital. Vaccines protect 95% of serious forms of the coronavirus, but "with 5.5 million unvaccinated people in France, this is more than enough to overwhelm hospitals since there are only 10,000 places in intensive care", explains Anne Sénéquier .

Recently, the ARS report established that only 2% of hospitalizations in 2020 were due to covid-19.

"The hospital is not only there to manage emergencies linked to the coronavirus and if 2% of covid hospitalizations can generate such chaos, it is because the state of our health system is problematic", thinks Anne Sénéquier .

For her, it requires "a drastic reform to be functional on a daily basis and more resistant to what is happening at the moment and is likely to continue.

"

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• epidemic

• Anti-covid vaccine

• Coronavirus

• Covid 19

• Vaccination

• Health

• Contamination

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