hospital

Russian doctors complete open-heart surgery as tsarist-era hospital burns – Video

russian hospital burning

Russian doctors stayed behind in a burning, tsarist-era hospital in the country’s Far East on Friday to complete open-heart surgery after a fire broke out on the roof while they were operating.

Firefighters who took more than two hours to put out the blaze in the city of Blagoveshchensk said they used fans to keep smoke out of the operating room and ran in a power cable to keep it supplied with electricity.

A group of eight doctors and nurses completed the operation in two hours before removing the patient to another site, the emergencies ministry said.

“There’s nothing else we could do. We had to save the person. We did everything at the highest level,” surgeon Valentin Filatov was quoted as saying by REN TV. He said it had been a heart by-pass operation.

The ministry said 128 people were immediately evacuated from the hospital as the fire broke out on the roof.

“The clinic was built more than a century ago, in 1907, and the fire spread like lightning through the wooden ceilings of the roof,” the ministry said.

No one was reported hurt.

“A bow to the medics and firefighters,” said Vasiliy Orlov, the local regional governor.

russian hospital burning
Read alsoRussian doctors complete open-heart surgery as tsarist-era hospital burns – Video

Coronavirus in Hungary – Number of infected exceeds 670,000!

coronavirus hungary hospital

Fully 267 patients, generally elderly with co-morbidities, died over the past 24 hours, while 9,055 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday.

So far 2,156,680 people have received a first jab, while 863,195 have been fully vaccinated.

The number of active infections has risen to 236,144, while hospitals are caring for 11,747 Covid patients, 1,467 of whom need respiratory assistance.

There are 57,800 people in official quarantine, while 4,689,589 tests have been officially carried out.

Since the first outbreak, 670,776 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 21,262. Fully 413,370 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest and Pest County, followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and Hajdú-Bihar.

Coronavirus-related restrictions remain in effect until April 8

Hungary has no room to loosen lockdown measures yet due to a rise in coronavirus infections.

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and Easter.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 19.

Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres. The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors. Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Hungary’s private health sector sees opportunity as Covid-19 snarls hospital operations

duna medical

A year after COVID-19 arrived in Hungary, public hospitals have spent most of their resources fighting the virus and are currently battling its deadliest outbreak yet, unable to treat the growing numbers of people awaiting non-emergency procedures.

So with public hospitals closed to elective surgery, a quiet revolution in private health care is unfolding, led by a wave of investment in private hospitals and growth in health insurance.

Traditionally public hospitals provide the overwhelming majority of in-patient care, looking after everything from tonsillectomies to heart bypass surgery, but the pandemic has created an opportunity for existing private healthcare providers to expand and new competitors to enter the market.

Private hospital executives interviewed by Reuters have pledged or invested 85 million euros ($100 million) in the sector: a new hospital due in the capital Budapest, taking the lion’s share of that spending, alongside a surgical ward planned in an existing facility and additional beds and upgraded equipment completed in another.

There is no publicly available data on such investments, but in the past two years only two new private hospitals were opened. Total investment is dwarfed by annual public health spending worth 4% to 5% of economic output, based on OECD figures.

Private health insurance grew by 23% last year, with some of that large increase due to relatively low market penetration according to Hungarian insurance association figures.

The average waiting time for common procedures, such as orthopaedic surgeries, has rocketed to more than a year from just 22 days based on public data from the government’s National Health Insurance Fund.

For example, the wait for a hip replacement has grown from 59 days to 406 days, for a hernia 25 days to 410 days, it said.

Emergency surgery has continued throughout the pandemic.

For Rozalia, a 41-year-old sales manager at a Hungarian company, the revolution cannot come soon enough. She had life-saving surgery to remove a tumour from her breast last summer and has since lived with a tissue expander, a temporary fix until an operation to change it to a permanent implant.

“All my doctor could say that once the halted operations restart, they will discuss when I may get mine it is not likely before the end of the summer,” she said, adding however that she cannot afford the procedure in the private sector.

Hungary’s health authorities have given no indication as to when waiting times could fall back to normal. Neither the public health fund nor the health ministry responded to requests for comment.

HEALTH INSURANCE

Antal Kovacs, chief executive at the Da Vinci private clinic in southern Hungary, is sceptical the backlog could be wrestled down in just a year once the coronavirus crisis abates.

“Those who cannot or do not want to wait any longer, will look for private care, unless they require a procedure that cannot be performed in the private sector,” he said.

Aron Kovaloczy, managing director at DLA Piper Business Advisory, said the quality, access, infrastructure of Hungary’s public health system “has been steadily declining for years”.

“In tandem with that, effective demand by people whose needs cannot be met by the public health system has been increasing,” he said.

Of the $100 million investment under way and in the pipeline, the Buda Health Centre plans to start construction of a new hospital in Budapest this year at a cost of up to 30 billion forints ($97 million), adding 131 beds and eight operating rooms, Director Peter Pal Varga said.

“As private health insurance expands and we also grow organically, our patient numbers will increase,” he said. “We need to meet the demand in the market.”

Vienna Insurance Group’s Union unit said while the number of Hungarians who could afford private in-patient care was still low and currently available in-patient care limited, private sector offerings were set to expand in the coming years.

“As the role of the private sector increases, so does demand for private health insurance,” business unit leader Gabor Zsolnai said, adding that Union expected another 15-20% increase in private health insurance sales this year.

Anita Gurney, chief executive of the Duna Medical Centre private clinic that opened a new hospital in Budapest this year, said while in-patient private care could be pricey, it is no longer just the privilege of the elite.

“It all depends on when people’s pain or their patience reaches a limit pushing them towards private care,” she said.

Breaking – has the third wave already peaked in Hungary?

traffic Budapest Hungary transport tram

Cecília Müller, the chief medical officer of Hungary, said on Tuesday that the epidemic shows an upward trend. However, today it seems that the third wave is approaching its peak in the country. Portfólió, a local economic website, says, for example, that Hungary is already in the starting phase of the epidemic plateau. 

Portfolio.hu checked the infection data of the 19 counties and the capital. Their results show that there are only three counties where the spread of coronavirus is still accelerating (Baranya, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, and Heves counties). Furthermore, in two additional counties, the increase of the number of infected people stopped (Vas and Zala counties). In nine counties, a kind of stagnation started, while in six, it seems that the number of new infected started to decrease – based on portfolio.hu.

However, Easter family visits can still destroy the positive trends.

According to the website, the 6,700 new infected announced today morning shows that the seven-day average started to decrease. Based on their analysis, some former infection centres like Budapest, Pest, Komárom-Esztergom, Győr-Moson-Sopron, Nógrád, and Somogy counties began to show better numbers.

It seems that the country broke into three parts in this regard.

In the first category, there are the counties in which the spread of the virus is still accelerating. These are Baranya, where the number of new infected broke a new record today, Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, and Heves counties. In Vas and Zala counties, it seems that the trend of acceleration stopped.

Some counties show the trend of stagnation. These are Veszprém, Budapest (where data fluctuate), Pest (fluctuation), Győr-Moson-Sopron (fluctuation), Békés, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg, Tolna és Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén, and Hajdú Bihar counties.

Finally, the acceleration in the number of new infections started to decrease in six counties: Komárom-Esztergom, Fejér, Somogy, Csongrád-Csanád, Bács-Kiskun and Nógrád.

This means that in most counties, the spread of the virus stagnates or started to decrease, which is very good news. However, these are only trends yet, and behind the percents, thousands of people catch the virus every day, need to be transferred to a hospital or have to receive even intensive care and ventilation. Moreover, the number of deaths has never been as high as today.

Among others, that is why people have to follow the restriction rules even during Easter.

If not, the virus’s spread can still accelerate, and Hungary will have to deal with a fourth wave. Portfolio.hu highlights that there are already promising features in the epidemic process in Hungary. However, those can still worsen even in the following days.

 

Is this ever going to end? More than 300 people died in COVID in the past 24 hours

covid coronavirus hungary hospital

Fully 302 generally elderly patients with co-morbidities died over the past 24 hours, while 6,700 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Tuesday.

Altogether 2,011,029 people have been vaccinated in Hungary, 753,187 of whom have received a second shot. These numbers mean that Hungary is in the second place in the European Union regarding the immunization of the population. The EU average is 11.2 pc while this rate is 20.5 pc in Hungary – the portal said.

The number of active infections has risen to 224,761 while hospitals are caring for 12,346 Covid patients, 1,492 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Since the first outbreak, 652,433 infections have been registered, while

fatalities have risen to 20,737.

The number of people vaccinated, the number of people in official home quarantine and the number of tests have not been updated from Monday.

Coronavirus Hungary map
https://koronavirus.gov.hu/terkepek/fertozottek

Fully 406,935 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest (121,657) and Pest County (90,454), followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron (36,799), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (35,725) and Hajdú-Bihar (34,288). Tolna County had fewest number of infections at (14,146).

The immunization of the school and kindergarten teachers is going to start on Thursday.

Coronavirus-related restrictions remain in effect until April 8

Hungary has no room to loosen lockdown measures yet due to a rise in coronavirus infections. Details:

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and Eastern.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 19.

Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres.

The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors. Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Overloaded: Elderly patients in some Hungarian hospitals can not receive artificial ventilation

coronavirus in hungary

So many people under the age of 65 are admitted to the intensive care unit and require artificial ventilation that in some hospitals, those over this age can not have the chance to receive the same treatment.

While the Hungarian government is already mentioning the opening of the country and when it can finally happen (find details here), the number of people who died from the virus has exceeded 20,000.

More than 20.000 people died in Hungary 

Most of the newly infected people are between the ages of 40 and 49, meaning that the average age of patients has decreased quite a lot. For the third wave, the number of deceased among the most seniors has decreased; however, it has increased in all other age groups.
According to the vice-president of the Trade Union of Hungarian Doctors,

opening the country seems a premature decision.

Judit Tóth talked to ATV about the current situation. She says that the British variant of the virus spreads much rapidly among younger people as they are the most active group in terms of social interaction. This led to the rapid increase of young people being admitted to hospitals with more and more severe symptoms.

According to her, this variant is much more contagious than others, which increases the minimum percentage of the population that needs to receive the vaccine. (from around 60-65% up to 75-80%).

She says the existing rules and restrictions should be taken more seriously, and even new ones should be introduced.

Doctors do not understand why the media is communicating the opening of the country.

She is glad the professors and all those working with children are receiving their jabs. However, immunity and protection will not be complete in only two weeks. While kids are less likely to suffer from severe symptoms, there are some exceptions.

The vice-president thinks that opening the country would be very early. For now, a more extended vaccination coverage is needed apart from the decrease in the number of those being treated in hospitals.

Judit Tóth says that the pandemic will not be stopped in the hospitals but by restrictions. Specialised clinics can help out hospitals and mitigate the pressure put on their care units. However, those arriving from these clinics will have difficulties with adapting to the hospital’s rhythm, and they can not substitute a specialist or a nurse trained to work in the ICU. It will also depend on the municipality we look at. In some areas, one or two colleagues can be freed and be sent to a hospital, but in other cases, when a municipality has only one specialist for a specific area, he needs to continue treating covid-free patients.

The director-general of the hospital of Ózd has recently said publicly that the current situation in his hospital is the same as those shocking pictures and videos we saw last year from Bergamo hospital. Even though the National Directorate General for Hospitals (Országos Kórházi Főigazgatóság) denied it, Judit Tóth said that many of her colleagues from this hospital, with whom she talked, said that the situation was very severe. She also publicly thanked the director-general for standing up for the truth, adding that she expects the same from all hospital directors.

She also shared unfortunate details with the TV channel.

Intensive care units that used to operate with 8 beds are now forced to take care of 40 patients,

while the double or even the triple of new patients arrive, forcing doctors to attend to 40 patients during a shift, which is an incredible weight. She says that the actual situation needs to be shown to the public, not to generate panic but to avoid giving a false impression of safety.

“The situation is extremely severe, according to rules that enter into effect in case of a catastrophe,

doctors need to decide who can receive emergency care,

for instance, if 8 or 10 patients in a critical condition arrive at the hospital at a time.”

Judit Tóth has also heard that

certain hospitals can not provide artificial ventilation to patients over 65 or 70 because the ICU is full of younger people.

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Hungarian coronavirus report: patients on ventilators keep breaking records

Fully 220 generally elderly patients with co-morbidities died over the past 24 hours, while 9,082 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Sunday.

Altogether 1,903,498 people have been vaccinated in Hungary, 685,971 of whom have received a second shot, the portal said.

The number of active infections has risen to 218,099 while hospitals are caring for 11,805 Covid patients, 1,527 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Altogether 59,018 people are in official home quarantine, and the number of tests stands at 4,515,464.

Since the first outbreak, 633,861 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to a total of 19,972. Fully 395,790 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest (119,681) and Pest County (88,707), followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron (36,210), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (35,314) and Hajdú-Bihar (33,793). Tolna County has the fewest infections (13,822). However, if we compare the number of people infected to the population of the counties, Komárom-Esztergom, Nógrád, Somogy, and Győr-Moson-Sopron are the most infected regions.

covid_coronavirus_map_térkép_hungary_march_28
Coronavirus map Hungary
Source: koronavirus.gov.hu/terkepek/fertozottek

Coronavirus-related restrictions extended until March 29

Hungary has no room to loosen lockdown measures yet due to a rise in coronavirus infections. Details: PM Orbán says no room to ease lockdown measures as coronavirus infections rise

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and 29.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 7.

Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres.

The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors. Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Never have this many Hungarians been artificially ventilated

covid coronavirus hungary hospital

Fully 253 generally elderly patients with co-morbidities died over the past 24 hours, while 10,167 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Saturday.

Altogether 1,870,631 people have been vaccinated in Hungary, 667,303 of whom have received a second shot, the portal said.

The number of active infections has risen to 202,799 while hospitals are caring for 11,823 Covid patients, 1,480 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Altogether 58,667 people are in official home quarantine, and the number of tests stands at 4,443,610.

Since the first outbreak, 624,779 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 19,752. Fully 393,999 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest (118,215) and Pest County (87,512), followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron (35,783), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (34,809) and Hajdú-Bihar (33,343). Tolna County has the fewest infections (13,615). However, if we compare the number of people infected to the population of the counties, Komárom-Esztergom, Nógrád, Somogy, and Győr-Moson-Sopron are the most infected regions.

Hungary coronavirus map
https://koronavirus.gov.hu/terkepek/fertozottek

Coronavirus-related restrictions extended until March 29

Hungary has no room to loosen lockdown measures yet due to a rise in coronavirus infections. Details: PM Orbán says no room to ease lockdown measures as coronavirus infections rise

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and 29.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 7.

Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres.

The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors. Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Overwhelmed COVID hospitals in Hungary: Civilians are being recruited

Volunteers would take 3-4-hour-long training before assisting medical staff in hospitals.

The third wave of the coronavirus is sweeping through Hungary, causing immense problems for doctors and nurses who are getting more and more exhausted due to the high number of patients in need of medical attention. The lack of personnel for this amount of infected patients is further complicating the situation.

Hvg.hu reports that the Regional Organisation of Győr-Moson-Sopron County that belongs to the Hungarian Medical Chamber announced on Sunday afternoon on their Facebook page that they are

looking for volunteers without any medical background to help to care for coronavirus patients in intensive care units.

“There is a huge overload in every coronavirus intensive care unit in almost every hospital. There are few nurses; moreover, they are all exhausted. This will further intensify in the upcoming weeks. We do not know how long it will last or how many more waves will come.

Motivated, trustworthy, and disciplined non-professionals trained for specific tasks would mean an immense help when caring for patients in Covid-19 units,”

they said.

The organisation created a training program boosted with a practical part that has already been tested. They say that a 3 or 4 hour-long training is sufficient to acquire the basic knowledge needed for these tasks. However, they emphasise that this training does not give a professional qualification, nor does it replace qualified nurses. Furthermore, the Chamber adds that they cannot guarantee for everyone who goes through with the training to be employed by a hospital.

The post also sets out the criteria to apply: physically and mentally strong, morally unquestionable, possibly young people but of age, who are willing to work under harsh circumstances in protective equipment.

They are looking for people who have either been vaccinated or can prove that they have gone through the infection in the past 6 months. If neither of these two conditions applies, applicants need to be under 45 years of age, aware of the dangers of infection, and having finished at least primary school.

Training will be carried out in Győr, Mosonmagyaróvár, and Sopron.

The clinic of Semmelweis University is also looking for volunteers on their website.

“If you are a medical student, a paramedic student, or have a medical qualification but work in another field, you can definitely help us. If you do not have the qualification, if you do not study in a medical field, but you would like to help, we welcome you.”

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Shocking details about the murder in the COVID-19 department: perpetrator was tied to bed

murder crime Hungarian ninja

New details have been revealed about the brutal murder committed by a Chinese citizen last week in the COVID-19 department of a Budapest hospital. The dangerous perpetrator was tied to a bed for the safety of other patients; however, someone untied him, which led to the tragedy.

As we previously reported, on 13th March, a horror story took place in the COVID department of a Budapest hospital after a Chinese citizen got up from his bed and brutally murdered an anaesthetised woman using surgical scissors. The Hungarian woman suffered life-threatening injuries; the punctures on the woman’s head affected her brain and lungs.

After the cruel attack, Marianna, who worked as an educator for decades, was kept alive by machines. However, on Wednesday, we received the tragic news that

the victim suffered such severe injuries that doctors could not save her life.

After the attack, the perpetrator ran out of the hospital and attacked the security guard as well, who tried to hold him back. Eventually, police officers caught him in the courtyard of the hospital.

Not long after, it has been revealed that the perpetrator was addicted to drugs. Furthermore, today, new shocking details got revealed. As Hungarian news portal Blikk reports,

the Chinese perpetrator was tied to a bed for the safety of other patients; however, someone untied him, which led to the tragedy.

The lawyer of the victim’s family commented on the case: “I think it is very important to state that all my respect belongs to the hospital staff for their hard work during the pandemic. However, I also must mention that, in my view, it was a big mistake that someone removed the bond from the perpetrator who could move freely from that point.”

The perpetrator is currently detained in a judicial psychiatric hospital. He did not confess to the murder; he says he does not remember anything. According to an acquaintance of the perpetrator – who has been living in Hungary for more than 10 years -, the Chinese community was also very shaken by what had happened. The perpetrator worked as a chef in a restaurant in Budapest, and there was no complaint about him at his workplace. The acquaintance did not confirm that the man had drug problems; he thinks that some drug, perhaps a sedative, caused this obnubilation in him.

The family of the deceased was waiting for answers from the hospital. According to the information of Blikk, Marianna’s family recently had a video chat with the management of the Budapest hospital, according to whom there was no omission on the part of the hospital.

According to the latest news, an internal investigation has been started in the hospital that refused to provide further information due to the ongoing investigation.

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National consultation results indicate how Hungary will reopen

About 88 pc of the respondents to a national consultation surveying Hungarians on their views of re-opening the country believe pandemic restrictions should be lifted gradually, state secretary Csaba Dömötör said on Facebook on Saturday.

Dömötör said just 12 percent of respondents think the restrictions should be lifted in a single go. He said the government would prepare a plan for re-opening the country based on the results of the survey and adjust the gradual lifting of restrictions to the number of people who have been inoculated against the coronavirus.

“The prime minister is consulting on the details of the re-opening with Hungarian experts and the prime ministers of countries that are ahead of Hungary in their vaccination rollout,” he added.

Dömötör said 65 percent of the survey respondents think people who can certify immunity against Covid-19 should be exempt from some restrictions,

and 58 percent said these people should be allowed to go to events such as concerts or sports matches.

He added that 79 percent agree that only foreigners who can certify Covid-19 immunity should be allowed into the country until the end of the pandemic. About 74 percent of respondents say the first restriction to be lifted should be the evening curfew, in place from 8:00 in the evening until 5:00 in the morning.

Dömötör thanked the 528,000 people who participated in the national consultation.

This is when Hungary can fully reopen

Balaton Sound Zamárdi Festival

We can reopen if every person who registered and is above 65 got the vaccine. That will happen when the number of inoculated citizens reaches 2.5 million, PM Viktor Orbán said in his Friday morning radio interview. Portfolio.hu analysed the progress of the vaccination program defining what the timeline of reopening might be. We sum up their findings below.

According to Portfolio.hu, everything depends on two key factors: the peak of the third wave and whether enough people will accept the vaccines which will come in mass numbers from April.

PM Viktor Orbán said yesterday in his regular Kossuth Radio interview that they are now compiling the plan for reopening. However, he shared no further details except that they will launch the first phase when 2.5 million people will have received the vaccine. Portfolio.hu says that

there are at least 800 thousand elderly waiting for their vaccine.

With their inoculation, the government’s first target can be reached.

The data of the Hungarian vaccination program shows that if there are enough jabs,

the Hungarian system can administer 40-60 thousand doses per day.

Furthermore, there are days when this number rises to 80-110 doses.

Based on that, Portfolio.hu calculated the expected date of when the number of vaccinated people reaches 2.5 million, 3 million, 3.5 million, and 4 million. Results show that the first target can be reached by April 7, which means that, according to Portfolio.hu, this is when the government can start to ease the restrictions. As a result,

all measures currently in effect are expected to remain in place even during Easter.

The website says that such a decision would be rational since the number of deaths, new infections, etc. is still rising steeply. That is why János Szlávik, the Head of Infectious Diseases Department at the South Pest Hospital Centre, said he would not exclude the possibility of even further restrictions to curb the virus. Furthermore, Easter is dangerous because of the many family visits.

If the curve of the infections starts to decline and the inoculation program shows the results mentioned above,

from April 7, schools and kindergartens can reopen, and it is also imaginable that people with immunity certificates can receive some special rights,

Portfolio.hu says. One of these can be that they will be exempted from the curfew between 8 pm and 5 am. The website speculated that they would even be allowed to drink or eat on the terraces of cafés and restaurants or book a room in a hotel.

However, if they want to wait three weeks until the immunity fully evolves, they have to wait until April 28. Based on each calculation method of the website,

by mid-June, 70 pc of the people living in Hungary can be immunised – that is the calculated final date of the full reopening.

Health centre opens for kids suffering from long COVID syndrome

heim pál hospital children

The nr. 1 pediatric clinic in Debrecen will open a long-term ambulance for those children who already underwent the coronavirus disease and are showing symptoms even 1-2 months after they caught the virus.

According to semmelweis.hu, the new health centre will open for those who still have stubborn symptoms deteriorating the quality of their life even 6-8 weeks after they caught the disease. The so-called post-COVID syndrome may have many symptoms. Therefore,

several medical branches will be present in the new health centre.

During the second and third waves, not only the number of infections broke records. Many children also caught the virus. Dr Péter Krivácsy, the leader of the emergency care department of the nr. 1 pediatric clinic in Debrecen, said that the number of those who show symptoms even 6-8 weeks after they caught the disease rose significantly in the past few months. Furthermore, these symptoms deteriorate the quality of their life.

The symptoms vary in a wide range, from headaches, tiredness, losing weight, dizziness, and discomfort to cardiovascular problems and even abdominal pain.

If kids show any of these permanently and even 1.5-2 months after they caught the disease, they should turn to a doctor.

Interestingly, papers focus on adults regarding the long COVID syndrome. Therefore, in the case of children, the literature is lacking. However, since the doctors in the clinic met many kids who turned to them because of this problem, they felt that they have to act. As a result, they created a new health centre.

Since there are a lot of types of symptoms, they tried to involve colleagues from different medical branches: cardiologists, pulmonologists, gastroenterologists, psychiatrists, and neurologists. They monitor the quality of life and the change in the kids’ symptoms every month.

Therefore, they expect patients between the ages of 0 and 18, but based on their experience, the long COVID syndrome affects mostly schoolchildren and adolescents. The health centre will start with a two-hour-long consultation,

on Wednesdays between 8 and 10 am.

However, if there is a demand, they will extend this period.

Parents can book an appointment on the website of the hospital, and patients can come from every part of the country. Mr Krivácsy highlighted that they still do not know enough about the runoff of the disease. That is why it is crucial to continuously monitor the health state of the kids.

Staggering photos of the fight against Covid-19 at the Semmelweis Intensive Care Unit – Gallery

semmelweis covid coronavirus

Since the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic, there have been very few cases where members of the press (especially the independent press) have been admitted to hospitals caring for Covid-19 patients with severe conditions. Now is one of those rare times when we can get a glimpse inside a hospital treating coronavirus patients in Hungary.

Magyar Hang highlights that the policy in Hungary is somewhat different. In most European countries, the press reports (in the form of photos as well) on the reality of the struggle of health workers so that people can get a real picture of the condition of those who are seriously ill.

The website’s staff had an easier job in Odorheiu Secuiesc (Székelyudvarhely) for instance. The difference in press freedom between the two countries is well characterized by the fact that the consultation with the Transylvanian hospital went smoothly, while in the case of the Hungarian institutions they couldn’t dream of premission.

But now we can get a glimpse into the intensive care unit of Semmelweis University.

The following images were taken and shared by Attila Kovács, the photographer of Semmelweis University’s Communication Directorate.

The photos depict the yellow and red zones of the Clinic of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care (AITK) at Semmelweis University. The colors indicate the severity of the condition of the patients being cared for. As they write, “university staff have never had to care for so many patients in need of intensive care, but they are committed to fighting for the recovery of patients”.

You can check out the rest of the images HERE.

Opposition: Hungary on ‘brink of national disaster’ caused by poor handling of epidemic

The opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) said Hungary was “on the brink of a national disaster” caused by the government’s insufficient handling of the coronavirus epidemic.

Citing figures announced by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on Friday morning, deputy group leader Gergely Arató told an online press conference that there had been more coronavirus deaths in Hungary relative to the total number of citizens on Thursday than in any other country.

He called on Orbán to stop “his obvious lies and propaganda about success” and face up to reality.

While Orbán was saying that “everything is in order and no changes are necessary” during his 23-minute interview, another 171 people got infected with the virus and another three died, Arato said.

Orbán has “completely and irreversibly lost touch with reality”, he added.

Ruling Fidesz said in response “the anti-vaxxer left” continued its anti-vaccination campaign.

“If it comes to grabbing power, leftist parties do not care for the lives of Hungarians,” Fidesz said in a statement. They called on DK to “stop lying about the vaccines”, and on the opposition “at least to stop obstructing the protection efforts if they are not willing to help.”

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Read alsoThe epidemic is raging in full force: new records set on all fronts in Hungary

The epidemic is raging in full force: new records set on all fronts in Hungary

semmelweis covid coronavirus

Fully 213 generally elderly patients with co-morbidities died over the past 24 hours, while 10,759 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Friday.

Altogether 1,477,554 people have been vaccinated in Hungary, 444,451 of whom have received a second shot, the portal said.

The number of active infections has risen to 167,190, while hospitals are caring for 10,264 Covid patients,

1,174 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Altogether 50,701 people are in official home quarantine, and the number of tests stands at 4,202,286.

Ever since the first outbreak, 549,839 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 17,841. Fully 364,808 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest (105,024) and Pest County (75,634), followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron (31,591), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (30,834) and Hajdú-Bihar (29,721). Tolna County has the fewest infections (11,960).

Coronavirus-related restirctions extended until March 29

Hungary closed most shops, services, kindergartens and primary schools for the next month in an effort to curb the third wave of coronavirus infections. MORE INFO HERE AND HERE.

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and 29.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 7. Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres.

The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors.

Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Dark day in Hungary: Covid-19 takes toll on a record 207 people in one day

coronavirus in Hungary

Fully 207 generally elderly patients with co-morbidities died over the past 24 hours, while 6,502 new infections were registered, koronavirus.gov.hu said on Thursday.

Altogether 1,441,706 people have been vaccinated in Hungary, 421,915 of whom have received a second shot, the portal said.

The number of active infections has risen to 160,557, while hospitals are caring for 10,386 Covid patients,

1,170 of whom need respiratory assistance.

Altogether 47,116 people are in official home quarantine, and the number of tests stands at 4,162,688.

Ever since the first outbreak, 539,080 infections have been registered, while fatalities have risen to 17,628. Fully 360,895 people have made a recovery.

So far, most infections have been registered in Budapest (102,987) and Pest County (73,854), followed by the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron (30,909), Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén (30,249) and Hajdú-Bihar (29,194). Tolna County has the fewest infections (11,787).

Hungarian government to issue immunity certificates irrespective of vaccine type

Hungarian authorities will issue the European immunity certificate to all Hungarian citizens inoculated with any type of the vaccines licenced for use in the country, the government’s communications centre (KTK) said in a statement on Wednesday.

In response to the EU’s preparations to roll out a uniform certificate across the community, KTK said that “right now the vaccine is more necessary than a passport” and insisted that the vaccination rate was low in Europe because

“Brussels has blundered” with the centralised vaccine purchases.

“Brussels bureaucracy is busy waging a vaccine war rather than focusing on supplies, while tens of thousands of people die each day,” the statement said. In its statement, the government centre also pledged to inoculate all registered Hungarians “thanks to the vaccines procured from multiple sources”.

Hungary closes down until March 22 to curb Covid-19 spread

Hungary closed most shops and services for two weeks and kindergartens and primary schools for the next month in an effort to curb the third wave of coronavirus infections. MORE INFO HERE.

Shops, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, petrol stations, drugstores, tobacco shops, shops selling tools for “spring gardening”, pet food and fodder shops, and markets, will have to be closed, and services will have to stop, with the exception of private healthcare, social care, financial, postal, and car repair services, suspended between March 8 and 22.

Kindergartens and primary schools will be closed from March 8 until April 7. Gyms will continue to be closed for two weeks, but licenced athletes will be allowed to train and compete behind closed doors. Parks will be allowed to stay open and outdoor sports will also be allowed for activities in which people can maintain a safe distance of 1.5 metres.

The government asks employers to ensure that their employees can work from home wherever possible, particularly in the case of those with children.

Mask-wearing remains mandatory outdoors, he said. Hungary would impose tighter controls on its borders, adding, however, that freight and transit traffic will not be restricted. Wage subsidies and tax cuts introduced for the hospitality industry will be expanded for the period of the lockdown to all sectors forced to shut down by the new measures.

Horror story: woman stabbed to death in the COVID department of a Budapest hospital

honvéd hospital

The Hungarian woman, who had been stabbed with surgical scissors by a Chinese patient in the COVID department of a hospital in Budapest, suffered such severe injuries that doctors could not save her life.

As we reported previously, a Chinese Covid-19 patient stabbed an anaesthetised woman using surgical scissors in a Budapest hospital’s courtyard last week.

On Saturday, the 37-year-old man, who had previously also been on a ventilator, got up from his bed, picked up the dangerous, razor-sharp surgical scissors and stabbed the defenceless victim in the face and chest several times. The Hungarian woman suffered life-threatening injuries; the punctures on the woman’s head also affected her brain.

After the cruel attack, Marianna, who worked as an educator for decades, was kept alive by machines. Her students still believed in the miracle, hoping their beloved teacher would recover.

However, we received the tragic news today that the victim suffered such severe injuries that doctors could not save her life.

As the Hungarian news portal HírTv reports, after the attack, the perpetrator ran out of the hospital and attacked the security guard as well, who tried to hold him back. Eventually, police officers caught him in the courtyard of the hospital. The Chinese man did not confess to the crime and stated he did not remember anything. According to the Hungarian news portal Blikk,

the perpetrator was addicted to drugs previously; he struggled with severe withdrawal symptoms in the hospital.

The man was arrested by the court and detained in a judicial psychiatric hospital. The Police will provide information later on the case.

The family of the deceased is still waiting for answers from the hospital because they find the quantity and quality of the information service unacceptable for what happened to their loved one.

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