Poland's health system faces collapse

Reliable news from professional sources for events outside the USA
Forum rules
The rules to post are simple. Show your work. Post your proof. Cite verified, credible sources. Links to blogs and posting memes are not acceptable and will get you banned. Intelligent, educated, literate people always welcome.
User avatar
AHE
Site Admin
Posts: 3793
Joined: 2020, Sep 14, Mon, 9:56 am

Poland's health system faces collapse

Unread post by AHE »

Poland suffers from a shortage of doctors, nursing staff and ICU beds.

Thursday, the number of new coronavirus cases in Poland broke the threshold of 20,000. The epidemiologist and government adviser Andrzej Horban immediately rang the alarm bell: At this pace, the country's health system would soon reach its limit, he warned.

"If the rise of new infections remains at the current level, there will be no way out anymore and we will have to introduce a lockdown," Horban said. "Our system is capable of accommodating up to 30,000 COVID-19 patients, who will then receive the best possible medical treatment," he added. More than that would "ruin" Poland's health system, he said.

At the moment 22,500 are available, of which nearly 15,000 are in use — while another 700 COVID patients are hospitalized on a daily basis. Of the total of 11,000 ventilators available in Poland, 1,700 have been reserved for COVID patients. At this point, 1,200 of those are already in use.

Just one month ago, Poland's hospitals only had to accomodate 2,400 COVID patients, and only 140 of those were on a ventilator.

One of Poland's biggest problems now is staff shortage, although this was a pressing issue even before the pandemic. Of the 4,000 doctors who are trained in Poland every year, several hundred go to work abroad because they don't want to work within the chronically underfunded Polish health system.

Paramedics and patients are now feeling the painful effects of the doctors' shortage.

Polish parliament has just approved new financial incentives for doctors and nursing staff. Those willing to work at the COVID frontline would receive considerable benefits. Doctors, for example, will receive twice as much as their respective basic salaries. In addition, they will be partially exempted from liability when they treat COVID patients. :shock:
https://www.dw.com/en/polands-health-sy ... a-55455561
AHE network of sites

Blog: https://www.arkdvd.com/wp
Post Reply