Update – 12/11/2021
November 12, 2021
Who we are
Action Digital is a full-service digital agency based in Cyprus offering services in web
As of the latest update by the Greek authorities, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 diagnosed cases in Greece 815,068. 67 new deaths were reported raising the total number to 16,560. The number of patients treated in intensive care units is currently 503. 6,801 new cases were announced yesterday in Greece. 1,629 of the new cases were found in the Attica region and 1,154 new cases in the Thessaloniki region.
Amid the relentless rise in cases of the coronavirus, deaths and intubations, health authorities warned on Thursday that the country’s overburdened National Health System (ESY) is struggling to keep apace and appealed to members of the public and private doctors to do their bit.
“We have a lot of cases, and ESY is under a lot of pressure at the moment,” she stressed, noting that there is three to four times more work for doctors in hospitals’ Covid departments.
The deputy minister added that hospitals are using the same amount of oxygen each day they would normally in a week.
She urged members of the public to step up their efforts to “stop the pandemic” by “wearing a mask, taking care of our contacts and of course getting vaccinated.”
“We are not relaxing. We currently have the most cases of coronavirus we have ever had,” she said. “We have symptoms, we take a test. We generally should take tests often,” she said.
Asked about the condition in hospitals and the situation with non-Covid patients, she reassured that “all patients will be treated safely in any case.”
For her part, professor of pediatric infectious diseases and member of the Committee of Experts Vana Papaevangelou noted that there has been a 50% increase in cases in the last week.
“The pressure on ESY is significant,” she said, noting that it will continue for at least two to three weeks, along with an increase in intubations and deaths.The ICU occupancy rate in Thessaloniki reached 97%, she said, while that in ICUs across Greece climbed to 88%.
She appealed to everyone to get vaccinated, be that the first or third dose, and to observe personal protection measures.
Later on Thursday, meanwhile, government spokesman Yiannis Economou said that doctors in private practice have until Monday to offer their services to ESY or face being drafted to assist at public hospital struggling to cope with patient numbers.
“We will do whatever is necessary to bolster ESY, at any level, regardless of the cost,” he said in an interview with Alpha television late on Thursday.
A couple in the northern Greek city of Serres run the risk of losing custody of their four children for refusing to send them to school, as they are against self-tests and the use of masks, which are compulsory by law for pupils to attend class.
According to prosecutors following the case, the removal of parental custody can be ordered in cases where it is deemed the parents are not fulfilling their duties or it is determined that there is a risk to the physical or mental health of the children.
The local prosecutor’s office has ordered an investigation into the family home in order to determine the conditions under which the care/custody of the children is exercised by the parents.
The profile of most of those rushing to get their shots of the first dose of the vaccine in Greece is younger people in areas with low inoculation coverage, according to the most recent data available.
With the infection rate soaring, an analysis of vaccinations in areas around the country with hitherto low rates of inoculation has demonstrated that the fourth wave of the pandemic has frightened many of those citizens who for months had hesitated or refused to get inoculated.
Overall, since November 1 bookings have continued to rise almost exponentially, with a total of 225,547 over the last 10 days.
More specifically, on November 1 a total of 13,087 new first dose appointments were booked. That number had risen to 39,973 by November 8 and 33,272 by November 9.
Tellingly, appointments for the first dose in the prefectures of Greece with vaccination coverage of less than 50% – Drama, Kilkis, Pella, Pieria, Serres, Ilia, West Attica – have shot up.
Moreover, appointments for the first dose of the vaccine surged over the last 10 days in Drama (2,402), Kilkis (1,763), Pella (4,212), Pieria (3,132), Serres (3,962), Fokida (825), Ilia (3,142) and West Attica 3,858.
Thessaloniki, which has also been hard hit by the fourth wave and is also low in vaccination coverage, but not below 50%, leads the pack in first-dose appointments with 20,014 new appointments.
The above demonstrate that the restrictions imposed by the government combined with growing concern among the population have played have played a catalytic role in increasing vaccinations among young people.
In more detail, the 6,801 new cases detected per Regional Unit:
