Epidemiologist Tegnell: Closing nursing homes in the pandemic was a mistake

2023-06-17 15:55:10

More than 700 visitors at the 75th anniversary congress of the Chamber of Pharmacists

Vienna (OTS) – “It was a mistake to keep retirement and nursing homes closed during the pandemic instead of allowing the people affected to socialize.” This was the opinion of Anders Tegnell, former state epidemiologist at the Swedish Public Health Authority, at the festival congress of the Austrian Chamber of Pharmacists, which took place from Thursday to Saturday at Messe Wien on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the institution and attracted more than 700 visitors.

The pharmacists played a very central role during the pandemic, especially in the area of communication, explained Tegnell. “The communication of the pharmacists was better and more extensive than that of the doctors.” In general, a pandemic is more of a problem for society as a whole than one of the respective health system. “A pandemic cannot be solved by the system alone,” emphasized the doctor.

It is not known when the next pandemic will come, but one lesson learned from COVID is to reduce contact between humans and animals, especially in Asia. In addition, with regard to a possible future pandemic, better data are needed, said Tegnell.

Tursky: Data as a challenge

For Florian Tursky, State Secretary for Digitization and Telecommunications, the challenge lies in linking the various data areas. “80 percent of the data is not in Europe, so we have to make sure that the data is in Europe and is used in a standardized way,” Tursky explained at the congress. In addition, it is important to him that the e-card, linked to personal health data, is on the cell phone in the future, as is the driver’s license. “The problem is Austrian data protection through the various silos. Digital identity can solve this problem, allowing others to securely access certain data.”

Mursch-Edlmayr: Pharmacies as a digital-analogue interface

Pharmacist Chamber President Ulrike Mursch-Edlmayr emphasized the role of the more than 6,800 pharmacists in Austria as “companions, translators and interfaces between digital and analogue” in the healthcare system. “People have to be accompanied in this area. We enjoy their trust, as the pandemic has proven. The best way to be fair and efficient is to use existing structures such as pharmacies,” said Mursch-Edlmayr in her closing statement.