This is the end of the obligation to wear a mask in Marseille hospitals. “It’s weird. I really have a hard time getting into the rooms withoutnotes a midwife from the AP-HM. It’s a release for some, but it also generates anxiety for others.“.
Since yesterday, the Public Assistance of Marseille hospitals has lifted the unilateral obligation to wear a mask for its 18,000 agents, the thousands of patients and visitors who pass through the doors of its establishments every day.
The mask nevertheless remains mandatory for anyone showing symptoms of ENT infection; immunocompromised patients and visitors at risk of severe form of covid-19 and professionals working with them.
Covid tests before hospitalization, new deal
PCR screening for Sars-cov2 preoperatively in asymptomatic patients is also evolving. It is now only recommended for surgeries with mechanical ventilation in immunocompromised, fragile patients or in the context of surgery with a high respiratory risk (cardiac surgery, pulmonary resection, esophagectomy, etc.).
If the incidence rate of covid-19 remains very low (77 new cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the Bouches-du-Rhône), the indicators of Public Health France indicate this week an upward trend at the national level. The number of visits to the emergency room was increasing as well as new hospitalizations.
“Due to the insufficient level of booster vaccinations and the very active circulation of respiratory viruses, a reinforcement of vaccination once morest covid-19 and once morest influenza in the targeted people remains necessary.“, always recommend the health authorities, in addition to adherence to barrier gestures.
Soon considered seasonal flu
Internationally, covid-19 will soon be comparable to the threat of seasonal flu, the World Health Organization said yesterday. “I think we’re getting to the point where we can look at Covid-19 the same way we look at seasonal flu, which is a health threat, a virus that will continue to kill, but a virus that doesn’t disrupt our society. or our hospital systems“, said the head of WHO’s emergency programs, Michael Ryan, at a press conference. The WHO might lower its maximum alert level “this year”. Since the beginning of the pandemic, three years ago, nearly seven million deaths from Covid-19 were reported, a figure WHO says is underestimated.
