According to IC doctor Diederik Gommers, we are on the right track to master the corona virus, even now that the new delta variant is spreading faster and faster. In large cities such as Rotterdam and Amsterdam, 40 percent of the positively tested people are now infected with the delta variant, says Gommers. “It is important that we know and are on top of it,” he tells zegt Rhine estuary today. “For us as OMT, it’s also good to know that it’s not over. We have to learn to live with the virus.”
It is therefore still important to adhere to the basic measures, emphasizes the chairman of the Dutch Association of Intensive Care. “If you have complaints, get yourself tested. We want to eradicate the virus with the GGD, but there will be outbreaks in certain neighborhoods. That is not excluded.”
New outbreaks
According to Gommers, this is mainly due to the fact that part of the population does not have themselves vaccinated. “If 25 percent of adults don’t get vaccinated – that’s about 3 million people – that’s too much. Then you cannot prevent outbreaks from occurring.”
It will become more exciting again towards winter, says the IC doctor. The antibodies in the group that was first vaccinated against the coronavirus, the elderly, will then decrease again. “That makes sense. And then we will have a discussion again: the Health Council may want that group to receive a third shot so that they are better protected again,” he says. “But I’m not worried about that. Because we know more about the virus, we can take adequate measures.”
He also considers it likely that an annual jab, just as is now happening for vulnerable groups with the flu shot, is likely. “Is it bad to get a repeat shot in the first few years? I do not think so.”
New lockdown?
According to Gommers, we do not have to fear a new lockdown. “We are good at taking measures, but we find relaxation scary. But if you hold on to it too long, the public will no longer trust it. So it is important that we now dare to scale down quickly. That is also possible from now on.”
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By: Marinka Wagemans
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