AMSTERDAM (Dagbladet): The infection pressure in the Netherlands is now among the worst in the world. The numbers are constantly rising, which has led to several strict restrictions for the population.
– The virus is everywhere, said Prime Minister Mark Rutte during a press conference on Friday last week.
In the last two weeks alone, the country has registered 1285 cases of infection per 100,000 inhabitants, while Norway has 475 cases, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
The hospitals are now facing several new challenges and are preparing for the worst possible scenario – that they will not have enough beds for everyone who becomes seriously ill.
– Yes, I think it will be much, much worse because the infection rates are still going up, says the Norwegian superior Harald Thune Jørstad (41), cardiologist at the University Hospital in Amsterdam, to Dagbladet.
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– The arrows in the wrong direction
The superior says that the hospital still has waiting lists from the previous closure, consisting of patients in risk groups who, for example, are waiting for a new heart valve.
– We have worked 110 percent to get rid of these waiting lists, but now the arrows are going in the wrong direction again, says Thune Jørstad.
The superior completed his medical studies in Amsterdam and has worked as a doctor in the Netherlands for the past 15 years. He therefore knows well how the development has been, both in the hospital recently and through the long pandemic.
FEARS NEW LOCKDOWN: The Norwegian superior Harald Thune Jørstad says more are afraid of full intensive care units in the near future. Photo: Private.
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– The reserve capacity of those who work in the health care system has become much more limited. Especially for the nurses. They have worked hard through previous periods and now they are working hard again. There is a limit to how much you can achieve without compromising your own health.
The strict measures that were introduced on Saturday last week last a week longer than what the country’s infection control authorities recommended in advance.
Dagbladet talks to the cardiologist on the phone, because the doctor has been asked to take a few days off after a long period of intensive work. But also because he must be ready for the time to come.
– Everyone is very worried about how this winter will go, he says to Dagbladet.
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QR code creates anger
On September 25, the government introduced a vaccine passport. A QR code indicates whether you have been vaccinated, have undergone corona or have recently taken a negative coronal test. This must now be shown to enter restaurants, cafes or bars.
From Saturday last week, no one may have more than four people visiting at home, non-essential shops must close at 18.00 and restaurants and cafes at 20.00.
The national team of Norway also had to play for empty stands in the match against the Netherlands, since it is no longer allowed with spectators at sporting events.
The superior says that the new measures have led to major reactions.
– I have had angry and aggressive patients. Because they have chosen not to be vaccinated, they feel that their lives are very limited by the measures, says Thune Jørstad.
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The cardiologist says that many want to return to their normal lives and that they therefore express despair over the part of the population that has not been vaccinated. The great contagious pressure this entails leads to restrictions for the entire population, and the desperate reactions to the measures are new compared to the situation last year.
– I have not experienced as much anger towards health professionals as I do now. A year ago, there was much more solidarity among the people and everyone wanted to help each other get through this here together, says the superior.
– Full hospitals
From having a relatively stable infection pressure over the summer, Thune Jørstad’s hospital is now preparing for a new possible wave in the future.
– If we had known what the very best ways were to stop this, apart from the 100 percent vaccination rate, which we unfortunately have not achieved here, we would have known what to do. But it is very difficult to find the right balance in all the other measures, says the cardiologist.
He does not think the current shutdown will have a major effect on the development of infection in the near future. If you put in three weeks of shutdown, then, according to the superior, it will take almost four weeks to be able to evaluate how the effect has been.
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Therefore, he thinks the country has a difficult winter ahead. What he thinks everyone is afraid of is that the intensive care units will be full and that a curfew will be introduced, as last winter.
– Some hospitals in the country, for example in the south, are already full and have had to cancel planned operations. They can not accept more patients with corona, because then they will not have time for others. It is already tough, says Thune Jørstad.
This week, the doctors at the hospital have been told to cancel all physical appointments. In addition, all employees must wear face masks again.
The superior describes an increasing pressure, with longer and busier guards:
– We do not have the reserve that you normally have in hospitals, because all other departments are just as busy.
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– Has worked «nonstop»
The next step, however, will be to have to borrow personnel from other departments, in order to staff the capacity of the intensive care unit.
Although the healthcare sector has been through several waves, there is one thing that worries the superior.
– Nurses and doctors who have worked “non stop” throughout this period, are starting to get tired. For many, it feels pointless that they are now entering a new round and that is a bigger problem than what we had a year and a half ago, says Thune Jørstad.
One of those who has really noticed the great work pressure on the body is Dutch Bernard Jansen (29), urological surgeon at the University Hospital in Amsterdam.
After a long day at work, the surgeon welcomes Dagbladet into the living room in fluent Norwegian. In the eastern part of Amsterdam, he lives with his Norwegian girlfriend Kristin Stensland (29).
FUTURE PLANS: The couple has talked about maybe moving to Norway sometime in the future. Photo: Jeanette N. Vik
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Worked 20 days in a row
The number of corona admissions in the Netherlands is not as record high as the number of infected. Therefore, the surgeon is full with all the patients who have previously been canceled and postponed operations during previous waves.
– The previous wave was heavier, because it was more dangerous since no one was vaccinated. Still, we are in a bad situation right now, says Jansen.
If admissions increase again, most resources will be sent to work with covid patients, which in turn will lead to changes and cancellations for the operating rooms and the doctors who work there.
During the first closure, Jansen also worked with the corona patients, not so much with the treatment itself, but with first aid and in the intensive care unit.
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– I remember that I looked at my work schedule and discovered 20 days of work in a row and only one day break, and then ten more days with work and one day off. Followed by 14 days of work with a day off, says the doctor.
The cohabitant breaks in:
– And he never complained. It was very impressive, says Stensland.
– Challenging time
The fear of bringing the infection home, and then infecting others, led to the couple being home alone a lot during the first shutdown.
– It was a very challenging time and we really hope that the same thing does not happen again, she says.
– I have read that 40 to 50 percent of the hospitals in the Netherlands do not have the opportunity to do all the operations that they want to do. It’s bad, says the surgeon.
So far, this does not apply to the hospital where Jansen works, something that may change in line with the number of admissions.
– What is interesting is that even with a high vaccination rate, people live so close to the Netherlands, which means that the virus can still spread.
Fighting for life
– How do you think the next time will be?
– Nobody knows, which is quite frustrating. The Prime Minister said at the beginning of the pandemic that we must make 100 percent of the decisions with only 50 percent of the answers, which I think is good, says Jansen.
Approaching a third dose
Over 72 percent of the country’s 17 million inhabitants are now fully vaccinated. In comparison, around 70 per cent are fully vaccinated in Norway.
The doctor believes vaccines are the way forward, and says health professionals in the Netherlands will soon receive a third dose.
– The virus will probably come back several times. I think we will have new outbreaks every now and then. That is why it is important that people get vaccinated, he says.
So far, the couple notices little about the latest closure compared to the curfew last year, but they do not think the restrictions will only last for the next two weeks.
– So far, things are normal for me, but the hospitals are upgrading again now, so it can change quickly, the surgeon says.
Something the boyfriend does not hope will happen right away.
– I do not look forward to a new period with so much alone time, but to have the opportunity to work as a doctor in a pandemic is a unique experience and I really support it. We must always manage, says Stensland.
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