On 3 November 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 6,126 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection over 24 hours, bringing the total to 182,303.
There are currently 3,219 Covid-19 patients in hospitals across Switzerland, according to FOPH figures published by RTS. This figure doubled over the last 10 days weeks and is 35% above the peak during the first wave of 2,388 reached on 2 April 2020.
Deaths are rising too. Over the past month, 475 have died, of which 406 are laboratory-confirmed cases. These figures are similar to March. In the month that followed, a further 1,140 people perished.
Some hospitals in Switzerland are close to breaking point. On Monday, Nicolas Blondel, a doctor at Fribourg hospital, took to social media to make an impassioned plea to the public to stop the virus spreading. According to Blondel, the situation is now extremely serious. He said ambulances were arriving with Covid patients every quarter of an hour at his hospital. If that continues he said there would probably be no more space by Tuesday (Today) or Wednesday. Already the hospital is unable to treat patients as well as they would like, he said.
“Covid is not the flu and we are heading towards a health catastrophe” said the doctor. The only effective treatment for the virus is to break transmission. Currently, one test in two in the canton of Fribourg is positive, he said.
The hospitals in French-speaking Switzerland have reached overload and this is starting in some German-speaking cantons, said Blondel. “Stop believing those that say everything is fine….this is the last chance to take action”, he said.
Hospitals could reach overload within 5 days said Virginie Masserey of the FOPH.
Total Covid-19 deaths in Switzerland stood at 2,430 on 3 November 2020, of which 2,202 were laboratory-confirmed cases. Switzerland’s 14-day infection rate was 1,069 per 100,000.
More on this:
FOPH update (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
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