27.01.2022

Soite’s Coro­n­avirus Task Group Informs on the 27th of Jan­u­ary 2021

Soite’s coro­n­avirus task group gath­ered on Thurs­day Jan­u­ary 27th 2022 to eval­u­ate the region­al sit­u­a­tion­al picture.

The cur­rent sit­u­a­tion of infection

The inci­dence of coro­n­avirus con­tin­ues to increase in Soite’s area. So far this week, 264 new coro­n­avirus cas­es have been con­firmed in the Soite area; the num­ber is some­what high­er than at the same time last week. The inci­dence of infec­tions dur­ing 14 days is cur­rent­ly 1,335/100,000 res­i­dents in the entire Soite area and a total of 1,033 coro­n­avirus infec­tions have been con­firmed dur­ing 14 days. Three patients who have test­ed pos­i­tive for a coro­n­avirus infec­tion are cur­rent­ly being treat­ed at Cen­tral Ostro­both­nia cen­tral hospital.

Home test­ing is rec­om­mend­ed as the pri­ma­ry method for con­firm­ing a coro­n­avirus infec­tion.  Home tests are rec­om­mend­ed for any­one who has symp­toms of a res­pi­ra­to­ry infec­tion, such as a fever, a run­ny nose or a cough. We rec­om­mend repeat­ing the home test again after a few days if the symp­toms of res­pi­ra­to­ry infec­tion per­sist. Addi­tion­al infor­ma­tion about coro­n­avirus home tests can be found on the Finnish Insti­tute for Health and Welfare’s web­site .

A pos­i­tive home test result for an adult has to be con­firmed with­in the health care ser­vices, if:

• the symptoms are serious
• the person who is ill belongs to a risk group
• the person who is ill is pregnant
• the person who is ill works within the social and health care services
• the person who is ill needs a certificate for sickness allowance on account of an infectious disease for themselves or a family member or a result for a coronavirus passport.

A per­son who has test­ed pos­i­tive in Soite will receive a text mes­sage with instruc­tions for iso­la­tion and home treat­ment. Please read the instruc­tions care­ful­ly. Per­sons aged 60 and old­er will still be con­tact­ed by phone if the test result is positive.

Cur­rent instruc­tions are found on Soite’s coro­n­avirus website:

• Instructions for When you Suspect a Coronavirus Infection
• Treating a Coronavirus Infection at Home
• Isolation and quarantine instructions for persons who are infected with or have been exposed to COVID-19
• Frequently Asked Questions (available in Finnish and Swedish; an English translation is underway)

To pre­vent infec­tions it is still impor­tant to:

• Stay at home and take a home test if you have symptoms of a respiratory infection
• Maintain good hand hygiene: Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer frequently.
• Avoid social gatherings and follow regional regulations and recommendations: https://korona.soite.fi/en/recommendations/
• Use protective face masks. Link: regional face mask recommendation
• The most important and effective way to prevent coronavirus infections, and especially serious forms of the disease, is to take a coronavirus vaccine.

Vac­ci­na­tions

Coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tions are pro­gress­ing well with­in Soite’s area and a record amount of vac­ci­na­tions is being giv­en at the vac­ci­na­tion sites. It is espe­cial­ly impor­tant to take the coro­n­avirus vac­cine now that the quick­ly spread­ing omi­cron vari­ant is present in the area, as the vac­cine pro­tects you from seri­ous forms of COVID-19 in particular.

The Finnish Insti­tute for Health and Wel­fare has pub­lished new video for cit­i­zens about coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tions (cur­rent­ly in Finnish):

• 5–11-vuotiaiden lasten koronarokotukset (coronavirus vaccinations for 5-11-year-olds)
• Kolmannet koronarokoteannokset (third vaccine doses)
• Omikron ja rokotukset (Omicron and vaccinations)

Coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tions are now pro­gress­ing with regards to all per­sons over the age of 5 who live in Soite’s area:

• The second dose can be given when at least six weeks have passed since the first vaccination.
• A third vaccine dose is given to everyone over the age of 60 and to persons who belong to medical risk groups (1 and 2) and are at least 18 years old if at least 3 months have passed since they received the second dose.
• A third vaccine dose is given to everyone aged 18 to 59 years if at least 4 months have passed since they received the second dose.
• A third dose is also given to persons aged 12 and older who have a severe immunodeficiency, if at least 2 months have passed since the second vaccination.
• A fourth dose is given to persons aged 12 and older who have a severe immunodeficiency, if at least 3 months have passed since the third vaccination.
• Coronavirus vaccinations for children aged 5 to 11 will be arranged by appointment at Soite’s vaccination centrals. You can book an appointment via Soite’s online Omahoito service: https://soite.terveytesi.fi/citizenportal/#/login . More appointments will be opened as soon as possible. When 5-11 year old children are vaccinated, consent is needed by both parents before the child can receive the vaccine. Link to the consent form (available in Finnish and Swedish).

Coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tions are now main­ly done dur­ing appoint­ment-free walk-in vac­ci­na­tion days instead of dur­ing appoint­ments. On vac­ci­na­tion days with­out appoint­ment book­ing, you can come to get your coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tion when it suits you best. Addi­tion­al infor­ma­tion and the timetable for the walk-in days can be found on Soite’s coro­n­avirus web­site: https://korona.soite.fi/en/the-coronavirus-vaccines/

An appoint­ment for a coro­n­avirus vac­ci­na­tion may still be booked online on https://soite.terveytesi.fi/ or by phone on the num­ber 06 828 7488. Phone hours Mon­day to Thurs­day from 9 am to 3 pm and Fri­day 9 am to 2 pm. You can also book an appoint­ment via your health cen­tre (page is in Finnish)

You can fol­low how the vac­ci­na­tions progress in the area with the help of Soite’s coro­na vac­ci­na­tion indi­ca­tor, which is updat­ed on Mon­day afternoons.

Why should I take the coro­n­avirus vaccine?

1. Coronavirus vaccines give effective protection against serious forms of COVID-19.
2. The vaccines also protect against the long-term effects of COVID-19, the so-called long COVID, which may cause prolonged tiredness, shortness of breath, cough and joint and chest pain.
3. By taking the vaccine, you can protect not only yourself but also others. The coronavirus vaccination significantly reduces the secretion of the virus and its spreading from one person to another.
4. The risks associated with the vaccine are significantly smaller than those associated with coronavirus infection. Link: Information about the coronavirus vaccination
5. With vaccinations, we can return to a more normal life and the need for restrictions is reduced. Everyone who decides to take the vaccine makes a difference.