In the latest assessment of the coronavirus pandemic in Finland published Thursday, the pandemic has continued to slow down when comparing to the situation two weeks ago.
The weekly average of cases reported to the communicable diseases register has, according to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare—the coordinators of the evaluation—decreased clearly from that reported two weeks ago.
Now the estimated basic reproduction number is 0.75–0.80. In layman’s terms this means that in Finland the trend in the coronavirus pandemic has been decreasing for quite some time.
During the last period (May 25–31 2020) no new cases were reported in eight hospital districts.
The number of patients in the hospital care because of the disease has also decreased considerably from the situation two weeks ago.
The situation in the catchment areas for highly specialized medical care of the university hospitals is described as “calm.” “The intensive care capacity,” according to the evaluation, “was not exceed at any point.”
Currently, the coronavirus testing capacity of laboratories is more than 13,000 samples per day. During the period May 25–31 the number of people tested for the coronavirus was smaller than in the previous weeks.
According to the assessment: “The aim for Finland is to test all cases where the acute phase of the coronavirus infection is suspected. This means that the threshold for taking the test and for people to have themselves tested should be low.”
In Finland, an estimated 5,800 people have recovered from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
Background:
The impact of Finland’s hybrid strategy to combat the COVID-19 pandemic is monitored by means of epidemiological, medical and functional indicators. The strategy aims to prevent the spread of the virus in Finland, protect the capacity of the healthcare system and shield and protect people, especially those who are most at risk. The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare produce weekly assessments of the situation with respect to the epidemic, both nationally and in different regions.
