A flu epidemic has hit the Czech Republic in full force. Regional sanitation authorities recommend that hospitals close down departments for visitors. Patients thus have a greater chance of avoiding catching the flu. The highest number of shut down hospitals is in the Southern Moravian region.
Medical institutions are being shut down based on recommendations from regional sanitation authorities examining flu occurrence in the regions. A number of hospitals in Brno, including the Teaching Hospital, Trauma Hospital, The Merciful Brothers’ Hospital and St Anne’s Hospital, are closed. The only exception is the Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute since the patients suffering from cancer need constant contact with their relatives.
To refuse visits to the relatives brings about problems. “All our departments have been closed since Saturday and the visitors are disobedient,” said Marie Piknová from the Teaching Hospital in Brno. “They don’t understand that the patients are suffering from diseases, which can be worsened by flu,” she said. Paradoxically, it is the parents of hospitalised children who are the most accommodating. “Even though children need to see their parents often, the parents understand that they can put them in danger,” Piknová said.
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The Hradec Králové region is in a similar situation. Visitors are not allowed into hospitals in Hradec Králové, Jičín, Trutnov and Rychnov nad Kněžnou. Relatives of the patients in Hradec Králové Teaching Hospital are significantly better behaved.
“Patients and staff get on well,” said Petr Tyršer, deputy of medical care. “The visits are not allowed particularly to the intensive care unit, the other departments are considered individually and so the relatives need to call the hospital in order to find out,” he said.
The Karlovy Vary region has shut down hospitals in Sokolov, Ostrov but also in Karlovy Vary. “We closed down all 12 ward departments last Saturday,” said Zdeňka Marková, hospital spokeswoman. “The departments are not closed down hermetically and of course there are exceptions when the relative can make an agreement with the staff and visit the patient,” she said. According to Marková, the ban on visits will last at least until the end of the week.
Friday data from the hygienists show that the flu epidemic in the Czech Republic continues spreading. The highest number of those affected has been recorded in the Zlín region (2,184 people on 100,000 inhabitants), more than 2,000 have been registered in Plzeň, Karlovy Vary, South Moravia and Moravia-Silesia regions. The most frequent flu strain in the country is H3N2.
