Zdeněk Hřib, the Mayor of Prague, stated that the city is ready to provide gyms and one dormitory for the infected patients in a serious condition. These facilities are reserved for emergency cases and in case of the lack of hospital beds.
Hřib promised to discuss this option with Roman Prymula, the new Minister of Health. Prymula already mentioned that the capacity of the hospitals with ventilators is almost full. Again, he promised to find out what is happening with the promised respirators for teachers because no one has received them yet.
Providing enough space for the infected people is not a problem, Hřib stated. The difficulties might occur if there aren’t enough doctors and professionals to take care of the patients. The Institute of Health Information and Statistics published on Monday that the number of infected doctors and nurses is growing rapidly. Prymula agreed with Hřib that the number of staff in hospitals is “the only limiting factor.”
Also, Hřib wants citizens to start using the eRouška application, which has already been downloaded by 375,000 people as of this Monday. It is supposed to help the citizens to see if they have met anybody infected. The application is fully anonymous and safe.
This Thursday, European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) already included the Czech Republic on the list of countries with the alarming development of COVID-19. Other countries included were Spain, Malta, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Hungary. They base this data on the number of elderly getting infected. ECDC added that these seven countries are close to becoming the main concern. However, Andrea Ammon, director of ECDC, didn’t insist on closing the borders with these countries completely. She added that if it is possible to provide basic separation rules then there won’t be a need to close bars, shops, or other public places.