Editorial The coronavirus epidemic is not over, but fears of the disease have waned

Editorial|Editorial

Finland is emerging from the coronavirus epidemic in the same way it did: with a small delay. The crest of the omicron wave is also starting to break in Finland, which opens the way for the lifting of corona restrictions. Exercise, culture and food restaurants will hopefully open as early as next week.

The epidemic does not end with infections, but with people getting bored. Jussi Sane, an epidemiologist at the World Health Organization, has recently represented this view in public. He assesses (HS 25.1.) that the epidemic is coming to an end because it will no longer get sick, kill or scare people as it used to. “If life goes on and people go to the pub after work, it doesn’t matter to the citizen whether it’s technically a pandemic or not,” Sane said.

Sane is sane. Interestingly, he’s got a voice out in public right now when people missed the liberating message. In the early stages of the epidemic, other researchers were voiced as the public devoured expert warnings.

Abundant the two-year coronavirus epidemic is losing its worst blade due to vaccinations and virus weakening. However, it is not just a question of medicine, but also of the “socio-psychological side of the pandemic” raised by Sane.

Looking at the numbers alone could lead to different conclusions. Last week, 52,111 new coronavirus infections and 19 deaths were recorded in the statistics of the National Institute for Health and Welfare. The figures are clearly higher than in the last week of March last year, when 3,270 infections and 14 deaths were recorded.

Now, however, the epidemic is said to be fading, while on March 31, 2021, the parliamentary constitutional committee was considering a government proposal to ban the movement – which the committee rejected. Now we see that the government’s panic show was the bottom-up contact of the Corona era, which began a slow turn for the better.

The coronavirus epidemic has consistently affected us on two levels: as a medical epidemic threatening our bodies and as a mass psychological phenomenon that shocks our peace of mind.

Its destructive potential the coronavirus has been proven as a local epidemic, the best known of which was in northern Italy in March 2020. Such examples have shown what happens if the virus escapes.

In Finland, however, the situation has remained well under control. More than 1,700 people have died in the epidemic, most of them old or suffering from other diseases. In Finland’s overall mortality, the impact of the epidemic is hardly even discernible.

An important reason for the small devastation has been Finland’s remote location, which has given Finnish decision-makers time to react first to the emergence of the virus and then to its changes.

Finns have used their grace period more skillfully, sometimes worse, but on average it has provided an important advantage against the virus. In addition to the response time, Finland has benefited from learning from the experiences of others and adopting practices developed elsewhere. Finland is currently expecting other countries’ experiences of new corona drugs – better than taking risks themselves.

In Finland is experience of swimming, as Finland is used to developing both the economy and society in the same way. Even now, no miracles have been required of Finnish decision-makers or experts, as the experiences of other countries have been like a crystal ball, looking at Finland’s future for weeks ahead.

Now the crystal ball says that many other countries a little ahead of Finland in the Korona wave have lifted their restrictions without fatal consequences, so the same can be done with us.

The editorials are HS’s statements on a topical issue. The writings are prepared by HS’s editorial staff and reflect the magazine principle.