During the corona pandemic, many countries developed their own successful approaches to contain the virus.
Three experts present a three-step plan that could also apply in Germany.
During the pandemic, countries like
Australia
or
New Zealand stood out
with successful virus containment.
Three leading scientists
are using a three-step plan to show how this could be achieved in Germany.
The priority must be
to press
the Corona * infection numbers down
to
zero
with all your might
.
Cologne - The
second lockdown
* has not significantly changed the corona infection events in Germany, politicians and experts are calling for stricter measures.
With the US pandemic expert
Yaneer Bar-Yam
, the Australian health economist
Stephen Duckett
and the physicist
Dr.
Matthias F. Schneider
from TU Dortmund University summarized three of the leading experts at
t-online.de
, which steps can be taken to overcome the crisis.
Coronavirus: Experts call for stricter measures - "Learn from countries that have made it"
The current lockdown in Germany is
not strict enough for
the experts
, so they are looking abroad.
Elsewhere, it has already been possible to contain the virus as far as possible.
“The end of the crisis is possible”, write the scientists, “one now has to
learn
as quickly as possible from the countries that have made it
”.
Other countries were hard lockdown detectable * reduce infection rates, now is this "strategy as far as possible should
transfer
".
In order not to risk another lockdown, a state must be achieved in which new cases, at best, come
from outside
.
According to the experts
, action should be taken
earlier and
more consistently
within the zones of a virus outbreak
, local measures mean less effort.
Coronavirus in Germany: "Zero Covid" complete success in Australia and New Zealand - to the goal with a reward system?
Numerous
Asian countries
such as Mongolia, Vietnam, Singapore, Cambodia or Thailand had comparatively
small numbers of cases
in the summer
and thus also had the "best long-term protection against outbreaks".
The scientists' explanation is simple: where there is little to no transmission, superspreader events are
unlikely
.
These are responsible for the majority of the infections.
Many 100 million people in the world live permanently with low corona numbers.
#ZeroCovid: "The first point (...) to admit that there is a problem ...." @stephenjduckett Adviser to the Australian Government in discussion with @ Matthia74608934 "How to END the Crisis - Part 2" https: / /t.co/hUbfI6l4S0 pic.twitter.com/9MqlEW4Q3o
- Wellenbrecher Now ZeroCovid Germany (@WellenbrecherJ) January 5, 2021
In
Australia
and
New Zealand
, the
“Zero Covid”
project was a
success; the scientists blame a clear exit strategy for this.
This has developed the will within the population to reach zero.
In Australia in particular, people celebrated
great success
thanks to transparent communication with the people paired with a
reward system
for low numbers.
As soon as the corresponding limits were reached, the measures were also
systematically relaxed
.
This tactic could also be used in Germany, as the experts write.
Fighting corona in Germany: Experts present three-step plan
The scientists present a
three-phase plan
to illustrate the steps to a zero-covid life.
The focus of the
first phase
is to get
to zero
as quickly as possible
.
Since this is not always easy due to the size of an area, one has to declare smaller goals.
A district could be at zero within a few weeks, a “race to zero” should encourage the population.
According to the experts,
countries like
Belgium
or
Israel
managed to reduce their daily new infections to over ten percent.
Further measures in Germany, such as stricter rules at borders or quarantine accommodation in hotels for commuters, should be implemented on a large scale.
In the
second phase
, areas that are
free from the virus
should be
permanently protected.
If the situation persists for two weeks without local transmissions, this is also the case for neighboring areas.
One could thus achieve the so-called
“green zone status”
and return to normal.
For this, however, more extensive testing must be carried out, contact tracking would be possible again in this phase.
Corona containment: Are some countries facing a "summer of the century"?
The
third and last phase
is the constant expansion of the "Green Zone", for example
travel corridors
with other virus-free areas could be created.
The tourism sector in particular could start business again.
Should such tourism arise, this would be additional motivation for the population of
"Red Zones"
to drive the numbers further towards zero.
“If we do it right,” the experts say, “it will be the last lockdown and we will celebrate the
summer of the century
2021.” This includes “Zero Covid Concerts and Zero Covid Football”, as it is in Australia is currently being demonstrated.
The three scientists:
Stephen Duckett
is a longtime health economist and professor of health policy.
The Australian is also director of the health department at the Grattan Institute, and he helped the government in political decisions.
He was one of the pioneers in fighting pandemics in his home country.
Yaneer Bar-Yam
is an American physicist and systems scientist best known as the founding president of the New England Complex Systems Institute.
He has been dealing intensively with pandemics for 15 years and acted as an advisor to the government in the Congo during Ebola outbreaks in West Africa.
He founded the scientist network EndCoronavirus.org.
Dr.
Matthias F. Schneider
is head of the Medical and Biological Physics Department at TU Dortmund University, where he deals with the physics of living systems.
He is also involved with EndCoronavirus.org, and he is also involved in the step-by-step plan concept 'Wellenbrecher Now ZeroCovid'.
(ajr) * Merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editorial network.