Sweden is being offered help by its Nordic neighbours to cope with an increase in Covid-19 cases that threatens to overwhelm hospitals.
Stockholm reported that 99 per cent of the region’s intensive care beds are full, sending the city into a panic and prompting calls for outside help.
The country's death toll exceeded 7,500 last week and its death rate per capita is several times higher than that of its Nordic neighbours but lower than several European countries that opted for lockdowns.
Stockholm is the Swedish region hardest hit by Covid-19, accounting for more than a third of the country's death toll from the virus.
Before Sweden draws on help from Finland and Norway, it will try to use available intensive care unit capacity in parts of the country that are less burdened.
Stockholm asked for additional healthcare staff from Sweden's armed forces, but it is not clear if the military has the resources to help.
In the meantime, more than 100 staff from a children's hospital were reportedly sent to ICUs, meaning children who were scheduled to receive non-emergency surgery will now be forced to wait.
However, neighbouring nations said they are ready to assist by freeing up space for Swedish ICU patients.
Sten Rubertsson, staff doctor at the National Board of Health and Welfare, told Dagens Medicin he was unsure if ICU beds can reach the 1,100 mark seen in the spring without outside help. "People are exhausted," Dr Rubertsson said.
Johanna Sandwall, who works for the health board, said Sweden’s regions have not yet hit their maximum capacity, but should that prove insufficient, “we can ask for help”.
Nordic countries have a co-operation agreement to share medical assistance at short notice in a crisis.
"We have not received an official request for help, but we assess on a daily basis what the hospital situation looks like and we are, of course, ready to help Sweden if we can," Kirsi Varhila, permanent secretary at Finland's ministry of social affairs and health, told Svenska Dagbladet newspaper.
Her Norwegian counterpart Maria Jahrmann Bjerke said: “If the Swedish authorities turn to us for assistance, we would have a positive attitude to it.”
On top of the pressure on ICUs, Sweden faces a shortage of healthcare workers as the number of resignations increases after a relentless year of caring for Covid-19 patients.
Sineva Ribeiro, chairwoman of the Swedish Association of Health Professionals, said the situation was terrible. Even before the first wave of the pandemic, in March, there was “a shortage of specialist nurses, including at ICUs”, she said.
Even if more ICU beds are provided, the bigger concern now is whether Sweden has enough healthcare workers with the skills needed to look after the country’s sickest patients.
Ms Ribeiro said that in May, members of her union described the situation as untenable. There are fewer qualified people available now than there were in the spring, making it more difficult to expand ICU capacity, she said.
Healthcare professionals emerged as the heroes of the Covid-19 crisis, often drawing cheers from grateful onlookers as they emerge from hospitals after long, gruelling shifts.
But, increasingly, staff are so desperate for some time off that they see resignation as the only way out, Ms Ribeiro said. A survey by broadcaster TV4 showed that in 13 of Sweden’s 21 regions, resignations in the healthcare profession are now up from a year ago, at as many as 500 a month.
Stockholm county mayor Irene Svenonius said the situation is "extremely tense". In an interview with the Dagens Nyheter daily newspaper, she acknowledged that healthcare staff are overworked and that there is a need for extra recruitment. "There's fatigue," she said. "You can't ignore that so it's extremely important to get more people."
The worry is that despite scientific strides that allow medics to better understand and treat Covid-19, there are not enough professionals left to put that knowledge into practice.
“We don’t have the staff to do it,” Ms Ribeiro said, describing the healthcare crisis facing the country as unprecedented.
Part of the problem is that nurses in particular are increasingly unwilling to subject themselves to the hours and conditions facing them during the crisis, given the average pay level.
Sara Nordin, once an assistant nurse at an ICU, told Bloomberg in October that she quit because she could not make ends meet on the $33,600 basic annual salary she received.
“I talked to members in August who said they would resign because it was the only way to get some time off and recover,” Ms Ribeiro said. “We see high rates of sickness, symptoms of exhaustion and members who have been infected.”
Sweden has yet to impose a lockdown, with its citizens encouraged to exercise common sense, but the country is now backtracking. The architect of its herd immunity policy, epidemiologist Anders Tegnell, appears to have been sidelined by his government.
Authorities said on Friday all pupils aged 14 to 16 in Stockholm will switch to remote learning for the rest of this year to help stem the second wave. It is the first time Sweden has recommended distance education for significant numbers of secondary school pupils.
The years Ramadan fell in May
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
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- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
As You Were
Liam Gallagher
(Warner Bros)
What drives subscription retailing?
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Timeline
1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line
1962
250 GTO is unveiled
1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company
1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens
1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made
1987
F40 launched
1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent
2002
The Enzo model is announced
2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi
2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled
2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives
2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company
2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street
2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
WITHIN%20SAND
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Moe%20Alatawi%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EStarring%3A%20Ra%E2%80%99ed%20Alshammari%2C%20Adwa%20Fahd%2C%20Muhand%20Alsaleh%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full
1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion