Although current trends show that there are not many children at the Children's Hospital (BKUS) with Covid-19 infections, it should be considered that the course of the disease may be very different and that children could end up at the hospital unpredictably, Gardovska said.
Gardovska added that the number of patients could increase because a large percentage of young people have not been vaccinated against Covid-19, but as the main reason she pointed out that fewer adults were still vaccinated in Latvia compared with other countries, which has a significant impact on the likelihood of child morbidity.
As a result, BKUS is currently developing methodological solutions and algorithms to make the hospital ready for a large influx of patients. Cooperation with regional hospitals is also under discussion.
When asked about the possibility of declaring a state of emergency at the hospital, Gardovska said that everything depends on the influx of patients. She noted that the problem was also a group of children with chronic illnesses who may become ill with Covid-19. "Other autumn infections also come. Last year, children were sitting at home and not getting sick with the flu," the medic said, pointing out that this year the situation was different.