Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Covid-19 wave causes spike in hospital admissions in Switzerland

doctor wearing mask at CHUV in Lausanne.
© Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Covid-19 and other respiratory viruses are circulating again in Switzerland and putting hospitals under pressure.

Switzerland is in the midst of a strong Covid-19 wave, according to the Federal Office of Public Health. SARS-CoV2 is currently circulating the most widely in Switzerland, followed by rhinoviruses, RS viruses and influenza, the FOPH told Keystone-ATS news agency.

Since Tuesday, it is compulsory to wear a protective face mask at Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and the Neuchâtel Hospital Network (RHNe).

+ In Switzerland, Covid wave overtakes influenza

At this time of year, hospitals usually witness a rise in the number of patients. But certain institutions have reported a particularly tense situation at the moment.

The paediatric units of Fribourg Hospital (HFR) and the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG) have had to make a number of transfers because of the influx of new patients. Valeria Rincon-Cimorelli, head of the paediatric clinic at HUG, said: “If a child needs to be hospitalised, we will find a place or at worst, we will transfer them to another hospital.”

+ Coronavirus: the situation in Switzerland

The RHNe decided to postpone several surgical operations due to a lack of beds because several patients require isolation. “During this winter period, it is a situation that we often observe…  but this year, we are still dealing with a conjunction of the presence of viruses,” Muriel Desaulles, president of the RHNe board of directors, told Swiss public radio RTS. Compared to last year, there are more cases, she added.

More people are wearing masks. Two weeks ago, the Biel Hospital Center reintroduced mask-wearing. At the CHUV and RHNe, all visitors and patients must wear masks in care areas. From Thursday, HUG will take similar measures.

Wave of Covid-19 in Switzerland

According to the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), Switzerland is in the midst of a wave of Covid-19. The wave began in August and intensified at the beginning of November. The latest figures indicate a further increase at a high level.

Currently, SARS-CoV2 is circulating the most in Switzerland, followed by rhinoviruses, RS viruses and influenza, according to FOPH. Switzerland is at the start of a flu epidemic, FOPH says.

Outpatient consultations in Switzerland and Liechtenstein have registered an increase in respiratory infections since the start of the season, it adds.

This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. You can find them here

If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.

External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Daily news

Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox.

Daily

The SBC Privacy Policy provides additional information on how your data is processed.

Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

More than 1,100 Swiss cheeses on show in Lugano

More

Swiss Cheese Awards winners announced

This content was published on The three best Swiss cheeses were chosen on Friday in Lugano from over 1100 products submitted to an international jury.

Read more: Swiss Cheese Awards winners announced
Switzerland delivers equipment worth 5.6 million to Ukraine

More

Switzerland will deliver rubble removal equipment to Ukraine

This content was published on Thirty rubble removal machines and thirty fire-fighting pumps: this is the equipment that Switzerland will be delivering to the Ukraine in the next few days. The total value of these goods is 5.6 million Swiss francs.

Read more: Switzerland will deliver rubble removal equipment to Ukraine

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR