Dhe corona virus continues to spread – also in Germany. That has to be taken “very, very seriously,” said Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn recently. But where the line between helpful information and hysteria is, seems to be explored at the moment. Maybrit Illner opens her talk show with a plea for sober enlightenment – but the key questions of the program set a different tone. “How well are cities, municipalities and hospitals prepared? How can the virus be contained in densely populated Europe? ”- that doesn’t sound like factual information.
There are now 32 people in Germany infected with the corona virus. But apart from one case, there are no further critical developments in the Federal Republic. In the vast majority of cases – according to the health authority, more than 80 percent – people who have contracted the Covid 19 pathogen show only mild symptoms.
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After all, the subject is mainly discussed by experienced staff: the well-staffed group around Klaus Reinhardt, President of the German Medical Association, Christian Drosten, Director of Virology at Charité Berlin, pharmacist Anke Rüdinger and medical doctor Johannes Wimmer are complemented by Carola, Minister of Health for Lower Saxony Reimann (SPD) and the medical journalist Alina Schadwinkel.
The excitement of the evening
However, the mood for the talk is set: a video spreads exactly what doesn’t help right from the start: panic. Dramatic string music accompanies a collage of people in protective suits with professional breathing masks and empty supermarket shelves, which are darkly colored with a dark vignette.
Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn, who will be added live, says that the situation has worsened: “We are now observing a new quality, because for the first time we are unable to connect the infection process to China or northern Italy.”
But there is probably no reason to panic: “The risk for the population in general has increased, but for the individual it is still moderate to low,” says Spahn reassuringly.
The most direct charge of the evening
Spahn’s ministry is now in pandemic mode – together with the Federal Ministry of the Interior, a crisis team has been set up to discuss how to proceed on Friday. A doctor in Illner’s group considers the calmness that the Minister of Health tries to radiate to be a real risk.
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Corona virus in Germany – – – – –
He was a guest on the program a month ago and warned of the spread of the corona virus in Europe. At that time he was still smiled at by Spahn, who was also present as a guest. Now the medical doctor Johannes Wimmer says that he does not want to be a “smart ass”, but his fears have now been fulfilled: “The number of cases will increase quickly and at some point we will unfortunately have to look at the first death in Germany as well. Too many opportunities were simply wasted. “
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According to medical doctor Johannes Wimmer, Germany should have acted earlier
Source: ZDF / Svea Pietschmann
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Wimmer believes that the federal government has underestimated the situation – and is now acting too late and hesitantly. This is also a breeding ground for insecurity in the population: “People don’t buy hamsters because they feel that the situation is under control,” says the doctor.
The most honest moment of the show
One person in the group can do little with the dramatic impact of the program and the utterance of words: Prof. Christian Drosten, the director of virology at the Charité Berlin, is primarily concerned with spreading sober facts about the status of the pandemic. The virologist had discovered the SARS virus and developed the laboratory test for the corona virus with a research group he led at the end of 2019.
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The conversation that those present have about scarce medical devices, full intensive care units and being prepared goes too far for Drosten: “This discussion is making me quieter and quieter right now. It is a search for problems where there are none. ”In his opinion, it is completely nonsense to ask whether Germany is prepared – a pure waste of energy, Drosten thinks.
“We have to ask ourselves what we want to be prepared for,” he says. After all, it makes an enormous difference whether the pandemic will continue for a few months or two years. The moderator had probably wished for more excited speeches: “You don’t just want to inform, you also want to react,” she says to Drosten. He replies dryly: “Yes, and Germany would also like to get upset.”
The most important statement of the evening
As calm as the virologist at the Berlin Charité is, he does not keep behind the mountain with unsparing facts: “It will be bad,” predicts Drosten. However, accusations in the direction of politics and the authorities are of no use, since containment and combating a pandemic are primarily about improvisation.
Rather, something in the population would have to change – in fact, expectations. A certain awareness of the situation has not yet set in, the doctor says – that’s why sufficient information about the virus and its possible consequences is now central. Incidentally, there will be an approved vaccine against the coronavirus in the summer of 2021 at the earliest: “Certain things simply cannot be accelerated.”
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