The contingency, or winter, plans include coordination between health centres, primary care and SAMU 061 to guarantee care capacity

The Health Service has activated more than eighty beds in recent days to cope with the increase in activity and admissions from the emergency rooms of Mallorca’s hospitals due to the increase in cases of respiratory viruses typical of this time of year.

This activation of beds is included in the Contingency Plan (Winter Plan) to respond to the increase in care activity in the emergency services of hospitals and primary care centres, which has been in place since December.

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Health activates more than eighty beds to respond to the increase in emergency activity

This activation of beds in public hospitals (37 beds in the Hospital Universitario Son Espases, 36 beds in the Hospital Universitario Son Llàtzer and 10 beds in the Hospital de Manacor) has meant the hiring of more than 60 professionals including orderlies, nurses and auxiliary nursing care technicians.

The contingency plans contemplate various actions, from speeding up the availability of beds for patients who have been discharged, to hiring more healthcare staff (mainly nurses, auxiliary nurses and orderlies), activating beds, reducing hospital programming to have more beds available for emergency patients, promoting home hospitalisation or referring patients to contracted centres.

In addition, the contingency or winter plans include coordination between health centres, primary care and SAMU 061 to guarantee maximum care capacity and establish internal referral circuits at specific times. In specific cases, emergency patients may be referred from one hospital centre to another, under the coordination of SAMU 061, to spread care.

The general trend in recent weeks has been an increase in the pressure of care in hospital emergency departments. This is a common increase at this time of year as a result of seasonal factors such as respiratory viruses (influenza and respiratory syncytial virus). The Balearic Islands are currently in a moderate epidemic phase.

Mask and vaccination, the best prevention

The Health Service would like to remind people of the importance of getting vaccinated to prevent the exacerbation of respiratory infections. It is also important to wear a mask in case of infection to avoid infecting the rest of the population; wash hands frequently or limit contact with the most vulnerable groups to avoid transmission.

In the case of mild symptoms, it is important to use the most appropriate healthcare resource. In this case, the primary care emergency department, which has sufficient capacity to deal with mild infections, should be used. The general practitioner will refer the patient to the hospital if complications in a respiratory infectious condition are expected.