The past three days marked a milestone since the pandemic came to Macedonia. Only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday a total of 130 people lost their lives due to Covid complications. Cumulatively, this is by far the greatest death-toll over a three-day period.
The new wave of infections that began to manifest about three weeks ago saw hundreds of people swarming private and public health clinics. Authorities reported early on Monday that hospital beds are still available, however, there is an uphill battle not to reach capacity.
Thus far, Covid has infected 134,864 people. Of these, 3,940 individuals died and 109,297 were cured. The number of active cases is 21,630. The latest wave has proven to be especially hard on patients.
Minister of Health Venko Filipche stated that patients who are currently hospitalized are severely impacted by a kind of disruption on the lungs and blood. Infection and pulmonology practitioners are seeing such cases for the first time and are having a hard time in promoting speedy and successful recovery.
Meanwhile, a mass-immunization effort has began thanks to a shipment of Sputnik-4 and Astra-Zeneca vaccines.
Individuals who want to receive the vaccine need to register through their primary doctor or via the ministry’s web portal. Health clinics in Skopje are particularly busy, with no time-slots let open until April 13.
The biggest immunization effort is going to take place in the biggest sports hall in Skopje. The Ministry of Health has converted the Boris Trajkovski hall into an immunization center for the two-month period ahead. The hall will be open between 8:00 AM and 20:00 PM. Health authorities are expecting to immunize up to 5,000 people per day.
In terms of priority, the Boris Trajkovski hall will first serve employees in the police force, army, public transportation, courts, border agents, journalists and individuals who are a high-risk category, including the elderly.
