Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

HEALTH

Health chiefs raise alarm over measles outbreak at French Alps ski resort

French health authorities have warned of a surge in measles cases at the Val-Thorens ski resort, one of the highest in the Alps and a popular destination for both French and foreign tourists.

Published: 11 February 2019 14:42 CET
Health chiefs raise alarm over measles outbreak at French Alps ski resort
Photo: AFP
The 18 recorded cases “are mostly young adults working at the station this season,” the ARS regional health agency for the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes district said.
   
It recommended that parents ensure that they and their children are vaccinated against the highly contagious disease, as thousands of families prepare to hit the slopes during winter school vacations in the coming weeks. 
   
Beyond the outbreak at Val-Tho, as it is popularly known by skiers, the agency said 12 other cases had been registered in the region since February 4.
 
Cases have been rising in France and other parts of the developed world in recent years, the result of fewer children being vaccinated against a viral disease that causes rashes and inflammation which can quickly prove fatal.
   
The ARS recorded just eight cases in the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region in 2016, a figure that jumped to 45 in 2017 and hit 84 last year.

Member comments

  1. I don’t know why authorities cannot think of a reason why there’s a measles outbreak…with how many people coming across into France from other countries? Better get your vaccinations ready.

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

HEALTH

Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

Danish Minister for the Interior and Health Sophie Løhde has warned that, despite increasing activity at hospitals, it will be some time before current waiting lists are reduced.

Published: 10 May 2023 15:09 CEST
Lengthy waiting times at Danish hospitals not going away yet: minister

The message comes as Løhde was set to meet with officials from regional health authorities on Wednesday to discuss the progress of an acute plan for the Danish health system, launched at the end of last year in an effort to reduce a backlog of waiting times which built up during the coronavirus crisis.

An agreement with regional health authorities on an “acute” spending plan to address the most serious challenges faced by the health services agreed in February, providing 2 billion kroner by the end of 2024.

READ ALSO: What exactly is wrong with the Danish health system?

The national organisation for the health authorities, Danske Regioner, said to newspaper Jyllands-Posten earlier this week that progress on clearing the waiting lists was ahead of schedule.

Some 245,300 operations were completed in the first quarter of this year, 10 percent more than in the same period in 2022 and over the agreed number.

Løhde said that the figures show measures from the acute plan are “beginning to work”.

“It’s positive but even though it suggests that the trend is going the right way, we’re far from our goal and it’s important to keep it up so that we get there,” she said.

“I certainly won’t be satisfied until waiting times are brought down,” she said.

“As long as we are in the process of doing postponed operations, we will unfortunately continue to see a further increase [in waiting times],” Løhde said.

“That’s why it’s crucial that we retain a high activity this year and in 2024,” she added.

Although the government set aside 2 billion kroner in total for the plan, the regional authorities expect the portion of that to be spent in 2023 to run out by the end of the summer. They have therefore asked for some of the 2024 spending to be brought forward.

Løhde is so far reluctant to meet that request according to Jyllands-Posten.

SHOW COMMENTS