Department of Healthcare Management, Berlin University of Technology, Germany; European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies Department of Health Care Management, Berlin University of Technology, Germany.
Department of Healthcare Management, Berlin University of Technology, Germany; European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies Department of Health Care Management, Berlin University of Technology, Germany.
Health Policy. 2022 May;126(5):438-445. doi: 10.1016/j.healthpol.2021.12.003. Epub 2021 Dec 13.
The Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania shared a similar response to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the information available on the COVID-19 Health System Response Monitor platform, this article analyzed measures taken to prevent transmission, ensure capacity, provide essential services, finance the health system, and coordinate their governance approaches. All three countries used a highly centralized approach and implemented restrictive measures relatively early, with a state of emergency declared with fewer than 30 reported cases in each country. Due to initially low COVID-19 incidence, the countries built up their capacities for testing, contact tracing, and infrastructure, without a major stress test to the health system throughout the spring and summer of 2020, yet issues with accessing routine health care services had already started manifesting themselves. The countries in the Baltic region entered the pandemic with a precarious starting point, particularly due to smaller operational budgets and health workforce shortages, which may have contributed to their escalated response aiming to prevent transmission during the first wave. Subsequent waves, however, were much more damaging. This article focuses on early responses to the pandemic in the Baltic states highlighting measures taken to prevent virus transmission in the face of major uncertainties.
波罗的海国家爱沙尼亚、拉脱维亚和立陶宛对 COVID-19 大流行的第一波疫情做出了相似的反应。本文利用 COVID-19 卫生系统应对监测平台上的现有信息，分析了为预防传播、确保能力、提供基本服务、为卫生系统供资以及协调治理方法而采取的措施。这三个国家都采用了高度集中的方法，并相对较早地实施了限制措施，每个国家的紧急状态都是在报告的病例少于 30 例时宣布的。由于最初 COVID-19 发病率较低，这些国家建立了检测、接触者追踪和基础设施的能力，而在 2020 年春季和夏季，卫生系统并没有受到重大压力测试，但获取常规医疗服务的问题已经开始显现。波罗的海地区的国家在这场大流行中处于一个脆弱的起点，尤其是由于运营预算较小和卫生劳动力短缺，这可能导致他们在第一波疫情中采取了强化措施，以预防病毒传播。然而，随后的几波疫情则更加严重。本文重点关注波罗的海国家在大流行早期的应对措施，强调了在面临重大不确定性时为预防病毒传播而采取的措施。
