Protecting vulnerable groups

• Is your country currently taking any actions to protect vulnerable groups (i.e. groups who are, due to their own health status, highly susceptible to severe COVID-19)? For example, if no obligatory mouth nose protection needs to be worn, are there e.g. specific train compartments where masks are worn or similar measures?
• How do you define vulnerable groups? (Are these primarily groups who define themselves as vulnerable or are defined as vulnerable based on existing evidence?)

Comparing the European COVID-19 situation at the beginning of Summer 2020 and 2021 with Summer 2022

• Is the current overall COVID-19 situation in your country similar to that at the beginning of the two previous Summer seasons (2020 and 2021), or are there clear differences?
• Have the expectations expressed in last summer seasons regarding the European pandemic status in the Summer of 2022 come true, or has the situation developed differently from what was expected?
• What do you expect for the 2022 Autumn season?

Verification of vaccine certificates in your country

Is your country automatically accepting all vaccine certificates you accept for entry into the country for domestic use, too? (e.g. entry to restaurants etc.)

• If yes, please specify in which sectors vaccine certificates are valid and how the certificates are checked in specific sectors.
• If no, please indicate if and how entry for vaccinated individuals in specific sectors (e.g. restaurants, museums, ...) in your country is verified.

Healthcare workforce conditions before and since the pandemic

In your country, what were

• the average hours worked per week by doctors/nurses before the pandemic vs. now?
• the average monthly salary of doctors/nurses before the pandemic vs. now?

If possible, please provide separate answers for both:

• doctors/nurses in hospitals and
• doctors/nurses in the outpatient sector

Cost-effectiveness of vaccines and NPIs

• What kind of research are you developing in terms of the cost-evectiveness of vaccines and non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) in your country?
• In the past since start of the pandemic, has existing evidence on cost-effectiveness of interventions already factored into political decision-making (if so, please provide details)? For future strategies on NPIs in your country, is evidence on cost-effectiveness forseen to play a role (if so, please provide details)?
• Will it be sustainable economically to keep vaccination to the entire population? Will there be priority groups as forseen in your country?

Upcoming school and kindergarten year 2022/23

With regard to the upcoming school and kindergarten year and as follow-up to the situation in 2021:

• Are there still mandatory measures in place or only voluntary initiatives? Are voluntary measures publicly supported?
• If there are mandatory measures in place or planned for autumn/winter season what is foreseen in regard to quarantine / mask wearing / testing strategy in schools and kindergartens?

COVID-19 deaths and mortality statistics

• In your country, are deaths where COVID-19 is reported as a contributory cause of death and not as underlying cause of death also included in mortality statistics reported to ECDC?
• What definition is currently used in your country to report COVID-19 deaths?
• If a person dies suddenly or of unknown cause or external cause of death and requires an autopsy, is a test for COVID-19 carried out post-mortem?
• In reporting mortality statistics due to COVID-19, are all COVID-19 deaths (community + nursing homes + hospital) included or just hospital deaths?
• Does a COVID-19 death require a positive laboratory diagnosis or is clinical diagnosis sufficient?

This stand-alone EUPHW special edition of the Rapid Exchange Forum took place in the scope of the European Public Health Week (EUPHW) 2021, and attendance was open to the interested public.

What are the current criteria regarding validity of vaccination certificates for travel purposes in your country?

• If there are differences between incoming and outgoing travellers, please specify.
• If bilateral agreements are in place, please specify.

Concurrent with the 7th Rapid Exchange Forum, the first Special Edition REF took place. To avoid duplication of work, we believe it is highly relevant to be aware of other international activities, mechanisms and expert groups already in place, or established during the pancemic, which exchange information on population health developments that require rapid action. 

To shed light on such activities, REF Special Editions invite key guests from relevant international organisations to report on their main activities, boards/expert groups, and different COVID-19 actions. 

The guest speakers for the first Special Edition REF were:

• Eurostat – Giampaolo Lanzieri
• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – Gaetan Lafortune
• European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) – Howard Needham
• The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (OBS) – Marina Karanikolos

Concurrent with the 12th Rapid Exchange Forum, the second Special Edition REF took place. To avoid duplication of work, we believe it is highly relevant to be aware of other international activities, mechanisms and expert groups already in place, or established during the pancemic, which exchange information on population health developments that require rapid action. 

To shed light on such activities, REF Special Editions invite key guests from relevant international organisations to report on their main activities, boards/expert groups, and different COVID-19 actions.

The guest speakers for the second Special Edition REF were:

• The European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies (OBS) – Marina Karanikolos
• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – Emily Hewlett 
• World Health Organisation (WHO) – Boris Pavlin