A mobile emergency medical unit is currently being set up in the parking lot of the 424 General Military Hospital in Thessaloniki, following a decision by the political and military leadership.
The unit will have 50 hospital beds and a radiology laboratory, which is necessary for the diagnosis of coronavirus effects on the chest. It will not have an Intensive Care Unit.
Deputy Minister of National Defense Alkiviadis Stefanis inspected the mobile emergency medical unit on Monday. Regarding the progress, she said that only the electrical and plumbing works remain and it is scheduled to be operational by the end of the week.
"There is optimism that very soon Thessaloniki will recover and very soon we will see light in this difficult situation. Regardless, we must be ready for the next day," she said.
Meanwhile, epidemiologist Gikas Magiorkinis stated that the number of new covid-19 infections in Greece appear to be declining, however compliance with health measures is crucial to further improve the situation.
He noted that the rate of tests coming out positive also appears to be lowering by around 50%, compared to last Monday.
"This drop is particularly notable in large urban centers - Attica and Thessaloniki regions - which suggests there is a margin to improve compliance with restriction measures in the rest of Greece," he said.
Greece recorded 1,388 new cases of COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour reporting period.
This raises the total number of cases to 93,006.
4,823 are considered to be related to travel from abroad and 23,998 are related to an already known case.
Five hundred and forty-nine individuals are in ICU. Their median age is 65 years, and 151 of them are women. 81.2% have an underlying condition or are aged 70 years and above.
A total of 482 patients have been discharged from ICUs since the start of the pandemic in Greece.
The country’s pandemic death toll stands at 1,714. The median age of all was 80 years and 97.1% of the deceased had an underlying condition and/or age of 70 years or more.
It is recalled Health authorities in Greece and TRAINOSE are finalising the formation of a “Covid Train”, which will transfer patients from Thessaloniki to hospitals in Athens.
10 Cretan nurses also arrived in Thessaloniki last week in order to help in the “battle” against COVID-19.
“You left your homes, you left your families, you traveled to other homes and to other families all over Greece who need you. Your home is all of Greece, your families in this difficult time are all Greek women, all Greeks,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said to the volunteer nurses.
“It is not just a polite act, it is a deeply patriotic act and I want to congratulate you in person as professionals but also as volunteers on the front line,” he added.