Thread by @fascinatorfun

How Germany got CV right | Free to read

Early intervention was seen as crucial - not just in trace and track but also in the management of (rather than the abandonment of sick patients, as in the U.K.)

GPs played key roles in testing and in care

ft.com/content/cc1f65…

They also engaged their 400 local authorities putting them at the centre of their local tracing and containment measures, not just identifying contacts but also supporting people through isolation.

They had been neglected over the years so recruitment for more staff was early

So whilst the U.K. Gov was busy lying about our testing and abandoned comprehensive tracing, excluding GPs, our depleted local authorities and local public health, Germany faced the consequences and got recruiting and including.

The continued contact and support matters if you want people to isolate

Yes. Germany hit issues too. An acute shortage of PPE and over dependence on China for it.

So. For all their decentralised healthcare they centralised purchasing and distribution of PPE.

A tender process was understated and, from August, they producers should be able to deliver 50 million masks a weeek. Meanwhile healthcare personnel have to reuse (I assume after careful cleaning)

They were slow with their app too
But the difference is their Government listened

Whilst worried that the gains have not been big enough (yet so great compared with ours) pressure from regions has resulted in loosening off lockdown.

This is not Universal. In Berlin the R0 has risen this week and restrictions are returning.

However with a Chancellor that is a scientist whose style is wise collaboration & her Chief of Staff who is an anaesthetist they leveraged expertise & cooperation from regional authorities without the sense of battled disengagement we see here and in the USA.

Leadership matters