Coronavirus DK: Resilience and its perils

19 July 2020

Denmark was one of 30 countries that participated in a survey on mental health (DK) designed by the WHO, and the results are in. The study was conducted by Aarhus University. A questionnaire was sent to 2,000 people in two rounds. The first took place in late March, when the coronavirus was at its peak in Denmark – the reproduction rate and the number of deaths per day were at their highest. The second round took place one month later, when the number of infections and deaths were subsiding and the economy was reopening.

The subjects were asked how they felt when they got up in the morning, whether they were optimistic, and whether they felt rested and energetic. The findings from the first round were lower than historical levels. They showed more depression and anxiety. People were worried about both their health and their finances. The results from the second round were significantly higher. The subjects’ psychological well-being had already begun to recover.

An adaptive species

While the higher second reading might not seem so surprising to a layperson, the amount and speed of the improvement impressed researchers. It made sense that people recovered their spirits, says Anders Korsgaard, a professor who works at Rigshospital’s Crisis Clinic: “We have an incredible ability to adjust and overcome violent events, crises and accidents. We also know that many people can have a good quality of life even with a chronic affliction such as a serious diagnosis.”

Too much of a good thing

But in Denmark you rarely see good news without someone coming afterward with skepticism or dissent. TV2 News ran the headline “Danish coronavirus success can be the cause of a second wave (DK), says researcher.” The researcher is Allan Randrup Thomsen, who has been cited many times during the crisis. After seeing reports this week of crowds gathering at the resort town of Skagen at the northern tip of Jutland, he warned that the positive trend in Denmark may make people think the danger has passed and forget the precautions that have contained the virus thus far.

Randrup Thomsen cautions about the situation in Melbourne, Australia, which has had to implement a lockdown again after its initial success. He notes that crowds can be hotspots in Denmark as well as abroad, and people who are exposed to them should have themselves tested afterward; “In reality it is up to the people themselves what direction the epidemic will take in Denmark. The authorities can’t do much more.”

Mobile test center at a resort in northern Jutland. Photo: Henning Bagger © Scanpix.

1 million tested

Actually, Denmark’s testing program is going well. It has just passed the milestone of 1 million people tested (DK), about 20 percent of the population). Health officials are pleased with the progress: “We are well on our way to finding out how many infections we have in the country and we can find the new infections,” says Jan Pravsgaard Christensen, Professor of Infection Immunology at University of Copenhagen.

Some 1.3 percent of those tested have been positive for the virus. The number of tests is actually around 1.3 million, since some people have been tested more than once. The number of new infections has been averaging around 22 per day, a manageable level, says Prasgaard Christensen; “We don’t need to worry unless we get several days with 50 to 75 cases.”