Majorca, Menorca, Ibiza issue warning to UK tourists over 'five viruses at once'

Majorca, Menorca and Ibiza have issued a warning to UK tourists over FIVE VIRUSES sweeping the European Union holiday islands "at once". Hospitals in the Balearics have already opened 80 beds and recruited extra staff in view of the expected progressive increase in respiratory infections in the coming weeks.

The Balearic Islands face “quintudemia” - five viruses at once - in the form of flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), norovirus, rhinovirus, and Covid. According to the Balearic Minister for Health, Manuela García, the current situation, pending updated data from the last week, is similar to previous years, with the incidence about two weeks behind the mainland.

1,331 individuals visited primary care emergency services and as of 2pm on Tuesday 119 people were awaiting hospital admission on the islands. The archipelago health service, IB-Salut, said, according to the Majorca Daily Bulletin : “Hospitals are dynamic; they adapt to the fluctuations in patient intake, opening beds and hiring professionals according to demand.”

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They said that contingency plans are always prepared during the winter season to anticipate such situations, adding that, “on days with a sudden influx of patients, some may need to stay in emergency department bays, where they are cared for by medical staff until they can be transferred to a ward”.

“We are opening beds to anticipate the stress.... we are really in an epidemic phase,” warned the Balearic Minister for Health, Manuela García, the Majorca Daily Bulletin reported. “Almost every child will have at least one infection with hMPV by their fifth birthday,” said Paul Hunter, a medicine professor at the University of East Anglia in the UK.

Countries are also getting better at diagnosing the illness, he said, which may be a factor in increasing rates. “Overall, I don’t think there is currently any sign of a more serious global issue,” he said.