Kyiv Mayor’s Coronavirus Update – April 30, 2020
30.04.2020
The mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko held a briefing providing an update on the coronavirus situation in Ukraine’s capital and the measures the city is taking to respond.
Klitschko: I wish I could tell you about COVID-19 subsiding in Kyiv. But it is not.
I have to say, I am appalled to see how many people went out yesterday for a walk or took their kids for a walk. Khreschatyk street was crowded with people, mainly without masks. The road traffic is tight again. There is one thing I want to say to those who decide to ignore the restrictions. You may disregard the stay home order and deny the virus threat but at your own risk. I do not want any complaints from people who deliberately put themselves at risk of being infected. Because how can we protect people against their will?
We have more 60 coronavirus positive cases, reaching 1401 in total. Sadly, there is one more death reported overnight. Three newly infected Kyivans are healthcare workers and one is Lavra’s monk. New cases include also 31 women (18-84 years old), 18 men (22-84 years old) and 11 children (four girls and seven boys). 25 patients are hospitalized.
Overall 75 coronavirus patients have recovered, with six in the past 24 hours.
In total 193 people have registered coronavirus positive and been hospitalised to the city hospitals, including four children. 64 patients including six children are at the hospitals waiting for their testing results. 32 patients remain in a serious health condition and one of them is on a ventilator.
Currently, 384 patients are treated in the hospital with pneumonia.
I have nothing but the greatest admiration for how much our frontline medics are doing for combating the virus. They are at the highest risk of getting infected with coronavirus disease and represent 10% of all positive cases in Kyiv. Currently, there are 148 healthcare workers of municipal, state-owned and private clinics who have tested positive. Among them are physicians of Oleksandrivska hospital which admitted the first COVID-19 patients, medics of the hospitals No.4, No.9, No.5 and No.6 as well as some other clinics.
22 frontline medics have been hospitalized so far while others do not require hospitalisation and are staying at home.
We are eager to support them to the best of our ability. As you know, as of April 1 the national government rather than a local authority provides funding for the medical workers’ payroll. But still, Kyiv has set aside almost ₴900 million for support payments for the Kyiv healthcare workers.
From March 13 the front-line medics of the municipal hospitals are eligible for their monthly danger bonus which amounts nine times their average monthly paycheck. Accordingly, doctors who treat the coronavirus patients earn ₴30,000 to ₴50,000 per month. The bonus brings the salaries of nurses and attendants up to ₴25,000-30,000 and ₴20,000-25,000 respectively.
Since the city government has allocated additional ₴12,4 million for extra payments for paramedics and ambulance drivers, they are not shut out and also receive up to ₴10,000 raise per month.
Other medics, speciality doctors and consultants will also receive a bonus payment for extra working works in April. Doctors will get extra ₴4,000, nurses and attendants will earn additional ₴3,000 and ₴1,000 respectively.
Now a few words about facial masks. 100,000 reusable masks were distributed to the municipal Pharmacia pharmacies. Moreover, the city-owned Pharmacia company has purchased more 550,000 of disposable masks, rubber gloves and sanitisers. At the moment, 400,000 disposable and 55,000 reusable facial masks are available to buy across the Pharmacia pharmacies. The socially responsible business donated 100,000 facial masks that were distributed to the Kyiv hospitals, police, rescuers and other essential municipal workers. Additionally, the State Budget Reserve Fund of Ukraine and Monsters Corporation Charity donated over 500,000 items of personal protective equipment to the city’s medical workers. The city purchased also 2,000 protective medical gowns and goggles.
Kyiv is not giving up the ambitious renovation plans due to the coronavirus outbreak. Road repairs are in full swing on Borschahivsky overpass, Lubomyr Huzar avenue, Stepana Bandery avenue, Dovbusha street and Zolotovorotska street.
Pokrovska street which is one of the oldest streets in Kyiv will reopen to traffic shortly soon after reconstruction to its original look.
There is plenty of progress on the worksite of the Podilsko-Voskresenskiy bridge and all construction sites of a new metro line. Yesterday I inspected the progress of construction and representative of Kyivmetrobud company which builds the metro extension assured me that they remain on course to complete the work by next December.