Prime Minister Edi Rama shared today in the social media a view of this guesthouse, which is located just 30 minutes away from Vlora and Himara, opposite the historic bridge in Brataj.

“‘Si Era’ in Brataj, Vlora, a destination where nature, history and Albanian hospitality combine in a special experience for every visitor”, wrote Rama.

Located between the mountains and near the Shushica River, this guesthouse provides opportunities to explore the natural and historical assets of the village of Brataj. Next to the guesthouse, there is the Brataj Bridge, a historic stone bridge over the Shushica River, which is an attraction for visitors who choose this area.

With the combination of nature, tranquility and relaxation spaces, “Si Era” opens up another opportunity to discover the tourist potential of the Vlora River area. /m.m/a.f/p.s./

One of them is “Villa si Era”, built in one of the most beautiful areas of the south of the country in Brataj, Vlora.

Prime Minister Edi Rama shared today in the social media a view of the “Villa si Era”, built with a special architecture, which is now a unique destination that is on the map of exclusive Albanian tourism.

The development of agrotourism has begun to attract more and more foreign tourists, recording an increase in the contribution of this sector to the tourism industry in Albania.

During the recent years, the government has launched several support schemes to boost the development of agrotourism, an unexplored branch of the tourism industry.

The “Mountain Package” is one of these initiatives that aims to promote investments in rural mountainous areas. /m.m/j.p/p.s./

Brataj said that there is no room for panic because February is a typical flu period.

“According to the Institute of Public Health, if compared to the past two years, there are 23 thousand flu cases per week in the country. Among the visits to the National Emergency, there are 10-15 people hospitalized due to flu,” he said.

Brataj said that 85% of those affected do not show any symptoms.

“Care should start at home, but if there is a fever that lasts for 5-7 days in adults, while in children over 10 days, you should talk to your family doctor and the doctors of the “Mother Teresa” University Hospital Center by phone for some more specialized advice. People are also advised to take Vitamins B, C as they are the best way to strengthen immunity”, emphasized Brataj.

According to him, in our country there circulate several types of viruses, from influenza A, AH1, AH3, influenza B, RSV and to a lower percentage, the COVID-19. /a.f/r.e/p.s./

These practical exercises were organized after the two-day training conducted by the National Emergency Medical Center, “CBRN” (Chemical Biological, Radiological and Nuclear) in the framework of the P88 project for strengthening medical capacities to respond to a CBRN incident, a project of the “Centre of Excellence” of the European Union, in which participate 10 countries of the Western Balkans and South-Eastern Europe.

Director of the National Emergency, Dr. Skender Brataj, present during the demonstration that was attended by many citizens, said that “the medical staff showed the way of dressing, which is very important in these cases. Uniforms are typical, insulation from boots, gloves and gas masks enable isolation from contaminating matter.

The CBRN (Chemical Biological, Radiological and Nuclear) training took place on March 20-21 by the Albanian trainers of the National Medical Emergency Center, under the monitoring of experts of the field from England and Norway.

Attending this training was medical personnel from the University Hospitals of Tirana, representatives of regional hospitals and some municipalities such as: Vlora Regional Hospital, Kukës, Durrës, Berat, Lezha, Elbasan, Shkodra, etc.; as well as representatives from the Institute of Public Health and the radiation protection office.

This training ended today with practical exercises in “Skanderbeg” square, in which the fire brigade also participated./k.s/r.e/p.s./

According to him, the number of emergency calls the National Medical Emergency Centre has received through its 127 helpline and communication emergency centre from citizens all over the country reporting various health issues and the number of hospitalized people has increased with the increased circulation of influenza.

Brataj said that the Emergency Centre has received a total of 5800 calls, while a total of 1900 check-ups have been conducted at hospitals.

Brataj said in a TV interview that the seasonal flu was not prevailing previously as people were respecting the social distance and face mask rules, whereas the virus seems to be more aggressive as it has been dormant for around three years.

He noted that the COVID-19 case rates are currently low, but this situation could change as new variants emerge, and the disease continues to strain healthcare resources.

Common flu symptoms include runny nose, decrease in appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing. Most infections resolve on their own in a week or two, but it can also cause more severe infections such as bronchiolitis, an inflammation of the small airways in the lung, and pneumonia, an infection of the lungs.

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During an interview for the Albanian Telegraphic Agency-ATA, Brataj said that “the recent news that the ‘Delta’ variant has been detected in Albania has become official, but this is not something new, based on the signs and my experience I was convinced that this variant was present in the country.

In his remarks, Brataj said that, “the symptoms will go away faster and the signs are a bit different from the previous version. People should always think and treat it as a virus and protect family members.

“Interpretation of symptomatology as runny nose or increased nasal secretion,sore throat and headache, may have a more pronounced intestinal form than the previous variant, the presence of vomiting and diarrhea to be considered as ‘Delta’ virus and treated as such. Seek care thruogh family doctor, or dial number 127,” Brataj added. //a.i/

Brataj said that Pfizer’s Tofacitinib lowers the incidence of death or respiratory failure in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 pneumonia. According to him, trial demonstrates cumulative incidence of death or respiratory failure through day 28 was much lower with tofacitinib compared with placebo, in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

“Tofacitinib inhibits the production of interleukin-17 and gamma interferon, which are implicated in the pathogenesis of acute respiratory distress syndrome, a common complication of COVID-19 infection. Therefore, tofacitinib has the potential to act in more than one way to treat people infected with COVID-19,” Braraj said.

The trial was a research collaboration between Pfizer and the ARO from the Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein in Sao Paulo, Brazil, which was the trial coordinating center.

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“Since March 2020, these heroes have continued to fight against an invisible and very dangerous enemy such as COVID-19 and all kinds of other emergencies that threaten the lives of citizens,”Brataj said.

International Emergency Medicine Day is celebrated every year on May 27, the day when in London in 1994, a group of Emergency Doctors signed the founding act of the European Association for Emergency Medicine. //a.i/

In a televised interview, Brataj voiced concern that “the novel coronavirus is now being extensively spread in small towns and remote villages that were almost completely unaffected until now.”

However, Brataj said that the third wave is likely to be less severe than the two previous waves.

“Third wave will never be as severe as the first and second waves. We would see an increase in fresh cases, yet we won’t experience the same situation like the one in November last year or during February and March,” Brataj said.

The Head of the National Emergency said he was really concerned that none of the political parties are calling on people to keep physical distance, wear face masks and respect other restrictions designed to curb the spread of the virus.

“I call on people to demonstrate high sense of responsibility, as the consequences could be really severe. Even Israel, a country leading global vaccination drive, is experiencing a high fatality rate. People can still spread the virus even they have received the two doses of the COVID-19 vaccines,” Brataj said.

Speaking about effectiveness of the vaccines, Brataj said that receiving a jab with a 50% effectiveness rate is advisable.

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The Director of the National Medical Emergency Centre Skënder Brataj, a member of the Technical Committee of Experts, said during a press conference on Wednesday that the number of missions conducted by Personnel at the Emergency Medical Centre has also decreased.

“Most recently, we have recorded a decrease in the number of calls and the emergency missions,” Brataj said, adding that the number of missions the emergency teams conduct for suspected of confirmed COVID-19 patients has dropped to 400 or 450 from 500 missions a day previously, whereas only 100 missions for coronavirus patients are carried out.

“In the past two weeks, the medical emergency teams have treated COVID-19 patients in at least 142 villages throughout the country. A total of 9 240 missions for suspected and confirmed coronavirus patients have been conducted this month alone, with 4 148 of patients being transported to hospitals and 5092 of them being treated at home,” Brataj said.

The Technical Committee of Experts convened on Wednesday to assess the epidemiological situation in the country and experts decided to maintain the existing COVID-19 restriction measures unchanged in the next two weeks.

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