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The World Health Organization (WHO) has appealed to people to stay home during the holiday season as it is \u201cnot worth the risk\u201d of catching Covid-19.<\/p>\nThe World Health Organization (WHO) has appealed to people to stay home during the holiday season as it is \u201cnot worth the risk\u201d of catching Covid-19.<\/p>\n
With restrictions on household mixing and inter-county travel relaxing from Friday, the WHO said \u201cthe safest thing to do right now is to remain at home\u201d.<\/p>\n
The organization\u2019s regional director for Europe Dr Hans Kluge said: \u201cThere remains a difference between what you are being permitted to do by your authorities and what you should do.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement, he said: \u201cWe have a few more months of sacrifice ahead and can behave now in a way that collectively we are proud of. When we look back at these unprecedented times, I hope we all felt we acted with a spirit of shared humanity to protect those in need.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dr Kluge said the pandemic\u2019s \u201cdevastation\u201d had hit communities across Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cCovid-19 has forced families and communities apart, bankrupted businesses, and deprived people of opportunities that a year ago were taken for granted,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom anxieties around virus transmission, the psychological impact of lockdowns and self-isolation, to the effects of unemployment, financial worries and social exclusion \u2013 the mental health impact of the pandemic will be long term and far reaching.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat has resulted is a growing mental health crisis in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n