Humility and Science Are Iceland’s Key To Beating The Virus

The simple solutions that helped heal a small country

Iceland has been admired for the way it has handled the COVID-19 pandemic. I have to admit that I am one of the many in this country who are comforted by the approach and management of the government during this ongoing fight against the virus.

But there are some factors that play in Iceland’s more favorable outcome, should you wish to compare it to other countries. There is the small population of 350.000 (similar to the amount of people living in the city of Bologna, Italy). But I believe that the work the government built from beginning- resulted in trust and confidence from the people of this country.

So, what was the government’s plan from the beginning? Firstly, it was to secure that the healthcare system would be able to handle the impact of the virus. In doing so, they were quick to enable a system that would include cooperation from the public.

People love information and want to know what is going on. The Icelandic government realized this, so they created a website and an app. The app is also being used as a tracing tool. The so-called contact tracers’ job included contacting those who have tested positive for the virus and tracking down their previous whereabouts.

Daily press briefings on Iceland’s national station went live at the same time every day. We were introduced to three important people who would become part of our daily lives around this time of COVID-19. These people were experts in their fields: Viðir Reynisson, Chief of Police, Þórólfur Guðnason, Chief Epidemiologist, and Alma D. Möller, Surgeon General.

These daily live updates gave us unique insight on how the government were managing the virus, the state of the hospitals and the number of people infected as well as those who have recovered. Early testings were also enforced. Guidelines alongside regulations were implemented, and a sense of urgency to comply was expressed by the Chief of Police.

Relevant people would have also joined these daily press briefings to give their expert views. Encouragement to continue staying at home and to apply care of hygiene in public were also mentioned often.

This was a huge success.

Let me explain why. In an interview given by the Prime Minister of Iceland Katrín Jakobsdóttir, she tells of how she “handed” the management of virus plan over to the country’s scientists and experts. She also adds that humility and listening to what the scientists are saying were key factors in Iceland’s success.

Here’s the brief interview with This Morning with Philip and Holly- a popular morning show in The UK.

As of now, Iceland has already opened its borders for tourism, however, for now it is only open for countries within the Schengen area and European union. Those who have a valid reason to come are those acquiring a resident permit or having been granted permission to enter Iceland by the authorities. Arriving passengers will get free testing for the corona virus till the end of June, but after that a fee of ca. $113 (exchange rates may vary) will be charged.