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The number of Covid-19 cases detected in the Republic surpassed the 100,000 mark after another daily record for infections was set on Sunday.
The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) has reported 4,962 confirmed cases of the disease, bringing the total number of cases registered in the Republic to 101,887 since the pandemic began.
Nphet has also reported seven other deaths of Covid-19 patients. This brings the total number of deaths in the pandemic to 2,259.
Medical director Dr. Tony Holohan described the “really significant” increase in infections as “unsustainable” for the health service.
The number of patients with the virus in hospital and ICU has doubled in the space of a week, he noted.
“This is a critical moment. We are seeing a really significant increase in infection, which is causing a very rapid increase in both hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions.
“This is not only unsustainable for the healthcare system, but also a deeply concerning level of preventable disease and suffering that we must work together to address as quickly as possible.”
He urged people to “remember that behind every hospital statistic and ICU figure is a real person like you, with a family that cares about them and a team of healthcare workers dedicated to protecting their lives. We must be as dedicated as everyone in the spring in our commitment to follow public health advice. “
Of the new cases, 1,260 cases were in Dublin, 652 in Limerick, 350 in Cork, 321 in Louth and 238 in Meath, with 2,141 spread across all the remaining counties.
On Sunday, 685 Covid-19 patients were in the hospital, of whom 62 were in the ICU. There have been 96 additional hospitalizations in the last 24 hours.
The national incidence of the disease is now 469.8 cases per 100,000 people during the last 14 days. Monaghan, Louth, Limerick and Donegal have the highest incidence in the counties; Wicklow the lowest.
“Act like it’s contagious,” Dr. Holohan advised. “Stay home. Work from home from tomorrow and, if you are an employer, ask your employees to work from home. What we all do today collectively will have a direct impact on the level of infection and hospitalizations in the coming weeks .
“Your safe actions will now protect our hospitals and those who work so hard at them. Bottom line: When you stay home, you protect the frontline healthcare workers who have worked tirelessly to keep us all safe during this pandemic. Stand firm and remember them. “
‘Vicious combination’
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organization (INMO) warned that hospitals were now under “extreme” pressure.
The union said its members were concerned about a “significant increase in the number of patients presenting, along with high levels of staff absent due to Covid or self-isolation.”
IMMO Secretary General Phil Ní Sheaghdha said that “the progress we made in keeping case numbers low appears to be completely undone.”
“Covid is creating more patients at the same time that it depletes staff. It is a vicious combination. The staff are much more experienced than they had at the beginning of this pandemic, but the large numbers are difficult to cope with. “
The union pointed to Cork University Hospital, where management has confirmed that more than 100 nurses cannot work.
The hospital’s intensive care unit was currently “very busy,” according to a statement from the hospital’s management. To control the situation, all non-essential surgeries were canceled for the next week. Only critical emergency surgeries and elective cancer surgeries will be carried out, while outpatient services will also be “significantly reduced” in the coming week, the statement said.
The hospital has requested that individuals contact their primary care physician, South Doc Regional Community Health Service, Mercy Urgent Care Center, or local injury units in Bantry or Mallow.
Additional capacity
Pressure on hospitals must be eased if staff are to be able to meet the needs of patients with and without coronavirus, as well as run a mass vaccination scheme, said Ms Ní Sheaghdha.
INMO called for additional capacity to be obtained from the private sector and for the government to take into account the childcare needs of frontline workers.
HSE Clinical Director Dr. Colm Henry told RTÉ’s This Week program on Sunday that the virus was “out of control” in the community with a spike in cases last week. He said the HSE was “very concerned” about the infection trends that were being seen.
“Our fear is that this will take a long time to change,” he said.
The hospital system could be “under considerable strain by the end of the month” without full compliance with Level 5 restrictions, he said.
Transportation Minister Eamon Ryan said the government had given “clear instructions” to the Department of Health and HSE that all non-essential medical electives or outpatient services be suspended to ensure sufficient beds are available for people with the virus. He added that some 1,500 beds, which were available over the Christmas period, should be kept free.
“What we have told the hospitals and the health system is to let them go free, not to fill them again with procedures that could be postponed to a later date because we could see that we were facing a real difficulty with this. growing numbers, ”Ryan told On the Record with Newstalk’s Gavan Reilly on Sunday morning.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said it was “more important than ever that each and every one of us do what is asked of us.” He tweeted on Sunday: “Stay home and strictly limit social contacts. We must do everything possible to protect the most vulnerable and those on the front line. “
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