High Number of Covid-19 Deaths Expected by Deputy CMO

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It is reasonable to expect to see a large number of Covid-19-related deaths in the coming days, the deputy chief medical officer said.

Dr. Ronan Glynn made the prediction on RTÉ’s Six One News after the Health Department reported 46 more Covid-19-related deaths tonight.

Two of the deaths reported today occurred in December 2020, but the remaining 44 occurred this month.

The Department has also reported 3,086 more cases of Covid-19.

There have been a total of 2,397 virus-related deaths in Ireland and 155,591 confirmed cases.

It occurs when the number of Covid-19 patients treated in intensive care units has exceeded the maximum figure reached in the first wave of the pandemic, with 158 people receiving treatment in ICUs.

There have been 128 additional hospitalizations in the last 24 hours, with a total of 1,692 people with Covid-19 now receiving hospital treatment.

Liam Woods, national director of acute operations with the health service executive, said the intensive care figure could rise to 300 early next week.

Speaking at RTÉ’s prime time, Woods said that demand from ICUs will exceed supply, but that it depends on the trajectory of the virus.

He said there are plans to expand capacity, new ICU beds have been opened and private hospitals are already being used for patients.

Dr. Glynn said that the current high death toll is a consequence of the very significant increase in cases that have been reported over the past two weeks.

He said that since January 1, about one in three people who have been hospitalized and admitted to intensive care are under 65 years old.

The deputy CMO said that all groups should listen to the message and stay home so that the type of numbers being reported tonight do not continue for an extended period of time.

However, he added that it is too early to say how long the current restrictions should be in place.

The Medical Director has said that we are “seeing the effect of the recent increase in infections” reflected in the number of reported deaths.

Dr. Tony Holohan said that, sadly, these “numbers will probably continue for the next time period.”

He asked people to stay home “out of respect for those who have lost their lives and those who are currently in the hospital or ICU.”

1,425 of the cases reported today are men, and 1,642 also tested positive. 54% are under 45 years of age and the median age is 42 years.

604 of the cases are in Galway, 574 in Dublin, 466 in May, 187 in Cork and 138 in Limerick. The remaining 1,117 cases are spread across all other counties.

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Currently, thirteen hospitals do not have free intensive care beds.

There are 30 ICU beds available in the system for adult patients, according to overnight figures from the Health Service Executive.

Cork University Hospital cares for 140 patients with Covid-19, the highest number in the country.

There are 124 Covid-19 patients at Limerick University Hospital; St. Vincent’s University Hospital in Dublin has 117; and Galway University Hospital has 116 patients with the virus.

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda has 103 Covid-19 patients, more than double the number of patients treated last week.

At Cavan General Hospital, 64 patients are being treated for Covid-19, compared to 26 last week, with three of them in the ICU.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has said that the first doses of the Moderna vaccine have reached Ireland.

Posting on Twitter, he said the first installment was small, but said every vaccine counts.

There has been a notable reduction in coronavirus outbreaks in private homes, according to the latest figures, although the total number of outbreaks has increased in the last week.

In the week ending January 9, there were 18 outbreaks in private / family homes and only two outbreaks in private / general homes.

It compares with 624 outbreaks in private homes / families seven weeks ago.

The latest figures from the Center for Health Protection Surveillance show that there were 52 outbreaks in nursing homes in the last week and 49 in other residential institutions.

26 outbreaks were also reported in the workplace last week, the highest number in seven weeks.

Overall, 226 outbreaks were reported in the week through January 9, compared to 154 outbreaks the week before.

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Presenting patients are ‘much sicker’

An emergency medicine consultant at CUH has said that the type of patient who comes in with Covid-19 in recent days is “much sicker.”

Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime, Conor Deasy said they are under “intense pressure” with 147 patients testing positive for Covid at the hospital, the most of any hospital in the country.

He said they are admitting more patients whose lungs are failing, who are struggling to breathe, who need emergency resuscitation and care in the ICU.

On Sunday they had three Covid patients who were on life support machines and today they have nine, he said.

Staffing is a big challenge for hospitals

Meanwhile, HSE’s National Clinical Advisor and Group Leader Acute Hospitals said that staffing hospitals is a major challenge and there are currently more than 4,000 staff members out of work because they have contracted Covid-19 or are a close contact.

Dr. Vida Hamilton said asking staff who are close contacts, but show no symptoms, to return to work will be “a last resort.”

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said that the HSE is using all available resources and that as much recruitment as possible has been carried out during the last ten months.

About 80% of the coronavirus can be safely controlled at home, according to the Covid-19 leader of the Irish College of General Practitioners.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne, Dr. Nuala O’Connor said GPs and virus testing centers are critical to supporting the hospital system by ensuring that people are referred to the hospital only if “absolutely necessary. “.

He said that people can suddenly feel very bad about Covid-19 and there may be a very short window before they get quite compromised and need hospital treatment.

A consultant geriatrician at Tallaght University Hospital said doctors make tough decisions all the time, but the public sees it for the first time and on a much larger scale.

Professor Rónán Collins said that putting patients on respirators will not work for everyone, but there is a “skillful decision-making” process involved, which “is not in the gift of a doctor” but is decided by multidisciplinary teams and it is based on a complete history of the patient.

Speaking about the same program, he said that the average time people require ventilation is seven to ten days.

Professor Collins said that patient input is always sought when possible, “and many will stop in their tracks and say they would not like intensive or aggressive treatment if they deteriorate.”



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