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The number of Covid-19 patients in the hospital continues to decline, according to the latest figures from the Health Service Executive.
Last night there were 676 patients with the disease in the hospital, 50 cases less than that same day.
The latest figures show that the pressure on hospitals from Covid-19 is slowly diminishing.
The busiest hospital with cases is St James’s in Dublin, which cares for 83 Covid-19 patients.
St James’s infectious disease consultant Dr. Cliona Ní Cheallaigh said the situation there is “very, very difficult.”
He said that managing rooms and keeping people safe with high levels of community transmission of the virus is incredibly challenging.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Dr Ní Cheallaigh said the new variant if the virus is difficult to overcome and there is a “pretty long spring ahead” until vaccination levels rise.
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As Covid-19 cases decline, the expectation is that the hospital system can get back to more non-Covid care.
There are more than 843,000 patients awaiting treatment or to be cared for in an outpatient clinic.
The reduction in cases among health workers, due to vaccination, is also helping the situation.
Meanwhile, the Health Department yesterday confirmed one more Covid-19-related death and 686 additional new cases of the disease.
The total number of deaths in Ireland since the start of the pandemic rises to 4,137, with an overall total of 215,743 confirmed cases.
Of yesterday’s cases, 66% are under 45 years old, with a median age of 34.
Geographically, 278 new cases were confirmed in Dublin, 49 in Limerick, 37 in Kildare, 32 in Louth, 31 in Donegal, and the remaining 259 cases are spread across all remaining counties.
The 14-day incidence rate of the virus nationwide is now 240 per 100,000 people.
Counties with the highest incidence of the disease include Offaly, Dublin, Galway, and Monaghan, while counties with the lowest incidence include Roscommon, Kilkenny, Cork, and Kerry.
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