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This Wednesday Portugal registers 24 more deaths and 3,960 new cases, a new daily record. Thus, the number of fatalities rises to 2,394 and the total number of infected has increased to 128,392 since the beginning of the pandemic. Faced with the new daily maximum number of registered cases, the Secretary of State for Health, António Lacerda Sales, does not hide the “critical phase” that the country is going through in the management of the covid-19 pandemic.
As of Tuesday, 1,794 people were hospitalized (47 more than the day before), of which 262 are in intensive care (nine more). It is the fourth largest registry of patients in intensive care units since the beginning of the pandemic, only below the numbers registered from April 5 to 7 (267, 270 and 271 admitted to the ICU, respectively).
The epidemiological bulletin of the General Health Directorate (DGS) released this Wednesday (with data from Tuesday) reports another 1,657 people recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 74,001. Excluding these cases and deaths, there are 51,996 active cases in Portugal, 2,279 more than the previous day.
With 2,114 new infections detected, the northern region surpassed Lisbon and the Tagus Valley and now has the highest total number of infections since the outbreak began, with 56,122.
These two regions account for 3,219 of the 3,960 new cases reported in this Wednesday’s bulletin (81.3%), as well as 19 of the 24 deaths registered until midnight on Tuesday, plus 11 in the North, for a total of 1053. and eight in Lisbon and the Tagus Valley, which now number 955.
At the press conference after the publication of the epidemiological bulletin of the Directorate General of Health (DGS), António Lacerda Sales revealed that the global fatality rate of the virus is 1.9%. In those infected with 70 years or more, this percentage rises to 10.8%.
Four more deaths were also recorded in the Center region and 558 new cases (304 deaths and 10,877 cases) were identified, and the other death was in Alentejo, accounting for even more 110 infections (43 deaths and 2,558 cases).
The status report also reports 53 more cases in the Algarve (2,579 cases and 25 deaths), 15 in Madeira (425 cases, no deaths) and five in the Azores (353 cases, 15 deaths).
Portugal will have one million rapid antigen tests
António Lacerda Sales revealed this Wednesday that the country will receive one million antigen tests to track the virus. These tests will reach Portugal with European funding through the Red Cross, from where 500 thousand tests will arrive, as the Minister of Health, Marta Temido, had already revealed last Friday.
These tests will begin to be used from November 9, and the first section of tests, about 100,000, will arrive in the country in the first week of November.
Accompanying the Secretary of State at the press conference was the president of the National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge, Fernando de Almeida, who guaranteed that the country is at the forefront in terms of the use of these tests, adding that working on follow-up from tests from several other countries in Europe.
More than 6,500 healthcare professionals have been infected since March. They recover almost 70%
Asked about the incidence of covid-19 among health professionals, António Lacerda Sales made a total assessment of the number of infected in this professional group since the beginning of the pandemic.
“The total number of infected health professionals is 6,596: 800 doctors, 1,801 nurses, 1,655 operative assistants, 166 technical assistants, 249 senior diagnostic and therapeutic technicians, others around 1925 and 4,617 have been recovered, representing a rate of 69.9% recovery ”, revealed the Secretary of State for Health.
António Lacerda Sales says that the Government is aware of the concerns raised by the European Disease Center (ECDC, in its original acronym), ensuring that an effort is being made to strengthen the capacity of the National Health System.
“We follow the concerns of the ECDC, as do many European countries. I would say that we have done everything in our power so that we can strengthen the NHS and we can strengthen what our health services are. Over the past few weeks, we have taken stronger action to control the pandemic. We will continue to do so, taking into account the recommendations of all national and international organizations ”, he explained.
