A further 108 deaths related to Covid-19 have been reported in the last week, bringing the total to 6,399 since the start of the pandemic, the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) has said.
Health authorities were on Wednesday notified of 5,268 PCR-test confirmed cases and an additional 4,613 positive antigen tests were registered through the HSE’s portal.
Some 631 patients were being treated in hospital for Covid-19 on Wednesday morning, a decrease of four in 24 hours, including 62 people in intensive care units, a decrease of one.
A weekly update from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) states that another healthcare worker has died with Covid-19, the 22nd such fatality since the start of the pandemic. Healthcare workers account for around 0.3 per cent of all deaths from the disease in the State.
The report says more than 82 per cent of those who have died from the disease had an underlying condition.
The HPSC said Louth has been the county hardest-hit by Covid-19 deaths during the pandemic, at 189.3 per 100,000 people, followed by Mayo (186.2) and Cavan (178.5). Sligo recorded the lowest rate (71.7) followed by Galway (74.4) and Kerry (77.2).
In terms of positive tests, Carlow, Westmeath and Louth had the highest incidence of the disease by county last week, while Roscommon, Donegal and Cavan had the lowest.
There were marginal increases in cases (based on PCR test numbers) in all age groups last week, apart from among 0-4 year-olds and 19-24 year-olds.
The HPSC on Wednesday launched a Covid-19 data hub to provide the latest, figures for cases, deaths and outbreaks.This will provide data "in a dynamic and timely manner" and allow people to see detailed information about how the virus is affecting their communities, and the country as a whole, the HPSC said.
Vaccine campaign
All children aged five to 11 are to be offered a Covid-19 vaccine in Northern Ireland, Stormont’s Minister for Health confirmed on Wednesday.
The announcement by Robin Swann follows the latest advice from the UK’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in this regard. It also comes after Wales, Scotland and England also announced they would be following the JCVI guidance.
The JCVI has advised that children in this age cohort are offered two 10mcg doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, with an interval of at least 12 weeks between doses. The paediatric dose is one-third of the strength of an adult dose. Additional reporting: PA
