Number of Covid patients in Herefordshire hospitals rises again

With visiting restrictions still in place at Wye Valley NHS Trust hospitals, including Hereford County Hospital, the number of Covid patients has risen by one over the last week.

On December 24, the number of patients with Covid at the trust had fallen to a four-month low of seven, but three weeks later on Tuesday (January 11) that number had hit 46 – the highest since February 2020.

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But by January 25, that number had fallen to 27, rising slightly to 28 this Tuesday (February 1).

Over the last month, January 20 was the day where the trust was treating the lowest number of patients, with data showing there were 20.

As the number of patients in hospitals rises slightly, the infection rate has risen again.

In the latest figures, 2,520 people in Herefordshire tested positive for coronavirus in the seven days to January 29 – 339 more than the week before.

The infection rate on Tuesday stood at 1,301.6 cases per 100,00 people – higher than the UK average of 1,009.4.

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The latest hospital figures from NHS England also showed that 21 Covid patients were admitted to hospital in Herefordshire in the week to Sunday, January 23.

The week before, that number was 20, and a fortnight before it was 19.

The figures, published on the Government website, showed there was one patient in a mechanical ventilation bed on Tuesday, which are used for the most seriously ill.

That was the same as the week before.