Latest news | Covid-19 cases are “persistently” high in Dublin...

According to the chief physician Dr. Tony Holohan hasn’t seen the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) reduce cases in the capital as much as it would like.

Previous restrictions put in place in Dublin in late September when the capital moved to Stage 3 would not have had the desired effect on slowing down the infection, he said.

While cases in the rest of the country had fallen sharply – from a generally higher level – case numbers in Dublin remained “stubborn” over 200 a day and over 300 on Monday, said Dr. Holohan.

The effects of the level 5 restrictions imposed two weeks ago could be seen over the course of next week, he added.

Another two deaths related to Covid-19 have been reported by Nphet. That brings the total number of virus-related deaths during the pandemic to 1,917.

An additional 767 cases of the disease were also reported, bringing the total number of cases to 62,750.

Of the new cases, 321 were in Dublin, 84 in Cork and 47 in Meath. There were also 34 in Limerick, 24 in Roscommon, with the remaining 257 cases spread across all other counties.

On Monday at 2 p.m., 322 patients with Covid-19 were in the hospital, 44 of them in the intensive care unit.

The national 14-day incidence of the disease is now 248 cases per 100,000 people. Cavan has the highest incidence at 563.2, followed by Meath at 482.5. Leitrim is the only county with an incidence below 100 at 96.7.

There were 103 Covid-19 deaths in October, 39 of them in nursing homes, according to Nphet officials. This corresponds to 36 deaths in September and five in August.

Dr. Holohan said that the incidence of infection, measured by all major parameters, has been steadily declining. The situation in Ireland is now favorable compared to large parts of Europe, he stated.

However, there was still “a long way to go” to suppress the virus and it was important to continue to adhere to the measures put in place by the government.

It was “far too early to say” that officials were satisfied with “where we are and where we need to go” in relation to the current restrictions.

There are concerns about the increasing incidence of the elderly, he said. While the incidence in 19- to 24-year-olds had fallen from 450 cases per 100,000 people to below 300 in one week, the incidence rose in those who are most likely to be adversely affected by the virus.

School tests

Officials said testing and contact tracing in schools has been improved to ensure that already “robust” protections for staff and students have been enhanced.

A dedicated phone line is provided through which school principals can raise concerns and receive a response the same day. Health and education officials are being recruited to help with school public health assessments when needed. Cases involving schools are “marked in red” within the testing and tracking system and the service runs seven days a week.

As of October 28, 599 schools had run tests after a case was identified and over 15,000 students and staff were tested.

A total of 384 cases were identified with a positivity rate of 2.5 percent.

In October, 15.6 percent of all cases affected school-age children, slightly more than in the previous month (14.5 percent).

As part of the new multidisciplinary HSE school teams, priority testing and a dedicated seven-day phone line will be run so that principals can seek advice on what to do if a case of the virus is identified.

The new subsidies that the Ministry of Education introduced from Monday when schools returned from mid-term have been widely welcomed by teaching unions.

The Irish National Teachers Organization (INTO) said involving education officials on the teams would help them better understand specific environments.

“The department needs to ensure that this new service greatly improves support for schools and ensures that no school principal waits days for a risk assessment or public health guidance,” said INTO Secretary General John Boyle.

The organization also recognized an updated definition of “close and casual contact” in school settings released Friday by the Health Protection Surveillance Center (HPSC) and which it had sought.

This includes anyone who has had personal contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 within less than one meter for more than 15 minutes on a school day.

This also applies to people who have been between one and two meters from a confirmed case for more than 15 minutes but consider mitigating factors such as face covering, capsules and ventilation.

In a separate statement, the Teachers ‘Union of Ireland (TUI) recognized the new measures but called for “continuous and solid engagement” between unions, the ministry and health authorities to “ensure that teachers’ concerns are fully taken into account” .

She has also reiterated her request for schools to be audited to ensure they have the necessary resources to ensure full compliance with public health recommendations.

Nphet meeting

Nphet will meet again Thursday to review progress in reducing the transmission of the virus. Dr. Holohan said his advice on further action should become clear by the last week of November.

Dr. Holohan said in a Nphet briefing that it has been less than two weeks since the government introduced level 5 measures where we want them ”.

Although he did not rule out easing the level 5 restrictions earlier than planned, he added, “I do not currently plan to recommend this.”

When asked about providing testing facilities for international travelers, he said Nphet would look into what measures could be implemented in the coming weeks.

As progress is made in reducing the level of infection in Ireland, the importance of international travel will grow relatively, he stressed.

Ireland did not move to Level 5 restrictions “too early”, he said; Many people anticipated the change by changing their individual behavior in order to increase their level of protection.

Dr. Holohan said public health officials are increasingly optimistic about developments in the delivery of Covid-19 vaccines “in the coming months and early 2021” but supplying them is a “major logistical challenge”.

Nordfiguren

Eight more coronavirus-related deaths were reported in Northern Ireland on Monday.

The Ministry of Health of the North (DoH) said seven of the deaths occurred in the 24 hours leading up to Monday morning, one earlier.

The total number of people who have died with Covid-19 in the north is now 724, the department said.

Another 493 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed, bringing the total number of positive cases of Covid-19 identified in Northern Ireland since the pandemic began to 39,609.

There are currently 379 people living with coronavirus in hospitals in the north, 52 of them in intensive care.

Students returned to school on Monday after an extended two-week semester vacation in Northern Ireland.

The spread of Covid-19 has slowed a little over two weeks ago following the introduction of tighter restrictions – including the effective closure of the hotel industry. The average number of cases in the past seven days is now 263 per 100,000 people to around 350 when the new measures were implemented.

The North’s first minister, Arlene Foster, told the BBC’s Good Morning Ulster program on Monday that the “current restrictions” in place until November 13th “would end” and ministers “are now developing a strategy for how we can then continue to live with the virus ”.

However, Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill answered questions Monday at the Northern Assembly, saying the executive intends to “publish work on an exit strategy in the coming days,” but does not rule out an extension of the current restrictions.