Covid-19 pressure on Portlaoise hospital eases in past seven days according to HSE reports

Staff at Portlaoise hospital have seen Covid-19 patients drop to just one in the past week but their only patient is critically ill according to the latest detailed daily report from the HSE on the virus in Irish hospitals

The Covid-19 Daily Operations Update for Acute Hospitals, finalised for Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise on Thursday and published on Friday, November 13, shows that one patient with Covid-19 is being to be treated at the Laois hospital. 

There were no suspected cases when the figures are filed with the HSE. However, the staff at the hospital's ICU are treating a patient.

The pressure of Covid-19 on the hospital as decreased also in the past two weeks as the spread of the virus began to slow.

The hospital had one spare ICU bed and eight available general beds going into Friday.

Portlaoise is part of the Dublin Midlands Hospital Group (DMHG) which includes hospitals in Kildare, Offaly and the capital. Some have not enjoyed the same easing of pressure as Portlaoise however, the situation appears to have stabilised.

Naas General Hospital has 28 patients infected with the virus. It has six suspected cases. One confirmed case is in ICU.

The Kildare facility had one ICU beds and 17 generals bed when the HSE compiled the figures. 

The Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore hospital has five confirmed Covid-19 compared to 13 seven days previously. There were no suspected cases. One of its suspected cases is critically ill. Staff had no available ICU bed and two general beds by 8 pm. 

Tallaght and St James' hospitals in Dublin are part of the same group.

At 31, Tallaght has the second-highest number of confirmed cases in Ireland. It also has five suspected. Four of its Covid patients are critically ill. It has three ICU beds and 18 general beds available.

St James' has 17 confirmed and 14 suspected cases of Covid-19. It has 30 general beds and three critical care beds available.

The number of Covid-19 cases in hospitals around Ireland was 272 which is not down dramatically on seven days previously when 283 people were hospitalised with the virus. There were 102 suspected cases. Of these two categories, 46 people were receiving critical care - 24 ventilated. This is very similar to a week ago. There was one Covid-19 related death in ICU on Thursday.

Hospitalisations tend to lag about three weeks behind the date of infection.