Coronavirus: Dept. Confirms 9 People Have Died

The latest updates for Tuesday 26th of May 2020.

Figures:

A further 9 people with COVID19 have died in the Republic. 

37 number of new cases have been confirmed.

It brings the total number of deaths to 1615 - the total number of confirmed cases now stands at 24,735.  

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the midlands is at 1,399:

Laois has the lowest amount of cases in the midlands at 257 and only sees a slight increase of one.

In Offaly there's been an increase of one case and it now stands at 479 people confirmed with the virus.

It's the second consecutive day that Westmeath has seen no increase in confirmed cases of coronavirus with the figure remaining at 663.

Testing:

Testing healthcare workers should be considered every two to three weeks, to stop the spread of coronavirus to other settings.

That's the view of an immunologist, who says the number of health staff with Covid 19 in Ireland is extraordinarily high when compared to other countries.

Dr Tomás Ryan from Trinity College says in the UK a large number of healthcare workers did not have symptoms:

Northern Ireland:

No covid-19 related deaths have been reported in Northern Ireland over the past 24 hours.

It marks the first time this has happened since March 18th.

The news comes a day after the Republic announced no new Covid-19 related deaths for the first time in over nine weeks.

Meanwhile, a further 28 new cases have been confirmed in the North.

Pubs:

There's a warning that typical pub and restaurant capacity may drop to one-eight of pre-crisis levels.

Under current social distancing measures, pubs which previously had a standing capacity of 200 people will now be reduced to 25. 

A report by the Licensed Vintners Association and Vintners Federation of Ireland also shows seating capacity will go from 100 to 34 people. 

Chief Executive of the LVA, Donall O'Keefe, says the WHO's guidelines of one-metre social distancing should be considered:

Nursing Homes:

There's no national clinical oversight of nursing home care according to the government's health watchdog. 

HIQA has said the HSE does not understand the private residential sector amid strong criticism of the response to COVID 19 in those settings.

Nursing Homes Ireland has said it was left isolated by the government in the early days of the crisis.

An Oireachtas Committee has also heard some nursing homes had to use painters overalls and goggles and equipment from vets as PPE. 

CEO of HIQA Phelim Quinn said there's also a governance issue here:

Outdoor gigs:

With festivals and concerts cancelled because of the coronavirus, a new way of putting on gigs will begin in July.

'Live at the Drive-In' will host a series of concerts across Ireland that will see artists performing to people in their cars.

Dublin singer Gavin James is the first to be announced, with tickets on sale on Friday morning and he says a lot of people in the industry have been impacted by the crisis:

Childcare:

Almost 9 out of 10 childcare providers say they either will not reopen on June 29th, when the Government intends to start a phased resumption of those services, or have reservations about reopening on that date. 

The survey finds most parents also have no interest in returning their children to services as the Covid-19 lockdown continues, according to a survey of providers obtained by the Irish Examiner. 

The research, conducted by the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, also looks at the opinions of staff and comes as the Government seeks to organise its childcare plan for Cabinet this week. 

The research looks at 609 providers. 

The chairperson of the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, Elaine Dunne, says members need clear guidelines before reopening:

Safety record:

Employers with better safety records are 20 per cent more likely to go out of business, according to a new study.

The research looked at 25 years of health and business records in thousands of work places in America.

UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School in Dublin was part of a global group of researchers that carried out the research.

Mark Pagell was one of the authors of the report:

Hydroxychloroquine:

The World Health Organisation says it doesn't support the malaria drug Donald Trump is using as a treatment for coronavirus. 

The US president is using hydroxychloroquine as a precaution against getting Covid-19. 

But the WHO has dropped the drug from its global study into treatments for the virus, due to safety concerns.

Director-general Tedros Ghebreyesus says the drug can result in death in some cases:

Dominic Cummings:

The British Prime Minister says he regrets the anger people feel over his chief advisor's decision to drive 260 miles during the lockdown.

Dominic Cummings took his family to be near relatives in Durham because he was worried he, and his wife, might get ill and wouldn't be able to look after their son.

But he did go on a trip two weeks after arriving in the county.

He says he went to Barnard Castle to make sure his eyesight - which he thinks might've been damaged by Covid-19 - had recovered.

Mr Cummings insists he had no intention of breaking the lockdown regulations:

City West centre:

The number of patients self-isolating in City West Hotel in Dublin has dropped below 100 for the first time.

The centre was opened by the HSE on April 1st for people who cannot self-isolate at home.

Dr Siobhán Ni Bhriain, Consultant Psychiatrist and HSE Integrated Care Lead says less people are now needing to use the facility:

Nursing homes:

The chief executive of Nursing Homes Ireland is expected to say the failure of the so-called surge to materialise was among the reasons  patients were discharged to homes from hospital without testing for Covid-19.

Tadhg Daly is among those who will face a grilling from the Covid-19 Committee today in the wake of the devastating impact of the virus on the sector. 

Almost half of all deaths from the virus have occurred in care settings and there have been 264 clusters in  homes.

CEO Tadhg Daly said the health service had been preparing for a so-called "surge":

Transmissions:

76 of the 307 new cases announced since last Thursday occurred in residential care facilities.

Deputy chief medical officer Ronan Glynn says it shows there's still a substantial number of transmissions in other settings, including in the community:

Need to stick to phasing out:

A full return to economic activity is important, but so too is sticking to the plan and doing it on a phased basis, according to the Chief Medical Officer.

Dr. Tony Holohan has described the latest Covid-19 figures as a "positive development," but warned against complacency.

Yesterday marked the first time no new virus-related deaths were recorded since March 21st, and it came on the back of a recent downward trend.

There's been no new confirmed cases of coronavirus in the midlands, leaving the total here at 1,397.

As the economy wakes up, Dr. Holohan says it's inevitable we'll see an increase in cases and that has to be carefully managed:

Latest local figures:

There's been no new confirmed cases of coronavirus in the midlands, leaving the total at 1,397.

It's the fourth day in a row without a new case in Laois, the total there remains at 256. 

Westmeath remains the midlands county with the highest number of cases, 663. 

While Offaly is also unchanged, 478 people have been diagnosed with the illness there. 

 

More from Midlands News

Download Our App