18 June 2020
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
Running total: Cork has had 1,535 cases of COVID19 since the pandemic began
Normality is returning to life, bit by bit, but new cases and deaths continue
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been informed that a total of 4 people with COVID-19 have died.
There have now been a total of 1,714 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.
As of midnight Wednesday 17 June the HPSC has been notified of 16 confirmed cases of COVID-19. There is now a total of 25,355 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.
The HSE is working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.
Today’s data from the HPSC, as of midnight, Tuesday 16 June (25,399 cases), reveals:
· 57% are female and 43% are male
· the median age of confirmed cases is 48 years
· 3,282 cases (13%) have been hospitalised
· Of those hospitalised, 417 cases have been admitted to ICU
· 8,147 cases are associated with healthcare workers
· Dublin has the highest number of cases at 12,239 (48% of all cases) followed by Cork with 1,535 cases (6%) and then Kildare with 1,436 cases (6%)
· Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 37%, close contact accounts for 61%, travel abroad accounts for 2%
Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “The National Public Health Emergency Team met today (Thursday 18 June) and noted that approximately half of those diagnosed with COVID-19 in the community take more than 2 days from the onset of symptoms to make contact with their GP.
“The most important actions anyone can take from the moment they experience symptoms associated with COVID-19 is to self-isolate immediately, restrict the movement of household contacts and make phone contact with their GP.”
Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; “This evening, a new COVID-19 dashboard will be launched which will provide up-to-date information on the key indicators of COVID-19 in the community, including the number of daily cases, deaths, number of people in hospital and ICU and a daily update on testing figures.
“In addition, the dashboard also allows people to monitor the number of cases of COVID-19 in their local area. The management of COVID-19 is an individual task, where we all must remain aware of the disease in our community, follow public health advice and adopt protective behaviours.”
Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of the NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group, said; “The reproductive number is now estimated to be close to 0.7. It is heartening to see that none of the data suggests that there is a significant increase of transmission of COVID-19 in the community since the commencement of Phase 2.”
Dr Siobhán Ni Bhriain, Consultant Psychiatrist and HSE Integrated Care Lead, said; “COVID-19 symptoms are common symptoms and therefore some people may not be inclined to immediately seek medical attention for a cough, shortness of breath, change in sense of smell or fever to their GP. In the context of this pandemic we are asking you to do so, to help us limit the spread of COVID-19.”
