Covid hospital admissions on rise again in England

Hospital-acquired Covid infections on the rise according to analysis by expert Adele Groyer

Covid hospital admissions on the rise again (PA)

The number of patients being admitted to hospital with Covid has increased in the first week of June, figures show, after being in decline since the beginning of April.

The number admitted was up by 6 per cent, from 1,175 to 1,380, on 7 June compared to 31 May, according to data published by NHS England.

The biggest increases were in the east of England, up by 41 per cent, and in the southeast and southwest, which were up by 23 per cent.

However, the daily average across seven days appears to be down, compared to the average over the previous seven days.

The news comes after overall hospital admissions of people for Covid and those testing positive after admission rose this week.

According to an analysis by Adele Groyer, from the Covid-19 Actuaries Response Group, the proportion of people who were likely to have caught Covid in hospital grew to 29 per cent, up from 19 per cent over the past week.

This is based on the number of people testing positive seven days after admission.

The increase comes after infection control measures for hospitals in England were loosened. Patients who are not symptomatic are no longer tested upon admission.

Hospital visitors are no longer required to routinely wear a mask, while staff no longer have to wear masks in non-clinical areas.

The requirement for patients to wear masks within GP practices has also been dropped.

On 12 May the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control predicted that there could be a new wave driven by the increase in the BA Covid variants.

In its paper, the European public health authority said there was no indication the variants were more severe, but that they could cause a “significant increase” in Covid-19 cases in Europe “in the coming weeks and months”.