Coronavirus deaths tops 3,000, with over 9,000 hospitalizations
A total of 3,134 people with coronavirus have died, and 9,127 have required treatment in a hospital, according to new data published by the RIVM on Wednesday. It is an increase of 189 and 188, respectively, compared to data released on Wednesday, with adjustments made to prior data stretching back to March 14.
At least 70 people were hospitalized on Tuesday continuing an overall downward trend in new hospital patients since a peak of 559 was recorded for March 24. Adjustments to data also raised the number of hospital patients who entered medical facilities on Monday from 57 to 105.
As the RIVM caught up with data delayed over the Easter weekend, it painted a clearer picture about fatal cases from April 10 through Tuesday, April 14. While a decline was generally shown on these days, the RIVM said that 175 more deaths took place during that five-day period than was previously reported. The 62 percent increase raised the number of fatal cases over that period to 458.
It was still fewer than half the number of reported deaths during a comparable five-day period the week prior, when 1,027 deaths were registered.
The country is now home to 28,153 people who have tested positive for a coronavirus infection. To date, 140,845 people have been tested for the virus, with nearly seven thousand being tested on April 9. The Health Ministry wants the country's laboratory technicians to and medical workers to be able to process 17,500 tests per day starting next week.
As the Covid-19 diagnoses and hospitalizations decrease, the government's Outbreak Management Team is starting to consider "exit strategies" for the Netherlands to start returning to a more normal society. According to experts, the measures will likely first be relaxed in either the northern provinces, where there haven't been many infections and thus more hospital capacity, or in hard-hit Noord-Brabant which is closest to herd immunity due to the large number of infections.
The Albert Schweitzer hospital in Dordrecht started a live stream on YouTube where people can see how many coronavirus patients are in the hospital and how many have been discharged. The Covid-19 dashboard is updated on about an hourly basis. According to the hospital, it developed this function because it values the public's involvement.
