Covid hospitalizations down 12%, Infections off by 40% during storm week

Preliminary figures from the RIVM showed that 1,214 people with Covid-19 were hospitalized the past seven days, the health institute said on Tuesday. That figure was 12 percent lower compared to the previous week, but the total number of hospitalizations is often revised upward by the RIVM, which uses data from the intensive care monitor NICE. A total of 97 patients were admitted into intensive care, two more than the previous week.

Statistics from the LCPS, which coordinates patient placement in the Netherlands, also showed a similar drop. The organization registered 1,258 hospital admissions, an 11 percent fall. At the same time, ICU admissions rose from 87 to 95 for the week.

The two organizations calculate their statistics differently. NICE only counts those patients actively receiving care for symptoms of the coronavirus disease. The LCPS counts all patients who test positive for coronavirus, because they are then isolated, which places an increased strain on hospital resources. Additionally, figures from NICE often take more time before final data is recorded in their system. Preliminary figures from NICE released last Tuesday were revised upward by 20 percent.

In its weekly recap, the RIVM also said that 310,144 positive coronavirus tests were registered the past seven days, the lowest total in five weeks. That reflected a week-to-week drop of 37 percent, the second straight decrease.

At the same time, the number of people who were tested for the infection also fell by 38 percent in a week that was marked by six straight days of stormy weather. This resulted in the temporary closure of many GGD test locations, with many sites open on a modified schedule. About 520,000 people were tested at a GGD facility last week.

Still, the RIVM was optimistic that the decrease was enough to indicate a trend. "The decline during the wave of infections seems to have started," the RIVM stated. "The number of positive tests decreased in all age groups and all regions." Supporting this was the significant reduction in the basic reproduction (R) value, which fell to 0.83. That means that two weeks ago, 100 people contagious with the coronavirus infected 83 others, who then passed it on to 69 people. They then gave it to 57 others, showing a constant reduction in infections. The R-value of 0.83 was the lowest registered since last July..

Per capita, the sharpest rate of decrease was among the 0-12 and 13-17 age groups. In the former group, there was a 52 percent decrease, with 1,498 infections found per 100,000 people. There was a similar 51 percent drop among those 13-17 years old, with 3,246 per capita infections, the most of any age group.

Out of the 25 security regions in the country, Friesland had the most infections with 2,577 per 100,000 inhabitants. The Rotterdam-Rijnmond area had the lowest recorded total, with 1,271. It was not immediately clear how the storms last week impacted those figures.

The RIVM also said it learned of 95 deaths linked to Covid-19 last week, up from 78 the previous week. There is no requirement to report the deaths to the agency, and those reports are sometimes filed long after a person has died.