Number of Covid-19 patients in ICU drops well below 900

Health officials said on Tuesday that the Netherlands was home to 861 patients being treated for Covid-19 in intensive care units, including 29 who were being cared for in Germany. The decrease of 44 patients since Monday equated to a near five-percent reduction, patient coordination office LCPS said.

It was the first time since March 26 that the number of patients being treated for either a confirmed case of Covid-19 or a suspected coronavirus infection was below 900. Figures from intensive care nonprofit NICE showed that about 40 more people entered ICU since Saturday, while 55 were transferred from ICU to another hospital department.

A further 13 were discharged from the hospital outright, with 22 patients in intensive care having passed away during that four-day period.

Cumulatively, about 2,775 people in the Netherlands with Covid-19 have required treatment in an ICU, of which 695 have died. There were 640 from former Covid-19 patients still being treated in hospitals, and 570 were discharged outright since the end of February, according to NICE.

The increased capacity meant Dutch hospitals have been able to treat more patients with other illnesses in their medical centers. Dutch hospitals had 399 non-Covid patients in ICU on Tuesday afternoon, the LCPS said.