"Data shows 6,146 NHS beds taken up by Covid positive patients on Sept 14, latest health service data shows
But just 4,721 patients (77%) were primarily being treated for coronavirus, with rest possibly 'incidental' cases
In NHS hospitals in Midlands, a third of Covid inpatients were mainly being treated for other illness or injury
Nearly a quarter of Covid inpatients in England are actually in hospital for a different reason, according to official figures.
Health service statistics show there were 6,146 NHS beds taken up by people who were coronavirus positive on September 14, the latest date data is available for.
But just 4,721 patients (77 per cent) were primarily being treated for the virus, with the remaining 1,425 receiving care for other illnesses or injuries.
They could include patients who've had a fall or even new mothers who tested positive after giving birth.
In NHS hospitals in the Midlands, around a third of Covid patients were mainly being treated for another reason on September 14.
Separate NHS figures suggest as many as half of daily hospitalisations only test positive after being admitted for a separate condition.
Hospital numbers have become the key metric for ministers and their scientific advisers, now that vaccines have taken the emphasis away from infection numbers.
Boris Johnson has said lockdown curbs may have to be reintroduced if Covid hospital numbers rise sharply as part of his winter blueprint to tackle the virus, which could see masks and working from home mandated again.
But he did not put a firm figure on the threshold that would trigger the return of restrictions when he announced the contingency plans earlier this week.
The latest figures suggest the standard Covid hospital numbers have become a less reliable way of gauging the outbreak and NHS pressure."
Our nation became a circus with Covid in 2020. The news media became the public relations firm of a government that decides what you don't need to know, and how to slant what you do need to know. Blog motto: "Is that true, or did you read it in the New York Times?" ... “Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.” ... Groucho Marx
Sunday, September 19, 2021
"One quarter of 'Covid inpatients' in England are primarily being treated for a different illness or injury, official data shows"
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