The number of Covid patients on ventilators in England fallen to a six-month low as the pressure of Omicron on the NHS peaks, official figures show.
Today’s hospital admissions saw 524 patients receiving breathing support. It was the lowest total daily death toll since mid July and seven times higher than during the first wave of this year.
With around 14,500 patients in hospital with the virus across England, it means just 3.7 per cent are ill enough to need mechanical ventilation — the smallest share since the pandemic began.
Despite infections reaching record levels in December and January, the ventilator rate is still low. According to Government statistics, more than 80.000 people test positive every day for the virus.
Natural immunity, vaccines and Omicron variants that are intrinsically milder have all helped to break the links between severe illnesses and infections.
The situation at hospitals in England has prompted ministers to take confidence and drop Plan B restrictions. Boris Johnson, however, indicated his intention to repeal all Covid laws in the spring. Work from home guidance has been discontinued. Secondary schools no longer use face masks.
Sajid Javid (Health Secretary) said last week Omicron data was promising in the UK. This is in comparison to the influenza-like burden that Covid has caused.
A World Health Organization official warned today against making comparisons between these two viruses. Covid special envoy Dr David Nabarro of the Agency said Covid was still “very, very deadly”. He also stated that it should not be confused with flu. We must continue to treat it like a novel virus.
It comes as Covid cases across the UK yesterday grew week-on-week for the first time in more than a fortnight, with 74,799 new positive tests up 5 per cent compared to last Sunday. This increase was not visible in data until the most recent relaxation of curbs.
Figures from the UK Health Security Agency show 3.7 per cent of hospitalised patients in England (524 of 14,334) are on ventilators, the lowest rate recorded since the pandemic began. Comparatively, last June saw 18.8 percent of patients admitted to hospital in intensive care.
UKHSA data shows ventilation numbers have dropped from an average of 790 per day to 570 per day, showing despite the unprecedented surge in cases that saw more than 200,000 Britons test positive per day, people are not becoming as unwell from the now-dominant strain. Some 14,334 people in England were in hospital yesterday (red line), while 524 were on ventilators
According to the latest NHS data, 14,334 English citizens were hospitalized yesterday by coronavirus. That’s 2.4x lower than the previous winter peak, which had 34,336 people with this virus infected and required NHS treatment on January 18.
But the difference in the number of patients on ventilators was even more stark, with 524 Covid-infected patients across England requiring breathing support — roughly seven times lower than the 3,736 logged on January 24 last year, before the vaccine rollout.
This is the lowest figure since July 18th, when 512 Covid patients were in England on ventilators. The dominant Delta variant prevailed.
Omicron’s arrival at the end November has seen ventilation drop from 790 to 590 per day.
Patients need ventilators as their last option for breathing support. These figures don’t show how many patients require support via other devices to assist them in breathing, like CPAP machines.
Recent official statistics show that 61% (or more) of the patients admitted to ICU by Covid in October were not immunized.
Only 3.7% of all hospitalized patients in England have been placed on ventilators since the outbreak. This is the lowest percentage since then. Comparatively, last June saw 18.8% of patients admitted to hospital needing mechanical breathing aid.
Jabs are being celebrated for their ability to reduce the likelihood of catching the disease and the severity of the consequences. In other words, fewer people have to go to hospital or die due to the virus than the total number who become infected.
Over eighty percent of Britons over 12 years old are double-jabbed. More than six out 10 Britons have received a third dose.
According to the Office for National Statistics, 97% of UK adults are infected with Covid antibodies.
Growing immunity, large case numbers and the milder Omicron variant have also seen a rise in ‘incidental’ hospital admissions — patients who are in hospital for something else but also have Covid.
NHS England has updated its most recent figures to show that 47.9% of Covid patients in England were not solely afflicted by the virus.
Experts have compared the Covid burden to flu. Scientists believe the virus could become weaker every year, until it is as dangerous to humans as the common cold.
When Dr Nabarro was asked about comments likening Covid with the flu on Sky News, Dr Nabarro from WHO Covid said that he and his colleagues didn’t know what these people know.
“You can see that people around the globe are reporting this virus as a dangerous and very serious disease. It is especially deadly for those who have never been infected and don’t know how to prevent it.”
He said that virus mutations will not stop and more variations are ‘not far’.
“So, quite frankly, we don’t think this should be compared to flu. We must continue treating this virus as if it were a brand new disease.
According to him, governments shouldn’t suggest that data is suddenly changing or that the virus’ strength has increased. They should instead be focused on keeping the virus away, making it impossible for people to get infected and ensuring that they are prepared to handle any further spikes.
NHS England data has shown that 47.9% of Covid patients are not being treated for the disease. According to official figures, one-in-20 people have Covid. Therefore, people who are admitted for treatment of other diseases are more likely than others to be infected.
NHS England data shows that the percentage of Covid patients not being treated by the virus in hospital since Omicron began is shown in the graph. This graph shows that only four out of ten London Covid patients are being treated now for the disease.
The Office for National Statistics data shows that Covid was England’s fourth-leading killer last month, as Omicron devastated the country. Omicron is no longer the most common cause of death after the last-year spike in Omicron cases. It was the 25th most common cause of death last summer.
ONS data compares the percentage of Covid deaths in people who had died from the disease (red), and those who were not affected by the disease (blue). This shows that the percentage of people who die from the disease are rising. It also indicates that the risk of the virus being the cause is decreasing.
Dr Nabarro stated that the end of pandemics was “in sight”, but warned that there are uncertainties about how they will unfold.
His words were: “The End is In sight. How long does it take to get there?” How many difficulties are we likely to encounter along the way? These are difficult questions to answer as the virus will continue to surprise us with its challenges.
“It seems like we are at the half-way mark of a marathon. We can now see that there is an end, and faster runners are passing us by.
“But we have still got a long way to go and it will be difficult.
Omicron is the WHO’s new regional director. He said that the Pandemic has entered a new phase in Africa.
Dr Hans Kluge stated that Omicron seems to be a less serious disease than Delta but we still see a rise in hospitalisations due to its sheer numbers.
“This adds to the Delta burden that hasn’t entirely passed and to the large number of incidental admissions.
Omicron is a less common option for ICU admission. The majority of people who need intensive care in the Region, as predicted by Omicron, are not currently vaccinated.
The pandemic “will end”, but he warned that it’s too early for people to rest easy.
According to Dr Kluge, millions of infections are occurring every day worldwide. This, along with waning immunity, makes it almost certain that there will be new Covid variants.
He said that lockdowns might not be necessary in the future due to high vaccination uptake.
