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There are 482 Covid-19 patients in hospital, with 74 in intensive care, the chief executive of the HSE Paul Reid said on Monday morning.
Mr Reid joined other health experts in calling for caution as the Government contemplates the planned lifting of all remaining Covid-19 restrictions, due on Friday, October 22nd.
In a post on social media Mr Reid said it was “time to hit the reset button” . He said unvaccinated people were “at a higher risk” and he urged them to “do the right thing”. Mr Reid also said “for the rest of us, [IT IS]time to do the basics well again”.
Mr Reid made his comments on Twitter just an hour after the Government chief scientific advisor Professor Mark Ferguson said those planning to attend nightclubs when all remaining restrictions are lifted must be vaccinated “for their own protection”.
Prof Ferguson said if nightclubs reopen they should have good ventilation, ideally including an an air exchange system which disinfects air, possibly by fitting UV lights to filters.
Professor Ferguson also advocated the use of antigen testing which he described “really useful” as it provided “an extra layer of protection”.While he said it had a role in combating Covid-19 he said it was not a solution and pointed out that antigen testing in the Netherlands had not been successful.
On October 22nd all remaining Covid-19 restrictions are due to be lifted, including requirements for social distancing, the use of face masks and restrictions on how many people can attend indoor venues.
However Taoiseach Micheál Martin has refused to confirm the move would go ahead , given the current trajectory in the numbers of infections and hospital admissions.
According to the HSE Covid Tracker App in the last 24 hours there have been 29 hospital admissions; 14 hospital discharges; seven ICU admissions and just two ICU discharges. In the last seven days tests of 142,364 people revealed a positivity rate of 8.4 per cent.
Just 11 ICU adult beds and one paediatric ICU bed were available in hospitals across the State on Sunday night as Covid-19 patients accounted for more than a quarter of total capacity. Seventeen hospitals had no free ICU beds.
Infectious diseases expert Professor Paddy Mallon said that some restrictive measures would be needed to contain the Covid-19 virus and allow a return to “normal” life .
Society was going to have to be innovative and he was supportive of everything that could enable people to live a more normal life, he told Newstalk Breakfast.
But Prof Mallon questioned why Ireland remained an “outlier” when it came to antigen testing. Testing and treatment were two key elements in the fight against a virus as even vaccinated people could still contract and transmit the virus. Widespread antigen testing would give added protection, he said.
Prof Mallon said the solution was not “all or nothing” with regard to restrictions and there needed to be a broader dialogue about the measures and the need to continue them in daily life to contain the virus.
The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) meets on Monday to consider its advice on Friday’s planned reopening.
The Government will also be discussing how vaccine certificates, booster shots and Covid testing can be used as it comes to its decision. Also commenting on Twitter on Monday morning, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said it was “really great to hear of a substantial increase at walk-in vaccine centres at the weekend, while 3,000+ registered for the first time last week”.
He said booster vaccines were continuing among those aged 65 plus in long term residential care, and those aged over 80 years in the community.
“College pop-ups continue also,” he added.
While the Government is keen to expand the vaccine booster programme to more vulnerable groups the “green light” from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (Niac) is awaited on this. Niac is also meeting on Monday.