Latest figures show 21 Covid related deaths in Northern Ireland

There have been another 4,335 positive cases of Covid-19 confirmed by PCR testing in the Republic of Ireland. In addition, a further 3,621 people registered a positive antigen test through the HSE portal. As of 8am on Friday, there were 629 Covid-19 patients in hospital, with 53 in intensive care.

Two more people who had previously tested positive for Covid-19 have died in Northern Ireland, the Department of Health said. Another 2,068 confirmed cases of the virus have also been notified in the last 24-hour reporting period. On Friday morning there were 485 Covid-19 patients in hospital, eight of whom were in intensive care.

Twenty-one deaths linked to Covid-19 in Northern Ireland have been recorded in the latest weekly update.

The figure represents a decrease of 13 fatalities on the 34 deaths that occurred in the previous week, according to data compiled by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra).

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The latest deaths, registered in the week ending February 18th, take the total number of coronavirus-linked fatalities recorded by Nisra to 4,275.

The Nisra figure is drawn from different data sources and is always higher than the Department of Health’s total, as it provides a broader picture of the impact of Covid-19.

On February 18th, the department had reported 3,177 deaths. The department’s statistics focus primarily on hospital deaths and only include people who have tested positive for the virus.

Nisra obtains its data from death certificates on which Covid-19 is recorded as a factor by a medical professional, regardless of where the death took place or whether the patient tested positive.

The statistics agency reports its Covid data with a week lag. The Nisra figure includes 2,978 deaths in hospital, 916 in care homes, and 381 at residential addresses, hospices or other locations.

Nisra reported that up to February 18th, the deaths of 1,205 care home residents were linked to Covid-19, 28.2 per cent of all coronavirus-related deaths.

Covid-19 was also mentioned on the death certificate of 31 of the 319 deaths registered in the week to February 18.

Some of the deaths registered in the week ending February 18th could have taken place before that week, as fatalities can take a number of days to register.

Those aged 75 and over account for 73.3 per cent of the Covid-related deaths registered between March 19th 2020, and February 18th 2022. – PA