Coronavirus cases break record in Netherlands – Hospital pressure rises

The Dutch hospitals are feeling the pressure from the increase in the number of patients with Covid-19, but the worst has not yet come, said today the head of the country’s hospital association.

The number of Covid-19 patients in Dutch hospitals has risen to around 2,000 today, including 400 in intensive care units, reaching its highest level since May.

With about 250 new admissions daily, hospitals are expected to surpass last winter’s peak of about 2,800 patients with new coronavirus in just over a week, LNAZ leader Erdst Kuipers told lawmakers.

“We have not yet seen the peak, the numbers continue to rise,” he said.

Hospitals across the country have been restricting regular care for weeks in order to manage Covid-19 patient emergencies.

Hospitals in the southern province of Limburg, one of the worst affected in the country, said last week that they no longer had the space or staff to handle more Covid cases.

The Netherlands returned to some lockdowns on Saturday after the government ordered restaurants and shops to close earlier and barred spectators from major sporting events in a bid to curb the rapid spread of Covid-19.

More than 100,000 new infections were recorded this week, the highest level in just one week since the pandemic began.

Last week, an average of about 14,500 cases were confirmed daily in the country with a population of 17.5 million, breaking the previous record of just under 13,000 infections a day last December.

Nearly 85% of the adult population in the Netherlands has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and the country will start providing booster doses to health workers and the elderly by the end of this week.

Source: AMPE