HSE boss asks people to wear masks as Covid hospitalisations reach 1,600

Over 1,600 people with Covid-19 are in hospitals across Ireland, fifty of whom are in ICU. 

That's according to the latest report from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) on Tuesday, March 29 which confirmed 1,605 Covid-positive patients are hospitalised nationwide. 

HSE boss Paul Reid called on the public this week to "repeat doing the basics" such as mask-wearing due to the rising number of Covid cases. 

A total of 5,962 PCR-confirmed cases of Covid-19 were registered today, with 8,587 people registering a positive antigen test through the HSE portal yesterday (Monday March 28). 

According to the HPSC, 51,197 positive cases have been recorded in the last seven days, with 89,102 in the last two weeks. 

Fifty four people have died with Covid in the last fourteen days, making up a total of 6,730 across Ireland since the pandemic began. 

In a tweet yesterday evening, Mr Reid said, "1,625 Covid positive patients in hospital now is causing huge stress on the healthcare system. We need to turn this tide again asap and repeat doing the basics. Please wear your mask appropriately, come forward for your booster or primary vaccine and isolate if symptoms." 

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has recently called on the government to re-instate Covid measures - which were scrapped at the start of March - such as mask-wearing and the cancellation of elective procedures. 

The group tweeted yesterday and called the situation in Irish hospitals "chaotic". 

The tweet said, "The situation in our hospitals is chaotic. ICU numbers aren’t increasing but we have a high levels of hospital admission that we simply can’t cope with and that requires public health measures, to ensure those who are so sick, that are being admitted, can actually get treatment."