Covid-19: 22% fall in Covid patients in Bristol hospitals this week

The number of coronavirus patients being cared for by Bristol’s two hospital trusts has fallen - despite a continuing rise in cases in the city.

NHS England data shows 41 Covid patients for being treated at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston Trust, which runs Bristol Royal Infirmary, on Tuesday, December 21, down from 57 the same day the previous week.

Meanwhile, 40 were being cared for at North Bristol NHS Trust, which runs Southmead Hospital, on Tuesday, down from 48 the week before.

Combined, it marks a 22% fall in Covid patients.

Yet the figures come despite 1,181 new Covid cases were recorded in Bristol in latest 24-hour period up to Thursday.

New evidence from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) found people with the Omicron variant were 50 to 70% less likely to be hospitalised compared to previous strains.

The last published count of confirmed cases of Omicron in Bristol was 119 last Friday.

Dr Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UKHSA, said: “Our latest analysis shows an encouraging early signal that people who contract the Omicron variant may be at a relatively lower risk of hospitalisation than those who contract other variants.”

However, Dr Harries did warn that if cases of Omicron continue to increase rapidly, hospitals will still be under pressure.

In the Bristol region, hospitals remain on their highest stage of alert, known as Opel 4, due to a combination of Covid cases and winter pressure.

Dr Harries said: “Cases are currently very high in the UK, and even a relatively low proportion requiring hospitalisation could result in a significant number of people becoming seriously ill.”

There are also warning as the early evidence shows that the virus is surging in younger age groups, with limited data on those over the age of 40 infected with the strain.