The total number of fatalities in the country now stands at 13,798, with 140,510 confirmed infections
Spain recorded 743 coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours, according to official figures released on Tuesday by the Health Ministry. This represents the first rise in daily deaths in four days. The increase, however, should be viewed with caution given that there has been an underreporting of figures on Sundays and Mondays since the beginning of the crisis.
There were 637 coronavirus deaths reported on Monday, the lowest daily death toll seen in the country seen since March 24, when there were 514. The drop followed a downward trend that began on Saturday when daily deaths fell to 809. The figure fell again on Sunday to 674. For the past three days, the daily death rate has been around 5% of the total, a sharp drop from 12% seen 10 days ago.
Regions are starting to see a certain drop in pressure in ICUs
DR MARÍA JOSÉ SIERRA FROM THE HEALTH MINISTRY’S COORDINATION CENTER FOR HEALTH ALERTS
The total number of deaths now stands at 13,798, with confirmed infections at 140,510, a rise of 5,478 in the last 24 hours. New infections grew by just 4% of the total on the last day.
According to the official figures, 7,069 patients were admitted into intensive care – just 138 more since Monday. It is important to note that each region in Spain has its own way of reporting the number of ICU admissions. While most count the number of patients admitted since the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak, others, like Madrid, only report on the number that is currently admitted. The final figure reported by the Health Ministry is a mix of these two numbers.
A total of 43,208 people have recovered from COVID-19 and have been discharged from hospital, sustaining the rise of more than 6% of the total seen in the past few days.
Speaking at the daily government press conference on the coronavirus epidemic in Spain, Dr María José Sierra from the Health Ministry’s Coordination Center for Health Alerts, said that the figures indicated an overall downward trend, despite the rise in daily deaths.
A total of 43,208 people have recovered from Covid-19 and have been discharged from hospital
“It is normal for there to be certain fluctuations in the data, especially after a weekend. What is important is to look at the trend and the accumulated [data] from the past few days. We believe this small upturn is not important,“ she explained.
The health expert said that regions “are starting to see a certain drop in pressure in the ICUs,“ and that 30% of all confirmed cases had been discharged from hospital
José Sierra said that the outbreak was slowing due to the confinement measures introduced by the Spanish government. “We do not know when the measures will be eased,“ she said. “That is why we are talking about measures for a transition period. That is when we have to increase early detection [of the coronavirus].“
According to José Sierra, the government is planning a broad study to find out how many people have contracted the disease. “The logistics won’t be easy, but it will take place in the next few weeks.“
More deaths at senior care homes
Senior care homes in Catalonia continue to be hit hard by the coronavirus, with 338 deaths recorded since Friday. A total of 909 residents have died since the outbreak began, and more than 1,700 have tested positive. On March 24, the Catalan regional government stipulated that all care homes report how many residents are sick, but many have still failed to do so.