Number of Covid-19 patients at Chesterfield Royal Hospital in double figures for first time in three months

At 5pm on Tuesday, staff at the hospital were looking after 13 people with the virus.

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It is the first time this number has reached double figures since the start of July. It was zero on September 7.

Members of the public are being urged to follow measures to protect themselves and others.

Sarah Turner-Saint, a spokeswoman for the Royal, told the Derbyshire Times: “We are looking after 13 patients with coronavirus – still a relatively small number compared to some other hospitals, but an increase in recent weeks.

“It is, however, nowhere near the height of the pandemic, when for a period we were treating over 80 people for the virus at any one time.

“We are extremely grateful to our patients and communities for their help and support on site.

“Washing hands, wearing a face covering and maintaining social distancing is crucial to help to reduce the spread of all infections, including Covid-19.

“Doing the same in social settings is equally important, as is self-isolating if you or your family has symptoms.”

She added: “Throughout the pandemic we have escalated and de-escalated our plans to meet different demands.

“As we head into winter – and work hard to continue to re-start all our services – we are ready to act fast if we need to.

“We can all do our bit to stay alert to the impact of Covid-19, to help people stay safe and potentially save more lives.”

A total of 140 Covid-19 patients have passed away at the hospital.

Since the end of March, 600 people have received care for the virus at the hospital and been discharged home.

According to the latest available data, there were 56 positive cases of Covid-19 in Chesterfield between September 26 and October 2, up 38 from the previous week.

The infection rate for this period was 53 cases per 100,000 people. The average area in England had 52.

In total, there have been 7,210 confirmed cases of the virus in Derbyshire county and Derby city.

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