The number of hospital admissions decreased as a result of COVID-19 in Puerto Rico

A constant drop in hospital admissions of patients with COVID-19 indicates an improvement in terms of the impact of the pandemic on the island, although the reduction in that line does not mean Puerto Rico is already out of harm’s way, he warned Sunday Dr. . José Rodríguez Orengo, Director of the Public Health Trust.

The decline in hospital admissions observed from the first week of January was uncertain at the time, as there has historically been a decline in the number of patients confined to hospital settings over the Christmas period.

However, going into the last week of January, the biochemist pointed out in statements The new day to that “what we see is real”, referring to deterioration. Still, Rodríguez Orengo explained that the number of hospital admissions by COVID-19 per 100,000 inhabitants is around 11. “It’s quite high,” he stressed. “We are better than in December, but we are still not that good.” He Health Department Yesterday, 310 reported in hospital because of the coronavirus. The record number occurred on December 10, with 657 hospitalized.

However, the doctor raised an alert voice by pointing out that “the number of active cases is on the rise” on the island. For example, in early January, he explained that the number of active cases of COVID-19 was 178 people per 100,000 residents, but in the past week that number has risen to 228. “We need to monitor and maintain ourselves with all safety measures. ”He stated. Until January 21, the number of diagnoses by molecular test was 7,370 cases, as well as 1,403 by antigen test.

Rodríguez Orengo also stressed the importance of hospitals reporting daily patient deaths from COVID-19 as soon as possible. Last week, there were three days with no reports of deaths from the virus, although the daily number reported by Health on Friday amounted to 29 deaths, the highest figure reported in one day, so far, the majority is consistent with deaths on various dates in January.

“We need to know clearly and quickly when people in Puerto Rico die in order to make decisions and make adequate recommendations to the government and the general public,” pointed out the biochemist. 158 deaths have been reported so far this month, which equates to about seven a day, “similar to what we saw in October,” he said. In December, with 394 deaths, the daily average was 13.

The Auxiliary Secretariat for Regulation and Accreditation of Health Facilities (SARAFS) issued a warning to hospitals on Friday. “Recently, SARAFS has become aware that hospitals have failed and are still not meeting their obligations to report hospitalization and / or death records to the department. Such a procedure is unacceptable and, worse, negatively impacts the trust the Puerto Rican people place in their government agencies, ”said Edwin León Pérez, deputy secretary of SARAFS, in a letter to hospital institutions.

No public safety information about their vaccinated

On the other hand, the Department of Public Safety (DSP) was unable to state how many employees of that agency have already received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Phase 1-b vaccination – including front-line workers – began on Monday, Jan. 11, with the inoculation of 300 DSP workers at each of the six regional National Guard centers, as reported.

Specifically, the 300 vaccines per center destined for the six negotiated DSP umbrellas would be divided into 150 for police, 25 for emergency management, 40 for 911, 40 for firefighters, 30 for medical emergencies and 15 for special investigations. Alexis Torres, the DSP’s designated secretary, said in a previous interview that the umbrella employs about 15,000 workers.

In theory, if the numbers vaccinated per center were to be maintained, all DSP employees would have to be vaccinated, but the agency has not provided the information despite requests since last Thursday. Torres was not available for an interview yesterday.