MONDAY COVID UPDATE – 283 NEW NSW CASES – 64 INFECTIOUS IN COMMUNITY – JABS WILL KEEP YOU OUT OF ICU

COVID cases continue to climb and today an intensive care specialist from Royal Prince Alfred Hospital said vaccines were the answer as numbers in hospital and ICU are also going up.

There are 349 people in hospital, with 67 of them in ICU and 27 on ventilators.

Dr Richard Totaro said at this morning’s media conference, “We haven’t seen anyone on ventilators after two vaccines. If people get themselves vaccinated they are stopping people get sick, and you’re going to help the whole community. The higher the vaccination rates the sooner we can go back to our lives we had before.”

There are 349 people in hospital, with 67 of them in ICU and 27 on ventilators.

The Hawkesbury is steady this morning at 3 COVID cases, with all sources known.

Dr Totaro said, “the remarkable thing is how progressive and relentless the deterioration can be in those unvaccinated.

“We have had people who are physically fit and well and don’t have underlying conditions.

“It’s really difficult seeing people in ICU. Complications of being critically ill can stretch out. You can’t imagine anything more traumatic.

“Once they clear the virus they move out of Covid ICU but may go to general ICU.

“It’s tough, hard work, the nurses in particular are at the bedside for hours at a time, very tough, very hard work and calls for constant vigilance around themselves and others.

“We want people to stop getting sick. There is really good evidence the vaccination stop people getting sick, almost all hospitalisation goes away, and almost all the death goes away once people have been vaccinated properly.

“You make it a much more mild disease, rather than burdening hospitals.”

There was one death overnight, a 90-year-old woman in her 90s who was in palliative care.

The epicentre is still the Canterbury Bankstown LGA and Premier Gladys Berejiklian reminded everyone, “you should not be going anywhere near those [8 locked down] government areas”.

Other areas of concern – with increasing cases – are Penrith, Blacktown and Fairfield.

If you are already a Hawkesbury Post supporter, thank you! Our site is free, relying on our supporters to operate. Independent journalism is more important than ever, please consider contributing.

Click here to see how

Don’t pay so you can read it. Pay so everybody can read it!