If hospitalisations keep dropping at the current pace, Belgium could reach the key figure of 75 hospital admissions per day by mid-February, the national crisis centre said at a press conference on Monday.
That number was put forward by Belgium’s Consultative Committee as one of two target figures - the other being 800 new daily infections on average -, after which Belgium could start to relax coronavirus measures.
An average of 160.3 patients was admitted to hospital between 21 and 27 December, according to figures provided by Sciensano on Monday, representing an 11% decrease compared to the week before.
That said, there was an increase in hospitalisations in East Flanders, Limburg and Flemish Brabant as well as in Walloon Brabant, according to virologist Steven Van Gucht.
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A total of 2,362 patients are currently in hospital, which is 8% fewer than the week before. Of these patients, 492 are in the intensive care unit.
The number of intensive care patients is dropping more slowly, but this is normal, according to virologist Steven Van Gucht, as it concerns patients who require a lot of care. Van Gucht pointed out that 70% of those in intensive care were on a ventilator.
In total, 638,877 confirmed coronavirus cases were registered in Belgium as of Monday.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
