The ICU of Elda hospital is at its capacity and the more seriously ill patients are being referred to other areas.
The hospitals of Elda and Elche continue to struggle under the weight of high number of cases in both areas. The current situation has forced both hospitals to allocate more space and resources to attend to patients admitted in recent weeks. For this reason, the General University Hospital of Elda has suspended all surgical interventions that are not urgent or serious.
Elda hospital has activated its emergency contingency plan in the face of the avalanche of infections in recent days in the municipalities within the Elda Department of Health. Reports indicate that once again, the special wards are filled with covid patients. The fourth, third and second floors are dedicated almost entirely to the coronavirus and some rooms in the new wing are beginning to double up beds to accommodate patients. The number of patients admitted to the ward on Tuesday exceeded one hundred and the ICU is at its capacity, so the most seriously ill are being transferred to the Critical Resuscitation Unit, which is also equipped with artificial respiration devices in each bed.
In Elche, the General Hospital figures show 36 patients on the covid ward and six in the ICU. In Vinalopó hospital, the figures are similar according to health sources, with about thirty admitted to the covid ward and another six patients in the ICU. Covid admissions in Elche hospital quadrupled after the October bank holiday weekend forcing authorities there to impose restrictive measures on the population.
Since the pandemic broke out in March 2020, Elda Health Department registered 2,930 infections, 1,070 in the last 14 days. In the last two weeks the number of infected has increased by 36.5%. According to the latest Health data, Elda has had 472 positives in two weeks, in Petrer 253, in Villena 99, in Novelda 87, in Monóvar 50, in Pinoso 49, in Sax 44, in Salinas 9, in Beneixama 3 and Biar and La Romana 1.
In Elche, the number of new infections has fallen dramatically compared to the previous week, according to Health Ministry data. From Friday until yesterday, 144 new infections were registered, compared to 266 the previous week.