Northamptonshire's Covid-19 death toll still trending downwards, despite rise in positive tests

Northamptonshire's Covid-19 death-rate in our two main hospitals continued to slow with one more victim in the latest 24-hour period.

The death at Kettering General Hospital on Sunday (May 17) took the total to a sobering 357 at the two NHS trusts since the coronavirus outbreak claimed its first victim on March 3.

Of those, 212 have died at the biggest of the two hospitals, Northampton General Hospital, and 145 at Kettering, according to the latest data collated at 5pm on Monday (May 18).

Numbers are typically lower at weekends and just after but the daily increases have been trending downwards since the pandemic peaked in mid-April.

County hospitals recorded 17 deaths in a single 24-hour period according to figures released on April 23. That compares to 17 in one week at Northampton General between May 11 and May 17 plus a further 11 at Kettering during the same period.

In addition, the Office of National Statistics revealed today there have 105 deaths in the county's care homes up to May 15.

That takes the total number of victims county-wide to 462.

The figures relating to care homes are based on Care Quality Commission data and showed 21 victims in Northamptonshire care homes between May 8 to May 15 — including eight in one day on May 12.

READ THIS: Northamptonshire care home suffer worst week yet for Covid-19 deaths.Nationally, Government statistics say 35,341 people have now died in all settings after testing positive for Covid-19, a rise of 545 in the daily figure.

The number of positive Covid-19 tests in the county stood at 1,325, a rise of 14 in the previous 24 hours and 145 in a week.

But increases in figures for the number of sufferers in Northamptonshire have followed rises in the number of tests in the county.

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