First death of patient with Covid-19 for 73 days is confirmed at Northampton General Hospital

Northampton General Hospital has confirmed its first death of a patient who had tested positive for Covid-19 since August 2.

NHS England’s daily bulletin revealed the victim died on Tuesday (October 13) having tested positive for coronavirus within the previous 28 days. No other details in relation to the death have been released.

It is the first fatality among patients with Covid-19 at NGH in 73 days and takes the total of victims there to 312 since the pandemic began.

The death at the Cliftonville site was among 72 since last Friday confirmed in England's NHS trusts today.

The sad news follows the announcement of two deaths since last Wednesday among Covid-19 patients at Kettering General Hospital.

NHS analysts collate information on patients who have died in hospitals in England and either tested positive for Covid-19 or where no positive test result was received but Covid-19 is mentioned on a death certificate.

Healthcare admissions have risen sharply across the UK during the last month as Covid-19 cases multiplied

And CEO of Northampton and Kettering hospitals management group, Simon Weldon, revealed earlier today there are currently 16 patients who had tested positive with coronavirus being treated in Northamptonshire.

Reports from harder hit areas of the UK have revealed hospitals dealing with more Covid-19 cases than during the first wave of the pandemic in March and Liverpool's Director of Public Health admitted local intensive care beds are already 90 per cent full.

Mr Weldon added: "At the moment we are seeing relatively low levels of Covid patients in the hospitals but we are going to see cases continue to rise.

"Cases have risen in the north west and we know the virus moves around the country. It will eventually move back into Northamptonshire and we will see more admissions — hopefully less than we did in wave one but that is what we are gearing up for.

"My job is to follow science. I'm fortunate to be advised by some excellent clinicians and what they tell me is this is a real threat to our most vulnerable elderly people."

Northamptonshire has seen 747 new Covid-19 cases confirmed by positive tests in the last week, with the highest infection rates now appearing in Northampton, Wellingborough and parts of South Northamptonshire.

Covid-19 was linked to 311 deaths in Northampton and 220 in Kettering after the pandemic hit the UK in March.

A further 151 deaths in county care homes have been linked to Covid-19 by the Care Quality Commission, although the most recent was on August 17.