Reassurances offered as case of Omicron ‘seen’ at Chesterfield Royal Hospital

A boss at Chesterfield Royal Hospital has tonight confirmed ‘we have seen a case of Omicron’ – the highly-transmissible variant of Covid-19.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Berenice Groves, deputy chief executive and chief operating officer at the Royal, confirmed the news in a statement to the Derbyshire Times – and moved to reassure members of the public that the hospital has a ‘robust plan’ to deal with the virus as the pandemic continues.

She said: “Like the rest of health and social care, our services are under increased pressure this winter.

Chesterfield Royal Hospital.Chesterfield Royal Hospital.
Chesterfield Royal Hospital.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“We have seen a case of Omicron at Chesterfield Hospital and we have a robust plan in place to manage any cases of Covid-19, and this includes the new variant.

“We continue to work with our colleagues within the trust and our partner organisations to ensure our patients have access to the care they need, and we want to reassure people that we are here if they need us.”

She added: “It is really important that people visiting the hospital follow the infection control protocol, which is there to protect them, our patients and colleagues.

“To help us limit footfall and congregation in some of the busiest areas of the hospital, we have taken the decision to suspend access to onsite restaurants for visitors from Monday.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“This decision has been taken to help protect our patients, our colleagues and our services to enable us to provide the best care in a safe environment.

“If you are visiting a patient in hospital, there remains a one-person limit.

“We are doing all we can to protect visiting, but we still require your help to keep our extremely clinically vulnerable patients safe.

“As always, we would encourage people to help us, to help them by calling NHS 111 first, for advice on non-life-threatening concerns, before attending the emergency department.”

Statistics for Chesterfield

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On Tuesday, there were 27 patients with coronavirus at Chesterfield Royal Hospital.

Government data shows 18 people went into the Royal with coronavirus between December 6 and December 12 – a decrease of 21.7 per cent compared to the previous seven days.

The data also shows 526 people in Chesterfield had a confirmed positive test result for coronavirus between December 11 and December 17 – an increase of 9.8 per cent compared to the previous seven days.

There was one death in Chesterfield within 28 days of a positive test for coronavirus reported on December 17.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

More than 25 million people have now received a booster jab in the UK.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: “One thing is absolutely clear – we have no time to waste in the race between virus and the vaccine.

“Booster jabs are absolutely critical for strengthening our defences, and the milestone of 25 million top-up jabs is a testament to the enthusiasm of people up and down the country who are rolling up their sleeves to get boosted now.”

Vaccines Minister Maggie Throup added: “There is a real sense of public spirit, with everyone playing their part to protect themselves and their loved ones.

“Please, keep coming forward for your jabs.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It is one of the single most important thing you can do this winter.”

Support your Derbyshire Times by becoming a digital subscriber. You will see 70 per cent fewer ads on stories, meaning faster load times and an overall enhanced user experience. Visit www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/subscriptions