Coronavirus: Survival rate of intensive care patients improving, data suggests

As hospitalisations and intensive care admissions surge around the country, new figures indicate coronavirus patients in critical care have a better survival rate now than when the pandemic first began.

The latest report from The Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (ICNARC) into critical care for England, Wales and Northern Ireland looks at patients admitted to intensive care up until 31 August and those admitted from 1 September.

The data shows that on average, 39% of critical care coronavirus patients died up until the end of August while less than 12% have died since September.

The proportion of patients who died after being admitted to critical care fell by almost a quarter from the peak and as much as half in hospitals overall.

However, the Dean of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, Dr Alison Pittard, told the BBC that the difference may be attributed to an insufficient amount of time having passed which impedes an accurate and longterm patient assessment, as some remain in hospital.

Meanwhile, scientific advisors continue to warn that the next few weeks are critical for regulating hospital admissions.

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Source: The Independent, 18 October 2020