The city region’s hospitals saw 56 deaths of people with Covid-19 over the past week as the second wave continued to engulf Merseyside.
Figures released by the NHS on Friday showed deaths in city region hospitals rose by a third during the seven days up to October 15 compared with the previous week, when the region saw 41 deaths.
The rise in deaths came as cases of Covid-19 and hospitalisations continued to rise across the region, stretching some hospitals to capacity.
Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the Royal, Aintree and Broadgreen hospitals, recorded 25 deaths during the week, up from 18 the week before.
The week also saw the trust’s critical care beds reach 90% capacity while medical director Dr Tristan Cope described the situation as “the worst I have seen in all my years as a doctor”.
The figures released on Friday do not reflect the full picture, as they only include deaths in hospital where the patient had tested positive for Covid-19. Deaths in care homes or at patients’ own homes are not included.
At Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust, there were 10 deaths during the week, up from just five the previous week while Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, which manages Arrowe Park, Clatterbridge and the Wirral Women and Children’s Hospitals, recorded seven deaths.
St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals Trust was the only trust to see a small decrease in the number of deaths, from nine to seven, but the more recent figures could still be revised upwards.
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Earlier in the week, the trust revealed it had more than 90 covid-positive patients on its wards and had stepped up the covid wards it had decommissioned during the summer.
Medical Director Rowan Pritchard Jones warned that the trust could defer routine appointments if the coronavirus situation continued to deteriorate.
At Warrington and Halton hospitals, there were seven deaths, up from five the previous week, while the number of covid-positive patients in the two hospitals rose by 50%.
