PATIENTS are currently being treated for coronavirus at Dorset County Hospital as health services continue to respond to the pandemic. 

A spokeswoman for Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Dorchester confirmed that there are currently three Covid-19 positive inpatients. It is not known whether any of these are being cared for in intensive care.

The number of Covid-19 patients remains unchanged from last week.

The latest data from NHS England states that there have been no coronavirus related deaths for nearly five months within the Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

The last reported Covid-19 death was confirmed on Monday, May 25. 24 people have died as a result of coronavirus within the trust. 

South West has the least recorded coronavirus-related hospital deaths, with 1,292 recorded in the region since the start of the pandemic. This figure is less than half of the number seen in the second-least affected region.

Chief operating officer at Dorset County Hospital, Inese Robotham, previously thanked the public for their support during the pandemic, as non-coronavirus appointments and health services are increased.

Dorset Echo: NHS workers at Royal Liverpool University Hospital during the Clap for Carers

She said: “We have stringent infection control and social distancing measures in place at our hospital to keep the environment safe for our staff, patients and visitors.

“Our Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) stocks are good and our staff have timely access to Covid-19 tests should they start displaying Covid-19 symptoms.

“Wearing a face covering is mandatory at our hospital and anybody displaying symptoms or currently self-isolating should not be visiting the Trust.

“We have now restarted routine services that were paused during the first wave of the pandemic and continue to increase the number of non-Covid related appointments and operations.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank the public for their ongoing support and ask everybody to continue to practice good hand hygiene and adhere to social distancing measures to slow down the spread of the virus and keep our communities safe.”

The news comes as coronavirus cases within Dorset have been steadily rising in recent days. The rate of infection in Dorset now stands at 293.3 cases per 100,000 people.