60 coronavirus deaths reported in Bristol care homes over two-week period

SIXTY people died with COVID-19 in Bristol’s care homes in the space of a fortnight this month.

Figures from the Care Quality Commission, which regulates the country’s care homes, have been published for the first time today by the Office for National Statistics.

They cover the two weeks from April 10 to 24 and show that 60 of the 102 deaths reported to the CQC from care homes in Bristol involved coronavirus.

The CQC figures do not name individual homes but break the reports down by day and show that, on April 14 alone, 11 care home residents died with COVID-19 in the city.

In neighbouring South Gloucestershire, 15 deaths with COVID-19 were reported in care homes over the same two-week period.

The ONS also publishes figures for all deaths registered in England and Wales each week: today’s figures cover the week ending on April 17, when 22,351 deaths were recorded – the highest weekly total since 1993.

The number of deaths rose by 3,835 compared with the previous week’s total of 18,516 and was more than double the average weekly total for the time of year over the past five years, which was 10,497.

A total of 8,758 deaths – almost four out of every ten – registered in the week to April 17 mentioned COVID-19.

The ONS figures show that in the year to April 17, 99 of the 1,239 deaths of Bristol residents registered have mentioned COVID-19 (8%) but the percentage rose to 25.5% (37 out of 145) in the latest weekly figures.

Among South Gloucestershire residents, 72 out of 847 deaths registered this year have mentioned COVID-19 (8.5%); in the latest weekly figures the percentage rose to 23.8% (20 out of 84).

There are differences between the numbers notified to the CQC and registered deaths: while the CQC reported 28 deaths from COVID-19 in care homes from April 11 to 17, the ONS registered death figures show 19 in care homes over the same period, out of a total of 37: of the rest, 15 were in hospital, one at home and two in hospices and other establishments.

This may be due to differences in the time and the way deaths are reported to the CQC and ONS.

The BBC reported today that the overall number of people dying in UK care homes is now three times higher than it was before the start of the coronavirus outbreak, with less than half of the extra deaths attributed to coronavirus.

It indicates that people are dying from other conditions after missing out on hospital care due to the strain the pandemic is placing on the NHS.

Figures for COVID-19 deaths in NHS hospitals are updated every day. As of yesterday afternoon, 75 people had died in North Bristol NHS Trust hospitals and 70 in those run by University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Bristol stood at 576 as of last night; in South Gloucestershire it was 333.