Covid cases shoot up by 100 since start of the week, with 2 more patients dying

ANOTHER 100 people in East Staffordshire have been diagnosed with coronavirus since Monday.

There was also a rise in cases in South Derbyshire, where another 102 people tested positive.

A total of 1,940 people in East Staffordshire have had confirmed cases of Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. This stood at 1,840 on Monday.

The infection rate since the start of the pandemic now stands at 1,620 per 100,000 people in the borough. The population is around 118,000.

There have been two more deaths since Monday, so the total stands 146, at a rate of 121.9 in every 100,000 residents.

Across Staffordshire, the infection rate since the start of the pandemic is 1,641.8, with 14,441 cases in total - a rise of 956 since Monday There have been a total of 786 deaths in Staffordshire - 13 since Monday - meaning the county’s death rate is 89.4 per 100,000 people.

The daily national figure for new cases in the past 24 hours is 25,177. The number of deaths now stands at 47,742, up 889.

Meanwhile, it has emerged six NHS staff working in Staffordshire tested positive for coronavirus after car-sharing without wearing masks.

The employees, who all work for the University Hospitals of North Midlands Trust (UHNM) - which runs the Royal Stoke and Stafford’s County Hospital - are now having to self-isolate. Bosses have been forced to send out reminders to the 11,500-strong workforce reminding them of the importance of face coverings due to Covid-19.

The breach came to light after medical director John Oxtoby sent an email to staff on October 28, which was then leaked to The Guardian. UHNM would not say in which departments the six staff members worked, or whether it had had any impact on patient care.

Mr Oxtoby said: “We all obviously have a responsibility to observe national guidance and our staff are regularly kept up to date with the latest advice as it becomes available.

“Wearing a face mask and eye protection alongside hand washing and social distancing are all important measures of reducing the spread of Covid-19 in our hospitals and to keep our patients and communities safe.”