Another 30 Covid-19 linked deaths in latest weekly update in Northern Ireland

Thirty deaths linked to Covid-19 have been recorded in Northern Ireland in the latest weekly update.

The weekly toll is up two on the 28 deaths that occurred in the previous week, according to data compiled by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra).

The latest deaths, which occurred in the week ending April 1, take the total number of coronavirus-linked fatalities recorded by Nisra to 4,471.

The figure is drawn from different data sources and is always higher than the Department of Health’s total as it provides a broader picture of the impact of Covid-19.

On April 1, the department had reported 3,335 deaths.

The department’s statistics focus primarily on hospital deaths and only include people who have tested positive for the virus.

Nisra obtains its data from death certificates on which Covid-19 is recorded as a factor by a medical professional, regardless of where the death took place or whether the patient tested positive.

The statistics agency reports its Covid data with a week’s lag.

The Nisra figure includes 3,106 deaths in hospital, 963 in care homes, and 402 at residential addresses, hospices or other locations.

Nisra reported that up to April 1, the deaths of 1,262 care home residents were linked to Covid-19, 28.2% of all coronavirus-related deaths.

Covid-19 was also mentioned on the death certificate of 38 of the 339 deaths registered in the week to April 1.

Some of the deaths registered in the week ending April 1 could have taken place before that week as fatalities can take days to register.

Those aged 75 and over account for 73.7% of the Covid-related deaths registered between March 19 2020 and April 1 2022.