One million calls have now been made to close contacts of Covid-19 – HSE

One million phone calls to close contacts have been made over the past year. Stock image

Ciara O'Loughlin

March 17 2021 04:38 PM

One year on from the beginning of the pandemic and this St Patrick’s Day marks one million phone calls having been made by contract tracers to close contacts of Covid-19.

As of yesterday, there have been 227,663 cases of coronavirus in the Republic of Ireland.

Almost four million Covid-19 tests have also been completed in the state, according to HSE CEO Paul Reid.

Taking to Twitter today, Mr Reid wrote: “Today our contact tracers will make their 1 millionth call to advise close contacts. Now almost 4 million tests completed here.

"Contact tracing and public health management isn't always seen by everyone but a major part of our defences to date.”

Today our contact tracers will make their 1 millionth call to advise close contacts. Now almost 4 million tests completed here. Contact tracing and public health management isn't always seen by everyone but a major part of our defences to date. @HSELive #COVID19
— Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) March 17, 2021

The HSE contact tracing system works by asking those who have tested positive for their close contacts.

For those who have tested positive and have symptoms, the contact tracer will ask about people and places they have visited 48 hours before their symptoms started and until they started self-isolating.

For those who have tested positive and don’t have symptoms, the contact tracer will only ask about people and places they have visited 24 hours before their test took place and until they started self-isolating.

Contact tracing is confidential, so when a person has been deemed a close contact the HSE do not disclose who it was that tested positive.

Those who are deemed a close contact have to get tested for Covid-19 and restrict their movements.

The Department of Health confirmed yesterday 18 further coronavirus-related deaths and 349 more Covid-19 cases.

Seventeen of these deaths occurred in March, and one in February.

The median age of those who died was 78 years and the age range was 55 – 102 years.

This brings the total number of coronavirus-related deaths in the country to 4,552 and the total number of cases in the state to 227,663.

As of 8am yesterday, 355 Covid-19 patients are hospitalised, of which 88 are in ICU.

As of March 13, 615,934 doses of Covid-19 vaccine have been administered in Ireland. 451,589 people have received their first dose and 164,345 people have received their second dose.