Just one of 53 pregnant women admitted to ICU with Covid was vaccinated

The report from the National Office of Clinical Audit (NOCA) confirmed that all pregnant or recently pregnant women admitted to ICUs with coronavirus had survived, to date. File photo

A total of 53 pregnant or recently pregnant women have been admitted to intensive care units with Covid-19 since the pandemic began, but more than half of these were in the last three months and only one woman was vaccinated.

The figures are contained in the National Office of Clinical Audit (NOCA) report on hospital ICU activity during the pandemic. The report states: “53 patients who were pregnant or recently pregnant were admitted to ICU with Covid-19 up to October 31, 2021. 58% of these admissions were since August  2021. Only one patient was fully vaccinated. All have survived to date (October 31, 2021).” 

The report also shows between May 27 last year and the end of October 2021, eight children under the age of nine were admitted to ICU for Covid-related reasons. Nineteen patients aged between 10-19 were admitted to ICU because of Covid.

Regarding vaccination status overall in ICUs, the report states: “An unvaccinated person was much more likely to be admitted to ICU with Covid-19 than a vaccinated person.

“Unvaccinated patients continue to make up the majority of patients admitted to ICU with Covid-19 each month but this has declined from a high of 75% in June 2021 to 51% in October 2021 as more of the population has been vaccinated.” 

NOCA found these vaccinated patients tended to be “older and had pre-existing medical conditions”, and this likely contributed to their condition.

Professor Rory Dwyer, Clinical Lead for the Irish National ICU Audit (INICUA) and ICU-Bed Information System (ICU-BIS) said the report shows how “dedicated and professional staff” adapted to the pandemic to save lives.

“ICU beds were found for those who needed them, despite unprecedented levels of demand. Outcomes compared well with international comparators,” Prof. Dwyer said.

“At-risk groups were identified leading to initiatives to protect these cohorts. Lessons from the report will guide responses to pandemics or major incidents in the future.” 

The number of ICU beds increased from 256 in March last year, to 348 now, the report states. The report found that 48% of Covid ICU patients were aged between 60 and 79, with those aged 60 to 69 making up 26% of cases.

In a sign of how devastating the virus is, NOCA found Covid patients “spent a greater proportion of their time in ICU undergoing ventilation than did non-Covid-19 patients.” 

“The fact that a single disease accounted for 22% of bed-days over a 16-month period indicates the impact Covid-19 had,” the report found.

NOCA also compared mortality rates in Irish ICUs with those in the North and the rest of the UK. They found lower mortality in Ireland between March and July last year, increasing to similar levels between November and June this year.

The analysis found patterns of admissions, interventions and outcomes in the North “closely paralleled” those in the Republic of Ireland rather than the UK.

Outbreaks

Meanwhile, data on Covid-19 outbreaks in Ireland shows six nursing homes and five schools among the new outbreaks reported. The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) data shows, however, fewer outbreaks in total were reported last week at 128 compared to 165 the week before.

The HPSC said: “There were five new outbreaks reported in schools with 32 confirmed linked cases, four in primary schools, and one in a post-primary school. One outbreak was reported in childcare facilities with two confirmed linked cases.” 

Other outbreaks were reported in workplaces, pubs, hotels and three linked to travel from Portugal and Spain. Private homes accounted for 43 outbreaks.