Rise in deaths after respiratory diagnoses in Irish hospitals 'directly attributed' to Covid-19

National Audit of Hospital Mortality found there was a rise in the mortality rate in those respiratory diagnoses, particularly for pneumonia. This was directly linked to the arrival of the pandemic in Ireland in early 2020. File picture

While there was a reduction in the number of cases admitted for in-hospital treatment in acute hospitals in 2020 when compared with 2019, Covid-19 contributed to a rising mortality rate for those with respiratory diagnoses, according to a new report.

The rise in the crude mortality rate — which measures the total number of deaths in a specific setting, in this case acute hospitals — was “directly attributed to Covid-19”, according to the National Office of Clinical Audit.