Kirklees hospital admissions and infections soar as residents encouraged to get boosters

People are being encouraged to get their booster jabs

During the past week, nearly 7,000 Kirklees residents tested positive for Covid-19 with the Omicron variant now accounting for nearly all cases.

The number of positive cases in Kirklees has risen by 94 per cent in a single week.

At the same time, admissions to local hospitals have risen to 68, an increase of 32 over the previous week.

Director of Public Health for Kirklees Council, Rachel Spencer-Henshall, said: “As we expected, Omicron has spread quickly through our community over the past few weeks. We now have more infections in Kirklees than at any other time in the pandemic. But this week’s data shows how effective the vaccines and boosters are at saving lives. Without high levels of vaccination, we would be looking at very different numbers of hospitalisations and deaths in Kirklees.

“It’s not too late to book your booster if you haven’t had one yet. And it’s not too late to book your first or second jab either. Just log on to the NHS website or call 119 to make your appointment. Or have a look at the council’s website to find details of local walk-in clinics where you won’t need to book.

“Despite the clear effectiveness of the vaccines, our health services are under immense pressure. Not only are they facing the kind of challenges you would expect in winter, but they are also caring for people with Omicron at the same time as dealing with staff shortages caused by the variant. It’s an extremely challenging time for our NHS colleagues and I want to thank them for their incredible efforts.

“The best thing you can do to support our health service is to get vaccinated and boosted. Vaccines are highly effective at protecting us from serious illness and needing hospital treatment. At a time when so many NHS staff are isolating due to Covid-19, you can play your part in protecting the NHS by booking your jab today.

“Getting tested regularly, wearing a mask in crowded indoor spaces and ventilating when mixing indoors are as important as ever in slowing the spread of this variant.”