TWO MORE people in Ireland have died as a result of contracting coronavirus.
The Department of Health have confirmed that two more people, both men who were being treated in the east of the country, sadly passed away yesterday, 23 March.
Their passing brings the Republic's death toll to 6.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre also announced yesterday that in 24 hours, 219 new cases of Covid-19 were confirmed in the Republic.
There are now 1,125 cases in the Republic of Ireland.
The HSE is working rapidly to identify any close contacts the newly confirmed cases may have had, in order to advise them and prevent any further spread of the virus.
Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said:
"We understand the anxiety this outbreak may be causing people. All aspects of our public health advice are constantly reviewed by the National Public Health Emergency Team and we will not hesitate to take more measures where necessary, based on epidemiological evidence and in proportion with Ireland’s experience of this outbreak.
"The National Public Health Emergency Team will meet again tomorrow morning, where we will continue to review Ireland’s response and make further recommendations where appropriate."
Dr. Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health said:
"The key response that every individual can make if they are experiencing symptoms is to self isolate. While we continue to increase testing in Ireland, in line with WHO guidelines, the most important action that can be taken against this virus is isolation and social distancing.”
The Department of Health have released the results of research which has revealed that 93% of the population are washing their hands more often as a result of the spread of Coronavirus.
The study, which was conducted on behalf of the department, saw 1,270 adults questioned about their knowledge of Covid-19, and revealed that:
88% of those say they are staying at home rather than going out; 84% are practising social distancing in queues; 71% are sitting further apart from others; 75% are confident they would know what steps to take if they developed symptoms, and; 90% know that the two most common symptoms are a fever or cough.
