The increase in the incidence, also and especially in Hesse, is attracting more and more inpatient corona patients.

The clinics in Hessen are recording more Covid patients in normal and intensive care units.

Increasingly, Covid 19 sufferers also have to be ventilated.

This follows from figures from the Ministry of Social Affairs and the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (Divi).

Thorsten Winter

Business editor and internet coordinator in the Rhein-Main-Zeitung.

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There are currently 317 patients with confirmed Covid 19 infection in the hospitals in the normal ward, 71 suspected cases still exist. This is communicated by the Ministry of Social Affairs to the FAZ. Two weeks ago there were 237 corona patients and 54 suspected cases. 157 patients are in the Covid 19 intensive care unit after 99 before. 137 of these people are ventilated, 50 more than 14 days ago. According to Divi, 72 of the 137 have to be ventilated invasively, the others get additional oxygen in another way to support the lungs.

The increase in the number of sick people is particularly clear in a four-week comparison: A month ago, the ministry had reported 149 patients in normal wards, 66 in intensive care units and 50 ventilated patients.

As a result, there are now more than twice as many sick people in normal wards than four weeks ago.

The number of people ventilated has almost tripled.

Hospitalization incidence new guide value

There are currently 245 free intensive care beds after 255 two weeks ago, of which at least 41 intensive care beds would have to be kept available for Covid patients according to the prognosis and the specifications of the planning staff.

Meanwhile, the state of Hesse is aligning its corona policy to new values, with the conventional incidence, i.e. the positive tests among 100,000 inhabitants recorded within a week, takes a back seat. This happens regardless of the statement by the Frankfurt virologist Sandra Ciesek, according to which the incidence remains "the earliest parameter for assessing a pandemic", since experience has shown that increasing values ​​lead to more sick people in the clinics after a few weeks' delay.

The so-called hospitalization incidence is now new. The Ministry of Social Affairs shows this value for the first time this Friday. The hospitalization incidence indicates how many people per 100,000 population were admitted to hospital with Covid-19 in one week. Health Minister Kai Klose (The Greens) named the value 2.5 on Tuesday. If it rises above eight or if the number of intensive care patients is above 200, the first stage of the new escalation concept comes into effect. Then a test verification should only be possible by means of a PCR test and the 3-G rule should be expanded. Given the pace of the increase in the number of sick people in the clinics, this could soon be achieved. Stage two occurs when the guideline value increases to more than 15 or 400 Covid patients are in intensive care units.

The incidence has meanwhile dropped to a good 90 after more than 110 a week ago. However, all five major cities are still above the 100 mark.