More than 700,000 get first Covid-19 vaccine jab in Northern Ireland

More than 700,000 people in Northern Ireland have received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccines, the North's health department reported on Thursday.

The department reported that so far 703,334 have got their first jab of vaccine with 104,907 having got their second dose.

The department says it is on target to have vaccinated the entire Northern Ireland adult population of 1.4 million people by July.

For the second day in succession, the department, in its daily afternoon bulletin, reported no coronavirus deaths, leaving the death total at 2,107.

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There were 183 new confirmed cases of the virus, taking the total to 116,515.

Hospital bed occupancy is now at 100 per cent. There are 153 patients receiving Covid-19 treatment in Northern Ireland hospitals, with 14 in intensive care and 10 on ventilators.

First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill after a meeting of the Northern Executive on Thursday said they had agreed to introduce "managed isolation" for those arriving into Northern Ireland from Covid red-list countries.

Travellers will have to quarantine in a hotel for 10 days and also complete a pre-departure Covid test and take tests on arrival.

Ms Foster said there had been “improvements across all indicators” and that the R-rate for cases of the infection was currently estimated at between 0.75 and 0.95.

Ms O’Neill said the fact that no deaths were reported over Wednesday and Thursday was a “welcome sign we are continuing to move in the right direction”.

Meanwhile, Dr Laurence Dorman from the Royal College of GPs, said Northern Ireland was being confronted by a tidal wave of depression due to Covid.

He told the Assembly’s health committee on Thursday that eight or nine per cent of patients were contacting their doctors about mental health issues.

He said that the pandemic was “causing a tsunami” of depression and anxiety and societal stress. “Frequently GPs are the most available medical professionals available to our patients,” he said.

"Prescribing data in Northern Ireland shows we do have higher rates of anti-depression medication compared with Scotland and England, " added Dr Dorman.