The number of people ill with the coronavirus continued to fall in Italy on Wednesday and the number of people to have recovered from COVID-19 in one day reached a record of almost 3,000, taking the total up to 54,543.
Figures presented by the Civil Protection Department showed that 107,699 people are currently infected in Italy, 10 fewer than Tuesday; it is the third straight day of falls.
More good news came from the nation's intensive care units, where the declining trend in the number of patients continued. There are now 2,384 people in ICUs, down 87 on Tuesday. Of the 107,699 infected people, 23,805 people are in hospital with symptoms, down 329 on the previous day.
The victims of the coronavirus climbed to 25,085, an increase of 437 in 24 hours.
The number of swabs taken in Italy went past 1.5 million, with an increase of 63,101 in one day.
The figure gave the experts, and the Italian people, cause for hope and they are now focused on the upcoming reopening of some activities. As of May 4, the manufacturing and construction sectors and some retail businesses could reopen, Premier Giuseppe Conte said in a videoconference on phase two of the emergency with trade unions. He explained that the restrictive measures would be relaxed but "not in an indiscriminate way" as this "would be irresponsible".
Care at home is set to be crucial in phase two and it is necessary to boost this in to order to prevent hospitals and emergency rooms getting overloaded if epidemic hotbeds should reignite.
Around 500 doctors are working for the 'special units of care continuity' (USCA): small teams of medics and nurses who, equipped with all the necessary protective gear, follow suspected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 directly at home. Some 80,000 patients in 12 regions have been treated in this way.
Data di pubblicazione: 23 April 2020 , ultimo aggiornamento 23 April 2020
