High hospitalisation numbers across the South show the peak of the present Omicron wave has not passed, the health board says.
There were 888 new Covid-19 cases in the region yesterday and 39 people in hospital.
One of the country’s 14 deaths reported yesterday was in the South.
In its daily media update , the Southern District Health Board (SDHB) said the number of people in hospital remained high across the region because the virus had spread into the South’s older population.
Those over the age of 65 had a higher chance of complications as a result of infection and therefore faced a higher risk of needing hospital care, it said.
The health board asked anyone 65 years old, or older, to get a booster shot if they had not yet done so.
Further, an SDHB spokeswoman said yesterday’s dip in new case numbers should not be taken as an indication that the peak of the present wave had passed.
"There will need to be a consistent drop in cases over several days for us to be able to say, without doubt, that we are past the peak," she said.
"We are not in a position to do so yet.
"You’ll also see that our hospital numbers are still very high — another indicator that we can’t be past our peak."
Yesterday the Ministry of Health reported 8242 community cases nationally, 480 hospitalisations and 14 deaths.
The seven-day rolling average of case numbers was down to 7540 — a reduction from last Friday, when it was 8166, the ministry said.
The ministry called for people to remain vigilant, because there was ongoing community transmission across the country, it said.
Of the deaths reported yesterday, two were from Auckland, one from the Bay of Plenty, one from Waikato, one from Taranaki, one from Whanganui, one from Mid-Central, one from Wellington, five from Canterbury and there was the one death in the South.
One person was in their 50s, two were in their 70s, seven were in their 80s, and four were over 90 years old, it said.
Eight were women and six were men.
"Out of respect, we will be making no further comment," the ministry said.
