Coronavirus: Shelby County reports nearly 800 new cases and 8 related deaths
Christ Community Health Services staff members collect nasal swabs at a drive-thru coronavirus testing site in October on Lamar Avenue. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian file)
The Shelby County Health Department reported 778 coronavirus cases and eight new related deaths on Monday, Dec. 21.
The 778 cases come from 6,934 tests, giving the day a positivity rate of 11.2%.
(Courtesy: Shelby County Health Department)
Shelby County’s reported coronavirus total is now 61,429 cases, including 6,432 active cases, 54,179 inactive cases and 818 deaths.
Hospital capacity information for Saturday and Sunday was not available on Monday morning. A Health Department spokesperson said the figures were still being collected, but hoped that the agency would be able to provide the rest later today.
As of 5 p.m. Friday, there were 16 area intensive care unit beds and 123 area acute care beds available, according to the Tennessee Healthcare Resource Tracking System.
The bed count is the total number of beds, minus those unavailable because they are occupied by patients, unstaffed, or otherwise unavailable based on resources.
According to the HRTS, 96% of area ICU beds and 95% of area acute care beds were in use.
About 39% of area ICU patients were either COVID-positive (161) or suspected of having coronavirus (3). About 20% of area acute care patients were either COVID-positive (394) or suspected of having coronavirus (52).
The figures above include all hospital facilities in Shelby, Tipton and Lauderdale counties in Tennessee; Crittenden County, Arkansas; and DeSoto County, Mississippi.
Tennessee’s Department of Health reports new coronavirus figures at 2 p.m. daily.
As of Sunday, the agency reported 519,687 coronavirus cases, including 6,071 deaths, 2,789 current hospitalizations and 434,977 inactive cases (recoveries).
About 5.3 million coronavirus tests have been performed in Tennessee.
Topics
coronavirus Shelby County Health Department Tennessee Department of Health Tennessee Healthcare Resource Tracking SystemElle Perry
A native Memphian, Elle Perry has earned graduate degrees from the University of Memphis and Maryland Institute College of Art. She’s written for publications including the Memphis Business Journal, Memphis Flyer and High Ground News, and previously served as coordinator of The Teen Appeal.
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