Coronavirus figures in Wales to be published on a weekly basis

Coronavirus figures in Wales will no longer be reported on a daily basis.

Public Health Wales have confirmed today that from Thursday 26 May daily reporting will end, and a new look weekly dashboard will be published every Thursday at 12pm.

The new look Covid-19 surveillance dashboard will include the following information:

• Headline summary: Key headline figures for hospital admissions, deaths, PCR and LFD testing, and syndromic surveillance
• Hospitalisation: A summary of data relating to hospital admissions, sourced though ICNET
• Mortality surveillance: A summary of PHW rapid mortality, alongside mortality records from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
• PCR and LFD testing surveillance: A summary of PCR and LFD testing and trends.
• Variant Surveillance: A summary of cases reported in Wales by variant.
• Syndromic surveillance: A summary of NHS direct and 111 calls and GP consultation rate.
• Vaccinations: A summary of vaccination data.
• Reports and notes on interpretation: This will include links to other public reports published by Public Health Wales.

Figures had initially been reported on a daily basis since 2020.

However as Wales transitions from into learning to live with the virus, the reporting of figures initially stopped on the weekends and bank holidays.

With changes to the testing available to the general public, PHW say that covid surveillance will now focus on broader trends rather than daily figures.

Dr Meng Khaw, National Director for Health Protection and Screening Services at Public Health Wales said: “As we move away from the Covid-19 pandemic into a situation where the virus is an endemic respiratory virus, we need to bring our reporting in-line with normal arrangements.

“That means reporting weekly data, and not daily as we have been during the pandemic.

“Now that community testing has ended, we have also looked at what are the most useful signals for decision makers, the health service and the public.

“Therefore, going forwards our surveillance will focus on broader trends including hospitalisations, mortality, vaccinations, and Covid-19 reports to us from the health service (syndromic surveillance).

“We will stop publishing daily Coronavirus data on our social media channels, and people can visit our website directly to get the latest picture.

“We thank everyone who has looked at our data, or shared and commented on our social media posts over the last two years. We hope that people who have followed our reports will continue to do so into the future.”

If you develop a cough, fever or change in sense of taste or smell, the public health advice remains that you should self-isolate immediately in order to protect others, and get a Coronavirus test.

Since 1 April 2022, people in Wales can no longer order lateral flow tests (LFTs) unless they have symptoms, and all PCR testing sites for the general public have closed.

Members of the public are reminded that the single best thing they can do to protect themselves and the people around them from Covid-19 is to get vaccinated.