THE number of people admitted to hospital with coronavirus in Dorset has remained much the same over the last month, latest figures show.

There were 38 people admitted to hospitals in the county in the seven days up to September 19 - up from 32 the previous week, but down from 49 in the week to September 5. .

In Bournemouth and Poole, 26 people were admitted to University Hospitals Dorset Trust between September 13 and September 19.

A further 10 people were also admitted to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester in the same week.

Meanwhile, figures show just two patients were admitted to the Dorset Healthcare Trust (DHT) during the same one-week period.

As of September 21, there were 20 people occupying a hospital bed with the virus in University Hospitals Dorset - down from 36 this time last month.

There were five patients at Dorset County Hospital occupying a bed and one person at DHT.

Across England, 5,543 people were occupying a hospital bed with coronavirus and 416 in the south west.

Of people needing mechanical ventilation, four patients at the University Hospitals Dorset Trust required a ventilator, three people required a ventilator at Dorset County Hospital and no patients at the DHT needed mechanical ventilation.

Across England, 774 patients needed a ventilator and 56 people in the south west with coronavirus required a ventilator.

As part of its weekly update, Public Health Dorset said: "Our local case rates are above the South West average but remain below the England average. In line with the decrease in case rates in recent weeks, we've also seen COVID-related hospital admissions start to fall. There are currently 26 people in hospital with COVID-19 in Dorset.”