PERH director Agris Peedu told ERR Wednesday that: "The closure was a purely economic decision, as we saw that so coronavirus patient numbers were not being maintained. We closed the ward so as to avoid having empty beds and unnecessarily divert staff from other work."

These staff have gone back to their respective departments, namely cardiology, neurology and general department, ERR reports. The other coronavirus ward at PERH is still active.

At the same time, since staff have had the requisite training since the spring COVID-19 wave, PERH can reactivate the ward and its beds rapidly if the viral situation requires it.

PERH sees patients who present with coronavirus symptoms or who have contracted the virus at ER in the first instance, quickly triaging them and referring them to another department depending on their situation.

The most serious cases are transferred to intensive care, which has 17 places – seven of which are currently occupied (with five of these patients on ventilators).

Psychiatric patients who have contracted COVID-19 are meanwhile assigned to another department, with eight out of 28 spaces taken at the time of writing.

The closed ward had 17 beds, while the ward which continues to operate hosts 26, 21 of which are occupied, at the time of writing.

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