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Coronavirus: UK deaths rise to 2,352 amid rush to test medics Coronavirus: UK deaths rise to 2,352 amid rush to test medics
(31 minutes later)
A further 563 patients with coronavirus have died in the UK, taking the total number of deaths in hospitals to 2,352.A further 563 patients with coronavirus have died in the UK, taking the total number of deaths in hospitals to 2,352.
The Department of Health said 29,474 people have tested positive for the virus, up 4,324 since Tuesday.The Department of Health said 29,474 people have tested positive for the virus, up 4,324 since Tuesday.
It comes as No 10 confirmed more than 2,000 NHS frontline staff in England have been tested for coronavirus since the outbreak began.It comes as No 10 confirmed more than 2,000 NHS frontline staff in England have been tested for coronavirus since the outbreak began.
Hundreds have been screened since the weekend in a push to get healthy self-isolating medics back to work.Hundreds have been screened since the weekend in a push to get healthy self-isolating medics back to work.
Cabinet minister Michael Gove said a shortage of chemicals needed for the tests meant the NHS - which employs 1.2m in England - could not screen its staff for the virus.Cabinet minister Michael Gove said a shortage of chemicals needed for the tests meant the NHS - which employs 1.2m in England - could not screen its staff for the virus.
No 10 said test capacity will increase with an additional network of labs and testing sites.No 10 said test capacity will increase with an additional network of labs and testing sites.
The PM's official spokesman said the government was "working with NHS England, Public Health England and others to ensure that happens".The PM's official spokesman said the government was "working with NHS England, Public Health England and others to ensure that happens".
The latest increase in the number of people who have died relates to the 24 hours up to 17:00 BST on Tuesday.The latest increase in the number of people who have died relates to the 24 hours up to 17:00 BST on Tuesday.
The BBC's head of statistics Robert Cuffe said the latest increases in the number of patients dying with coronavirus balance out with the below-average rises seen on Sunday and Monday. Have things got worse?
Just yesterday health officials were talking about "green shoots" amid signs the virus maybe plateauing.
Yet today we have seen a big rise in deaths. Have things got worse?
Not necessarily. We know the number of deaths are going to go up - that is to be expected.
What matters is the trend over a few days - not what happens over the course of 24 hours.
Any signs of progress will be seen in the number of cases first.
For the past five days the new cases has been hovering between 2,500 and 3,000 each day.
Now it has gone up by 4,300. That is a substantial rise, but over the course of the past week the trajectory has still slowed from what it had been.
All eyes will be on what happens in the next few days to see if the hope of a slow down was misplaced.
Read more from Nick on how to understand the coronavirus death toll.
The BBC's head of statistics Robert Cuffe said the latest increases in the number of patients dying with coronavirus balance out with the below-average rises on Sunday and Monday.
"On average, over the last week, the number of new deaths has been growing just below a quarter every day - or doubling twice in a week," he said."On average, over the last week, the number of new deaths has been growing just below a quarter every day - or doubling twice in a week," he said.
"That's slightly slower than earlier in the epidemic but if that keeps up, we'd expect to see in the region of a thousand deaths a day by the weekend. "That's slightly slower than earlier in the epidemic but if that keeps up, we'd expect to see in the region of a thousand deaths a day by the weekend."
"The scientific community is still warning that it takes time for the effect of measures like social distancing to feed through into the numbers on death. On average, those who died in the last few days were infected before the lockdown began." Meanwhile, Downing Street said 390 million pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) including masks, alcohol wipes and aprons, have been delivered to NHS staff over the last two weeks.
The prime minister's official spokesperson said the government was working with a number of suppliers which had come forward with offers of PPE, or proposals to manufacture more.
It follows criticism from some frontline workers over the lack of protective equipment, with staff at one hospital in Essex warning they could "limit services" to patients with coronavirus "to a bare minimum" over fears for their own safety.
In other developments:
Do you work in the NHS? Have you been tested? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.Do you work in the NHS? Have you been tested? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
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