A further 44 people with COVID-19 have died in the Republic, the highest daily death toll recorded so far.

This brings the total number of COVID-related deaths here to 530.

The deaths involved 25 males and 19 females, and altogether, 25 were reported as having underlying health conditions.

Thirty-three of the deaths were located in the east, five in the west, three in the north west and three in the south.

Of the 530 deaths so far in Ireland, 58% have been male and 42% female. Those who have died have ranged in age from 23 to 105, although the median age has been 83.

Some 316 of these people had been admitted to hospital, with 45 admitted to ICU.

Meanwhile, a further 709 cases of the virus have been confirmed here, with 597 of these confirmed by Irish laboratories and 112 confirmed by a laboratory in Germany.

This brings the total number of cases here to 13,980.

Following a meeting of the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) on Friday, a number of decisions were made in relation to Ireland's response to COVID-19. These included:
-To expand testing capacity to 100,000 tests per week, operating on a seven-day week basis for a minimum of six months
-Over the next 7-10 days, the testing of staff and residents in all long-term residential care facilities is to be prioritised
-A census of mortality across all long-term residential care facilities is to be carried out this weekend to cover all deaths, COVID-19 and non-COVID-19, since January 1, 2020, regardless of where the death occurred.

According to the Department of Health's chief medical officer, Dr Tony Holohan, "the behaviour of the virus among vulnerable groups who live in these care settings continues to be a concern and this remains a priority for NPHET".

"While we are suppressing the disease among the general public, we cannot afford to become complacent. To remain safe from COVID-19 we need to continue to wash our hands thoroughly and regularly, cough into our elbows and practice social distancing. These simple measures can slow down the spread of this virus and save lives," he commented.

Meanwhile, the HSE's chief clinical officer, Dr Colm Henry, reminded people that COVID-19 is incurable.

"Each COVID-19 death reported is a tragedy. This is an incurable illness and while 80% of the population will experience a mild form of the disease, our older and more vulnerable people are at a much greater risk due to the behaviour of this disease within this group," he said.

COVID-19 is spread through close contact with an infected person's body fluids (e.g. droplets from coughing or sneezing), or by touching surfaces that an infected person has coughed or sneezed on. It can take up to 14 days for symptoms of the virus to show. These may include a fever, a persistent cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.

COVID-19 can also cause more severe illnesses, including pneumonia and severe breathing difficulties. Some 80% of cases will be mild to moderate, 14% will be more severe, while 6% will be critical.

Restrictions in relation to COVID-19 are now in place until May 5. As part of these restrictions, everybody is being asked to stay at home, except in specific circumstances. These include:
-Travelling to and from work in circumstances where the work is an essential health, social care or other essential service that cannot be done from home
-To shop for essential food and household goods
-To attend medical appointments
-For vital family reasons, such as caring for children or elderly people
-To take brief individual exercise within your locality, which may include children from your household, however this should be within 2km of your home.

All public and private gatherings of any number of people outside a single household or living unit are prohibited.

Those over the age of 70 and medically vulnerable people are also being cocooned. For more information on this, click here.

ALONE, the organisation that supports older people to age at home, is running a national support line for older people facing difficulties due to COVID-19. The support line is open every day from 8am to 8pm, call 0818 222 024.

For more information on COVID-19, click here.