Recently, the RIVM has been receiving weekly data on the number of people admitted to the Intensive Care due to a respiratory infection. This is an important expansion of the surveillance of respiratory infections in the Netherlands. It provides better insight into respiratory infections that are severe.
A respiratory infection usually resolves on its own, but for some people it can be so severe that hospitalization is necessary. During the coronavirus pandemic, the number of people with a severe respiratory infection was so large that hospitals became overwhelmed. Also, during the annual flu epidemic, the pressure on hospitals can be significant. The RIVM sometimes receives signals about this from hospitals, but there are no concrete and reliable figures at the national level.
Timely data on the number of people admitted to the hospital due to a respiratory infection is important to have a good view of both the spread and severity of respiratory infections. This data can help in deciding to take measures to limit the spread of infections and thus reduce pressure on hospitals if necessary.
Data on Admissions to the Intensive Care
At the RIVM, we monitor respiratory infections by collecting, analyzing, and interpreting trends in various data. This is called surveillance. Through Infectieradar (external link), we know what kind of symptoms people have, for example. From general practitioners (external link), we hear how many people with respiratory complaints come to them. However, we do not know how many people become so ill from a respiratory infection that hospitalization is necessary. Recently, the RIVM has been receiving weekly figures on the number of people admitted to the Intensive Care due to a respiratory infection.
The data is collected by the National Intensive Care Evaluation Foundation (NICE), in collaboration with the Dutch Association for Intensive Care (NVIC National Poisoning Information Center (UMC Utrecht) (National Poisoning Information Center (UMC Utrecht))) and the participating Intensive Cares. Starting from September 3, 2025, the RIVM will publish these figures weekly on its website, along with other data on the current situation of respiratory infections in the Netherlands.
Data on Admissions to Wards
Only the most severely ill patients due to a respiratory infection are admitted to the Intensive Care. It is also important to know how many people are admitted to a ward due to a respiratory infection. For this, we work together with Dutch hospitals and Dutch Hospital Data (DHD). These data are currently not available.