ST HELENS and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has launched a dedicated coronavirus helpline.

The trust, which runs Whiston Hospital, St Helens Hospital and Newton Community Hospital, launched the helpline on Tuesday.

The helpline is open to any patient, family member, member of staff or a health professional looking for healthcare advice or guidance regarding COVID-19.

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The helpline is open Monday to Friday between the hours of 9am and 5pm.

The launch of the dedicated helpline comes as NHS England revealed the trust had registered its first coronavirus-related deaths.

These patients passed away on March 22, 27 and 28.

Today (Wednesday), the latest figures have shown that two more patients died on March 28 while one died the following day on March 29.

Their families have been informed.

Across England, a further 486 people who tested positive for COVID-19 have died, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths to 2,137.

The daily update comprises of the number of deaths reported and verified by trusts in England in the 24 hours prior to 5pm the previous day.

Confirmed cases of coronavirus in St Helens and Knowsley has continued to rise over the past fortnight, however this does not account for those who have shown mild symptoms and are self-isolating at home.

Across the UK, as of 9am on April 1, 29,474 tested positive for coronavirus.

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As of 5pm on March 31, of those treated in hospital in the UK who tested positive for coronavirus, 2,352 had died, according Department for Health and Social Care.

This is an increase of 563 from the 1,789 deaths reported the day before and is the biggest single daily increase so far.

If you are a patient, member of staff, or family member with a COVID-19-related enquiry, call St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s coronavirus helpline on 0151 676 5530.