DALLAS — There are a lot of numbers mentioned in relation to the novel coronavirus and it can be confusing to know which ones to pay attention to. However, some of those numbers help outline noticeable trends happening in North Texas.
Two factors that matter when tracking the spread of COVID-19 are new reported cases and total hospitalizations.
The number of new cases makes it easier to see if there is a spike, flattening or drop for a certain period of time.
The total number of people in our hospitals is key to opening back up, as local leaders make sure hospitals can handle the demand for beds because of the virus.
Collin County and Tarrant County hospitalizations
Other than two days in early April when 30 people were in the hospital and a quick spike late April, Collin County has remained consistent with the number of people hospitalized.
Starting in mid-April, Tarrant County's line starts to progressively go up, which includes 34 new patients hospitalized on Thursday, May 14.
Dallas County's positive COVID-19 cases
While Dallas saw a spike going into May, the county has started to see a "flattening of the curve" health officials frequently talk about.
However, phase 1 of reopening happened May 1, so Dallas County would likely see if that has any impact in the next week.
Denton County's positive COVID-19 cases, 14-day moving average
The dotted line in this graph is the 14-day moving average. It is one of the most significant benchmarks in President Trump's guidelines for reopening the country, and therefore one of the things we - and everyone else - has to try and assess.
The county hit 40 cases on March 26 and 54 cases on March 28. Both days were connected to an outbreak at a living facility for people with disabilities.
Since that point, Denton County has had 30 or more new cases only three times. That is why the 14-day moving average starts declining in early April.
As another reopening phase begins Monday, gyms will be allowed to open with certain guidelines. So counties won't know until later this month if these trends will be impacted in any way.
More on WFAA:
- COVID-19 live updates: Dallas County on pace to have fewer deaths than last week
- MAP: These are the confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Dallas-Fort Worth area
- 'No decisions' made about whether Dallas students will go back to school in the fall
- Face mask rules are growing but enforcement proves to be a challenge