In December 2020, for every 1000 cases of COVID-19 in Northern Ireland, around 80 were admitted to hospital, while currently, the figure for hospitalisations is in the region of 20 per 1000 cases.

These figures are "a stark illustration of vaccine effectiveness", the Department for Health (DfH) has said.

According to DfH, getting vaccinated reduces your likelihood of getting Covid and of passing it on to other people.

Most crucially, it dramatically reduces your likelihood of becoming seriously ill and dying.

The DfH continued: "The latest data from our hospitals continues to bear this out in frank terms.

"Of those in ICU wards with Covid, 72% are unvaccinated, 8% have had one dose and 20% have had two doses.

"Unvaccinated people make up less than 12% of our adult population – yet account for 72% of people in ICU.

"Adults who have not had two vaccine doses are more than 5 times as likely to be admitted to hospital, and around 10 times more likely to be admitted to ICU, compared with fully vaccinated adults.

"It was always anticipated that a small minority of vaccinated people would still get seriously ill with the virus.

"No vaccine in history has ever been 100% effective for 100% of people. This underlines the fact that we must all remain vigilant against Covid and not rely just on the vaccine to protect us. Testing, self-isolation, social distancing, face covering, good ventilation and avoiding crowded indoor settings – these all play a vital part in keeping us safe."