Fiji has recorded 398 new cases of COVID-19 and five new deaths Thursday, increasing the total number of cases to 38,742 and 343 deaths since the outbreak in April.
Permanent secretary for Health, Dr James Fong said 254 cases are from the Western division and 144 cases are from the Central division in Vitilevu, Fiji’s main island.
“There have been 703 new recoveries reported since the last update, which means that there are now 23,981 active cases. 17,999 active cases are in the Central Division and 5,982 active cases in the Western division.
“There have been 38,742 cases during the outbreak that started in April 2021. We have recorded a total of 38,812 cases in Fiji since the first case was reported in March 2020, with 14,301 recoveries,” Dr Fong said.
He said the five new COVID-19 deaths reported for the period of 10 – 12 August. Three deaths were reported from the Central Division and two deaths were reported from the Western division.
“The first COVID-19 death to report is a 91-year-old woman from Navua who died at home on the 10/08/2021. She was not vaccinated.
“The second COVID-19 death to report is an 86-year-old woman from Rakiraki. She was declared dead on arrival by the attending medical officer at the Rakiraki Hospital on 10/08/2021. This means that she died at home or on her way to the hospital. She was not vaccinated.
“The third COVID-19 death to report is a 30-year-old man from Ba. He was declared dead on arrival by the attending medical officer at the Ba Mission Hospital on 10/08/2021. This means that he died at home or on his way to the hospital. He was not vaccinated.
“The fourth COVID-19 death to report is a 71-year-old man from Naitasiri who died at home on the 11/08/2021. His family reported that he had a cough and fever two days prior. He was not vaccinated.
“The fifth COVID-19 death to report is a 76-year-old man from Naitaisiri who died at home on the 12/08/2021. He was not vaccinated,” said Dr Fong.
He said there have been eight more deaths of COVID-19 positive patients.
“However, these deaths have been classified as non-COVID deaths by their doctors. Doctors have determined that their deaths were caused by serious pre-existing medical conditions and not COVID-19.
“There have now been 345 deaths due to COVID-19 in Fiji, with 343 of these deaths during the outbreak that started in April this year. The national seven-day rolling average of COVID-19 deaths per day is 9. The seven-day rolling average of COVID-19 deaths per day in the Central division is 6 deaths and the Western division is three deaths.
“We also have recorded 185 COVID-19 positive patients who died from the serious medical conditions that they had before they contracted COVID-19; these are not classified as COVID-19 deaths,” Dr Fong said.
To date no one in Fiji has died due to COVID-19 after they have been fully-vaccinated, he said.
Dr Fong said there are currently 291 COVID-19 patients admitted to hospitals in Fiji.
“72 patients are admitted to the Lautoka Hospital, 60 patients are admitted at the FEMAT field hospital, and 159 admitted at CWM hospital, St Giles, and Makoi. 67 patients are considered to be in severe condition, and 14 are in critical condition.
“The seven-day daily test average is 1968 tests per day or 2.2 tests per 1,000 population. The national 7-day average daily test positivity is 34.5%.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health has released a list of “priority groups” for the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine for Viti Levu effective Thursday.
The groups include:
*pregnant women
*individuals aged 60 years and above
*persons with comorbid issues such as hypertension, asthma, chronic lung disease, cardiac disease, severe obesity, diabetes, liver disease;
*persons with Rheumatic Heart Disease; and
*Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and persons with disability.
The ministry has stated that individuals receiving the Moderna vaccine must present antenatal care clinic cards, Special Out-Patient Department (SOPD) clinic cards or medical report/certificate to prove the medical condition at the vaccination centre before getting vaccinated.
As of 11 August 528,706 adults in Fiji have received their first dose of the vaccine and 202,334 have received their second doses. This means that 90.1% of the target population have received at least one dose and 34.5% are now fully vaccinated nationwide.
SOURCE: PACNEWS
