Fiji

Fiji records 11 Leptospirosis-related deaths

The Ministry of Health said 11 people died after contracting leptospirosis and the eldest fatality is that of a 56-year-old.

Permanent Secretary, Dr James Fong said more people are being admitted to hospitals in the Western Division and the Intensive Care Unit at Lautoka Hospital for leptospirosis.

“Since January, there have been 74 confirmed cases, and the Ministry says there are many more who have been clinically diagnosed.”

“The three divisional hospitals in the Western Division have reported 28 admissions, with 19 in Lautoka Hospital alone.”

Leptospirosis cases emerge following flooding in Fiji

Fiji Medical Association president, Dr Basharat Munshi issued the statement following reports of Leptospirosis in the Western Division.

“It’s an occupation hazard for farmers, dairy workers and abattoir workers so if you’re a farmer, please wear gumboots and gloves where necessary and plus if you have any cuts and scratches to cover them up when you go out into the fields.”

Dr. Munshi said climate-sensitive diseases such as Leptospirosis, dengue and typhoid were prevalent during periods of heavy rain and flooding.

38 children diagnosed with cancer during Covid-19 pandemic

WOWS Kids Fiji reported that 25 deaths were recorded in 2020 and 13 last year.

Team Leader Mere William said the number of cases that they deal with has increased.

“We are on 74. Last year we went as, the highest was 80, for us last year, it was actually busy for us during the lockdown, we had many new cases that came, so some have passed on in the up until from November, December, January, we have lost some”.

Despite the restrictions brought by the pandemic, WOWS Kids Fiji continued to provide services.

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Minister clarifies Fiji’s tsunami system

He said that is the reason the tsunami warning was late on 15 January following the volcanic eruption in Tonga.

Usamate reassured that the Seismology Unit in the country monitors the likelihood of tsunamis every 24 hours.

He added that this month alone 70 earthquake activity was picked up by the unit, with 13 of those occurring locally.

“So because the whole system was oriented towards earthquakes when they had this volcanic activity that might lead to tsunami, they did not have the parameters to measure that this volcano leads to tsunami.”

Fiji has recorded two new Covid-19 related deaths

A 75-year-old man with pre-existing medical condition died at the Colonial War Memorial Hospital in Suva on the first of this month.

The Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Doctor James Fong said the man was not fully vaccinated as he had only received one dose of the vaccine.

The other death is that of a 64-year-old man from the Central Division with a significant pre-existing medical condition.

He was admitted to the CWM Hospital on the third of this month and passed away a day later. He had only received the first dose of the vaccine.

Fiji lifts national curfew

Acting Prime Minister, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum announced the change yesterday afternoon.

Sayed-Khaiyum said the curfew was implemented to prevent non-essential gatherings that can spread Covid-19 and allow for contact tracing at certain hours of the evening.

He said in some ways it served as a national barometer of progress towards normalcy.

Saiyed-Khaiyum also announced the changes in some of the health measures that have come into effect today.

Even though the curfew is removed, nightclubs will not be allowed to operate.

6-month-old infant is Fiji’s latest victim to die of Covid-19

The baby was admitted at the CWM Hospital in Suva and her medical records reflected that she had a congenital medical condition that contributed to the severity of her illness and death on Monday.

All eight deceased were from the Central Division.

809 people have died due to COVID-19 in Fiji so far.

The Ministry of Health also recorded 95 new cases of which 83 are from n Tuesday and 12 new cases in the last 24 hours ending at 8 am yesterday.

Fijians urged to get vaccinated to reduce Covid-19 transmission

The Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. James Fong is urging all Fijians who are eligible to get vaccinated or take their booster shots.

Dr. Fong highlighted that the analysis of the first 95 deaths in the vaccine eligible population during this third wave has revealed that fully vaccinated adults have 16.2 times lower rate of death from Covid-19 than unvaccinated adults.

Three more children among 12 Covid deaths in Fiji

This takes the death toll since the pandemic hit the country in 2020 to 791.

Fiji's Government also confirmed on Wednesday the 10 day-old infant, 8 year-old girl and 13 year-old boy are among 12 Covid-19 patients who died.

There are 223 new cases in the community, with a total of 1,980 patients in isolation.

Health Secretary Dr James Fong said all three children were from the Northern Division.

He said the baby had passed away at home before she could be taken to the hospital.

Fiji will not lift Covid-19 restrictions - MOH

This comes amid 16 deaths and close to 350 new cases reported in the community last weekend.

Fiji's Health Secretary Dr James Fong says the spike in cases was experienced after a few health measures were relaxed in November last year.

"Our biggest worry remains compliance to the informal setting, especially among the informal dwellings where we may have some problem with providing oversight over the Covid-safe measures.

"They remain the most significant areas of risk and the most significant areas of transmission that can happen," Dr Fong said