Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says we know that if we simply stay isolated and not come into contact with another person, the COVID-19 virus would disappear after 14 days.
However he says unfortunately, we can’t do that, so we need to employ other effective preventative measures.
Doctor Fong says the most important among them are mask-wearing and social distancing.
He says it is distressing to see that after all these months, there are still people who refuse to accept and follow these simple measures.
Doctor Fong says yes, they are inconvenient, but they are necessary and they are effective.
He says if we all follow those practices, we can make great progress in stopping this virus.
The Permanent Secretary says we also know that testing is extremely useful in preventing the spread of the virus because it allows them to identify people who have the virus and isolate them appropriately.
The stationary screening and mobile screening clinics screened 18,611 people yesterday from which 2582 persons were swab tested.
He says that action has two purposes - it prevents positive patients from transmitting the virus to others, and it allows health care workers to observe them and provide medical attention when needed.
The Ministry urges everyone to cooperate with the surveillance teams and to agree to be screened and swabbed.
Doctor Fong says it could save your life and the lives of others, and you will be doing your part to keep Fiji safe.
Despite the recent development with the Incident Management Team, the team with the leadership of the Permanent Secretary remains fully engaged in spearheading and facilitating every aspect of the current whole of Government response to the outbreak in Fiji.
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