Last Updated on 3 years by Publishing Team
Media Release
COVID-19 Daily Update
Sunday, 25th July 2021
Transmission Update
We have 626 new cases of COVID-19 to report for the 24 hour period that ended at 8am today. 79 cases are from the West and the rest are from the Central Division. A full breakdown of areas of interest will be published online tonight on the Ministry’s COVID-19 dashboard and on the Fijian Government Facebook page. You will also be able to view the approximate locations of the new cases on the dashboard tomorrow at the following link: http://bit.ly/3vE2ZBb.
We also have 9 new COVID-19 deaths to report for the period of 21st July to 25th July.
The first COVID-19 death to report is a 44 year old pregnant woman from Suva. She presented to a medical facility on the 16/07/2021 with shortness of breath and chest pain. She was retrieved by a medical team to the CWM hospital. She was assessed by specialists and her baby was safely delivered by emergency caesarean section on 18/07/2021. Sadly, her condition worsened and she died 5 days after admission on 21/07/2021. She was not vaccinated.
The second COVID-19 death to report is a 72 year old man from Muanikoso who died at home on 23/07/2021. He was not vaccinated.
The third COVID-19 death to report is a 50 year old man from Suva who died at home on 25/07/2021. He received his first dose of the vaccine in late May. He did not receive the second dose of the vaccine. This means that he was not fully vaccinated.
The fourth COVID-19 death to report is a 61 year old woman from Tacirua. She presented to a health facility in severe respiratory distress. A medical team retrieved her from the medical facility to CWM Hospital. Her condition worsened at the health facility and she died 11 days after admission on 24/07/2021. Her family reported that she had a cough, fever, shortness of breath and a reduced appetite one week prior. She was not vaccinated.
The fifth COVID-19 death to report is a 62 year old man from Suva who died at home on 24/07/2021. He was not vaccinated.
The sixth COVID-19 death to report is a 60 year old woman from Vatuwaqa who died at home on 24/07/2021. She was not vaccinated.
The seventh COVID-19 death to report is a 75 year old man from Nausori. He presented to a medical facility in severe respiratory distress. His condition worsened at the medical facility and he died on the same day 24/07/2021. He was not vaccinated.
The eight COVID-19 death to report is a 74 year old man from Nasova who died at home on 24/07/2021. He was not vaccinated.
The ninth COVID-19 death to report is a 53 year old man from Naitasiri who died at home on the 23/07/2021. He was not vaccinated.
There have been 7 more deaths of COVID-19 positive patients. However, their deaths have been classified as non-COVID deaths by their doctors. Doctors have determined that these deaths were caused by serious pre-existing medical conditions and not COVID-19.
There have now been 186 deaths due to COVID-19 in Fiji, with 184 of these deaths during the outbreak that started in April this year. We also have recorded 94 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.
There have been 242 new recoveries reported since the last update, which means that there are now 16,931 active cases. There have been 23,069 cases during the outbreak that started in April 2021. The Central Division reported a total of 21,207 cases, the Western Division reported a total of 1,845 cases, the Eastern Division reported a total of 12 cases and the Northern Division reported a total of 5 cases (all repatriated persons from Viti Levu) in supervised quarantine facilities) in this current outbreak. We have recorded a total of 23,139 cases in Fiji since the first case was reported in March 2020, with 5,928 recoveries.
Screening Update
A total of 3,087 individuals were screened and 422 swabbed at our stationary screening clinics in the last 24 hours, bringing our cumulative total to 358,035 individuals screened and 66,028 swabbed to date. Our mobile screening teams screened a total of 2,575 individuals and swabbed 302 in the last 24 hours. This brings our cumulative total to 741,611 individuals screened and 65,752 swabbed by our mobile teams to date.
Testing update
A total of 250,850 samples have been tested since this outbreak started in April 2021, with 293,711 tested since testing began in March 2020. 3004 tests have been reported for July 23rd July. The national 7-day daily test average is 3641 tests per day or 4.1 tests per 1,000 population. The national 7-day average daily test positivity is 23.8 %.
Vaccination Update
As of the 24nd July 440,361 adults in Fiji have received their first dose of the vaccine and 96,357 have received their second doses. This means that 75.1% of the target population have received at least one dose and 16.4% are now fully vaccinated nationwide.
Fijians can check the Ministry’s vaccine dashboard to find real-time data on first-dose and second-dose numbers at the national, divisional and sub-divisional levels. You can access the live dashboard at http://bit.ly/3h2JfCZ
Epidemic Outlook
The 7-day average of new cases per day is 804 cases per day or 908 cases per million population per day. The recent drop in new cases yesterday and today should be viewed with caution – daily case numbers have increased and decreased in the past and will continue to vary. This is influenced by a number of factors including where samples that were tested on a particular day came from – for example the Western Division samples are currently being prioritized as they are still in the containment phase, and quick turnaround of results will help with identifying cases and contacts early and contain transmission. It is more helpful to monitor our 7 day average of cases over a period of time to assess our trend of cases.
Advice to the public
For people with COVID-19 symptoms in Suva-Nausori:
People who are symptomatic and are not within a group that is at higher risk for developing severe COVID-19 will no longer be tested for COVID-19, and should stay at home and strictly self-isolate for 14 days. Most people infected with COVID-19 will have only mild symptoms like cough, runny nose, sore throat, fever, loss of taste or smell, body ache, headache, and can fully recover at home. For lower-risk individuals with COVID symptoms, we ask you to please stay at home for 14 days, isolate yourself from other family members, and continue to monitor your symptoms for severe COVID-19. If you develop any signs of severe COVID-19, like difficulty breathing or chest pain, please go immediately to one of our dedicated health facilities:
– Colonial War Memorial Hospital (CWMH)
– FEMAT Hospital, Vodafone Arena
Individuals in Nausori with severe symptoms should go to:
– Nausori Health Centre
-Wainibokasi Hospital
Call 165 if you are unable to travel to a medical facility.
However, if you or someone you are caring for is at high risk of severe COVID – in particular individuals over 50 years, have a chronic illness such as diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, asthma, are obese, or are pregnant – we need you to get in touch right away and visit one of our screening clinics. If you test positive, then we will ensure you are provided immediate care by our health teams.
1.) For symptomatic workers who need official leave from work, they are recommended to attend the nearest screening clinic to be checked and to obtain a medical certificate for the 14 days home isolation.
2.) Symptomatic workers can also obtain a medical certificate for the 14 days self-isolation at home from participating General Practitioners (GPs).