Yesterday, the country registered the second-highest number of new cases since the pandemic began, with 386 new cases recorded in just 24 hours.

The number of patients in hospital remains however relatively low, with 40 individuals currently receiving hospital care, five of whom are in intensive care.

The union stressed that the situation at the hospital was “very serious indeed” and was being further exacerbated by the increase in influenza cases.

“Mater Dei Hospital has reached its full capacity. Not only are all beds full, but the time has come to consider stopping all non-urgent surgeries.

This, it said, was the price the country needed to pay for allowing bars and other entertainment establishments to remain open. “By stopping all non-urgent surgery, beds will be more available for the huge intake of medical cases.”

The union accused the government of pandering to the entertainment industry at the expense of medical professionals by allowing the country to continue without any effective COVID-19 measures.

“Nurses and other health professionals are paying a high price for allowing COVID-19 numbers to increase over the last few weeks by allowing tourists from high-risk countries, such as Britain to come to Malta,” it said.

The union accused the government of being in denial about the consequences of these decisions, pointing to what it said was a staff shortage resulting from several nurses being forced into quarantine.

The government’s failure to restrict social events had led to the Mater Dei Hospital being at breaking point, and unable to cope with the heavy workload.

It appealed to the public to refrain from visiting bars and “discos” and to take all the necessary precautions in the absence of tangible government measures.

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