Restrictions Were Necessary To Prevent Hospitalisations, Charmaine Gauci Tells Court In Human Rights Breach Case

The introduction of a number of restrictions was essential to ensure that the number of hospitalisations did not overwhelm Malta’s healthcare system, Superintendent Charmaine Gauci told a court this morning.
Gauci took the witness stand in a case instituted by a group of individuals claiming that COVID-19 restrictions put in place by the Maltese government breached their human rights.
“It is important to remember that Malta is a densely populated country, one with only one hospital. We needed to ensure the hospital was not overburdened, that we weren’t overwhelmed so that we could still treat other patients,” Gauci said.
She stressed that all of the measures implemented were consistent with the evidence-based response adopted by the Maltese health authorities.
Gauci said that the measures taken at the start of the pandemic were in line with the national preparedness response plan to combat such threats.
She noted that the fact that the COVID-19 virus was new meant there was a need for information to be gathered, analysed and understood beforehand.
A key to controlling the epidemic, she said, was to reduce transmission of the virus, adding that it was the norm for all infectious diseases.
Grilled about the reliability of PCR testing, Gauci confirmed it was a standard and highly effective test used all around the world and which has been central
While most of the studies informing the choice of measures were conducted abroad, she said a lot of work had gone into adapting them for the local context.
Despite COVID-19 cases and hospitalisations surging across Europe, Malta – through its successful vaccination campaign – has succeeded in weathering the story so far.
While the number of active cases has increased substantially over the past weeks, the number of hospitalisations have remained low, with less than 15 individuals requiring hospital care.
The case is due to continue in March.
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