Gathering of medical reports of a deceased was the major reason why there was always a delay in reporting COVID-19 deaths.

This was confirmed by Minister for Health and Medical Services Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete in Parliament yesterday.

He was responding to SODELPA Member of Parliament Adi Litia Qionibaravi on reporting of deaths from July to August 2021.

“There have been instances where the team of specialists needed to sit down and go through the folders, sometimes the folders or the x-ray results, for example, were not at hand,” he said.

“Sometimes some of our family members who passed on, passed away in this institution while the majority of their records may be in a different institution.

“That had to be brought out to be ascertained.

“So, that is why in some instances where there was not enough information to hand, that had to wait until all that information was at hand.”

Dr Waqainabete clarified that the Ministry of Health followed World Health Organisation guidelines with the International Guideline for Certification and Classification of COVID-19 deaths as a guiding document.

“Every person who passes away when they are tested and it comes out as positive for those we don’t know yet that are positive – they are then discussed,” he said.

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