Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong. [File Photo]

The Ministry of Health says it is saddening to see people with severe COVID-19 dying at home or presenting themselves to health facilities in the late stages, and dying within a day or two.

Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor James Fong says it is difficult to allocate resources if people reach out at the last minute.

Doctor Fong adds there is huge resistance to seeking care, particularly in the i-Taukei community.

“In the I-Taukei community, it is a terrible problem. There is huge resistance to seeking care until we are really at the edge of the table. There is a lot of reliance on other means of treatment.”

The Permanent Secretary says the Ministry has been pushing out messages about the symptoms of COVID-19 so that people react quicker and seek help immediately instead of waiting until it’s too late.

“Once the people start feeling chest pain, shortness of breath they need to call. They need to be given a couple of hours to access treatment.”

Doctor Fong says there remains a possibility of an increase in people with COVID-19 requiring hospitalization and more deaths.

Click here for the interactive GIS Dashboard