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The Health Ministry currently has enough ventilators in their respective facilities as it builds critical care capacity in Fiji.

Permanent Secretary, Dr James Fong says we have 80 ventilators in stock, and health officials are currently using 40 of them while the other half is kept for future need.

He adds that the current stock is sufficient to boost health care preparedness to respond to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have also been loading up on some of the treatment that is required for our patients. And we are hoping again that we do not end up having to require. But yes we need to have quite a lot of ventilators.”

Dr Fong is optimistic that ventilators currently in reserve are sufficient to address any need in the foreseeable future.