National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC), on Saturday, announced the decision to start conducting random COVID-19 tests as part of a community surveillance policy within the capital city of Male.
Speaking at an NEOC press briefing, Minister of Health Abdulla Ameen disclosed that previous random tests conducted by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) had led to the identification of positive cases.
Tests conducted under community surveillance will focus on areas, or groups of people, in which authorities believe that COVID-19 is likely to be spreading, even in the absence of positive cases or individuals identified through contact tracing.
The minister stated that these random tests would be conducted in Male' as well as islands in other atolls.
Highlighting the importance of swiftly confirming positive cases, Minister Ameen stated that the community surveillance testing policy was intended to "quickly identify people, places and regions in which the virus is spreading".
Maldives' first confirmed case of COVID-19 within the capital city of Male', was recorded on April 15, involving a local woman that sought assistance from a flu clinic in Malé after developing symptoms.
Although an index patient for the outbreak was not identified, NEOC's Technical Advisory Group (TAG) predicted, on April 20, that community spread of the virus began two to three weeks ago.
Maldives now records 137 positive cases, two probable and 121 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 16 recoveries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. The novel coronavirus has infected over 2.8 million people and claimed over 197,200 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, more than 798,700 people have recovered.
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