“We are here again to give you an update on COVID-19 in Malta."

These were the words uttered daily for three months by Superintendent of Public Health Charmaine Gauci as thousands watched her mid-day press conference, waiting for the daily tally of new COVID-19 cases to be announced. 

Gauci became a household name, the face of the frontliners' fight against the virus. 

But on Wednesday, Gauci announced that the televised briefings, which were also broadcast via social media, will end. With the number of cases now low and stable, information on new cases will be relayed via other means instead. She made it a point to thank her viewers and the journalists for their attention.

Most of the measures implemented in March to stop the spread of the virus are set to be lifted on Friday, as even those considered most vulnerable, and who have been on quasi-lockdown since March, will be allowed to go out. 

Gauci started holding the briefings even before Malta had registered its first COVID-19 case on March 7, though at the time they were not held daily. 

As soon as the pandemic hit the island, Gauci started providing daily updates from her office, with journalists allowed to be present during the first few weeks. 

Once more cases started being registered and people were encouraged to stay home, the press conference started being held remotely, with journalists asking questions via videoconferencing platforms.

Gauci won praise over the past three months for her calm demeanour, although journalists occasionally regretted not having the opportunity to follow-up their questions, particularly when video-conferencing was introduced.  

On April 10, Gauci took her briefings a step further and started giving summaries of her updates in English for those on the island who do not speak Maltese. 

On May 18, she announced the daily briefings would be reduced to three times a week, with information on the new cases published on Facebook by the Health Ministry. 

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