Malta's hospitals are prepared for any increase in the number of patients requiring COVID-19 treatment, public health chief Charmaine Gauci said on Wednesday. 

The Superintendent of Public Health answered readers questions as Malta and the rest of Europe continued to experience a rise in COVID-19 cases.

But asked about this rise, Gauci said that while the authorities were closely monitoring what is happening abroad, the situation in Malta remained under control despite the infection rate doubling to over two per cent. 

Gauci also gave assurances that the hospitals are equipped to deal with any increases and quashed concerns the health system could be overwhelmed, as has been in the case in some European countries recently. 

On the booster doses, Gauci said that is it crucial that people get their booster once it is their turn, noting that all four patients currently receiving treatment in the ITU had not yet been given the booster. 

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On children, Gauci also said she looked forward to the approval of vaccines for those under 12, urging parents to have their children vaccinated when this becomes available. 

Asked whether the vaccine certificates will be updated to reflect that a person has been administered the booster dose, Gauci said the health authorities have all the information in hand to be able to include this detail if the certificate is to be updated. For now, however, the two-dose certificate is sufficient. 

And on the vulnerable, Gauci said that anyone who has been deemed as needing the booster has been offered it. She clarified that, following studies, it emerged that not all those who were considered as vulnerable when the first round of jabs was administered need the booster urgently.