Charmaine Gauci has hailed a "major improvement" in the number of cases of COVID-19 in homes for the elderly, saying this was "clearly a reflection" of the country's vaccine strategy.

In her weekly update, the superintendent of public health said there are active cases in three facilities, with one home having just three cases. 

However, she also warned that the virus is being spread among children attending football nurseries, leading to large groups being ordered into quarantine.

And she revealed that the number of people with the UK variant of the virus has doubled in a week from 15 to 38.

Her briefing comes as the island records 164 new patients and two new deaths, bringing the number of active cases to 2,398.

Watch the briefing live below:

She began by detailing the progress of Malta's vaccine strategy, saying most of those in clinical settings have been vaccinated. 

After prioritising residents and staff in homes for the elderly and those aged over 85, people aged between 80 and 84 are currently getting vaccinated, she said.

" I appeal to those from this group who haven’t received their letter to call 145," she said, adding that non-medical frontliners are also now receiving the jab.

Those considered medically vulnerable, who were asked to shield at home to protect themselves last year, are now being vaccinated at Mater Dei hospital.

She confirmed a Times of Malta report that Malta is still exercising caution with AstraZeneca by using it for the under 55s, despite a World Health Organisation recommendation that it is effective for older people.

The Moderna jab is being given to those aged over 55s.   

"Malta, like other countries, has looked at the studies on efficacy," she said. "We saw that the majority of studies were on those aged over 18 and under 55 and we rely on the studies so we will, for now, use it for the under 55 age group."

She said that position would change if other studies in the future show otherwise.

Where are patients being treated?

The majority of those with COVID-19 are recovering at home, with 157 people in hospital.

Of those:

• 17 of the sickest patients are being treated in Mater Dei's intensive treatment unit;
• 10 are in the infectious diseases unit;
• 48 are in other Mater Dei wards;
• Eight are in the Boffa hospital;
• 11 are in St Thomas hospital;
• Seven are at Karin Grech;
• 39 are in the Good Samaritan facility;
• 15 are in Mount Carmel;
• and four are in Gozo General Hospital.

How is COVID-19 being spread?

Gauci said the seven-day moving average is now at 151 cases.

She noted a "major improvement" in homes for the elderly, with only three facilities impacted, including one home that has just three cases. 

"This is clearly a reflection of the vaccine strategy," she said.

The largest cluster of new patients is from households, with 358 new cases. Social gatherings and work places also remain hotspots for outbreaks. 

However, there were just 20 cases in schools this week, with Gauci saying children were mostly getting the virus through attending football nurseries. 

"Since the start of school, the clusters were very small, never more than 10 and we have not had to close down a school because it has not spread. The biggest problem is extra curricular activities."

She said these activities were resulting in big groups having to be put into quarantine.

There were 7 cases related to sports and gyms. Only five cases came from airport arrivals, after 834 rapid cases were carried out, resulting in patients from Germany, Bulgaria, Poland, Belgium and Italy. 

Most of the active cases live in Malta with just 71 cases in Gozo, she said with the average patient aged 40 years old. 

Some 6,238 people are in quarantine, a group that includes those who have tested positive, those who might have been in contact with a COVID-19 case, and those who have arrived from countries in the red zone. 

What about the UK variant?

Gauci revealed that the number of people with the highly-infectious COVID-19 variant, which first emerged in the UK has more than doubled in just over a week, from 15 to 38. 

"We stepped up testing and when we investigate the cases, we found some linked to known clusters but we have others that we are still investigating," she said.

"We need to be more vigilant because other countries are seeing a greater spread."