The College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences (CMNHS) of the Fiji National University (FNU) is part of a World Bank-funded 5-country case study entitled “Containing, Mitigating and Responding to COVID-19- A Fiji Case Study”.
The research team led by the Acting Dean Dr Donald Wilson, presented preliminary findings of the study at a workshop conducted in Suva, which was attended by relevant Government ministries, technical agencies, and non- Government organisations, to validate the findings and also further strengthen the content of the draft report.
The study used a framework that was used by all five participating countries, which include South Korea, Malaysia, Mongolia, Vietnam and Fiji, so the Methodology and focus parameters of the study were the same across the countries. The study is an attempt to describe and compare lessons of what had worked and what did not work during the different phases of Fiji’s COVID-19 response.
Stakeholders were able to offer their perspectives on Fiji’s COVID-19 response from their various professional affiliations and expertise.
CMNHS Acting Dean Dr Donald Wilson said the study’s primary outcomes are to document lessons learnt from Fiji’s national response to the COVID-19 pandemic and to offer recommendations that Government and other stakeholders may reference in case of a future pandemic.
“At the end of this study, we intend to promote the generation of knowledge and adaptation of international best practices in preparing for, and responding to, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, to support knowledge exchange related to the current pandemic as well as lessons learnt for any future pandemic,” Dr Wilson said.
“This project was commissioned by the World Bank Group and involved four other countries besides Fiji (mentioned above), and it has been interesting to learn about how these other countries responded to the pandemic, but for the Fiji research team, it has been an honour and great learning experience to be working alongside technical experts, accomplished academics and academic institutions from those countries.
“The Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MoHMS) was the main stakeholder in our research as they led most of the Government response in terms of disease surveillance and preparedness, health services delivery, vaccination, contact tracing, and COVID-19 testing, amongst others.
“The other Government ministries that contributed to the draft report were the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, The Fiji Police Force, and the Water Authority of Fiji. A huge component of the research was derived from reports, guidelines, and daily COVID-19 updates.”
Head of Health Protection at the MoHMS, Dr Aalisha Sahukhan, who played a key technical lead role in the pandemic, said the discussion was important for Fiji.
“The partnership between MHMS and academia is important, as we rely on our colleagues to lead with research that brings to light issues encountered during the operational work and beyond, and present findings that will help inform future plans and decision making,” she said.
“We appreciate the work done by FNU and their team at the College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences in carrying out this research, and we are happy to contribute to the report.
After discussion, Dr Wilson said his team was better informed about sections of the report the team will work on before holding another round of discussions with the relevant partners.
“It was a very fruitful discussion with the stakeholders and teams from several organisations. They have raised a lot of useful points that we might have missed but was crucial to be included in the final findings,” he said.
“The aim is to establish and assess the status of preparedness for Fiji in terms of national response institutional frameworks prior to COVID-19; and record current or existing responses noting successes, changes, gaps, challenges, and weaknesses to respond to any future pandemic.”
FNU will hold further discussions later this month.
