Health Minister Joseph Cassar said today that while some people were trying to scare people about the situation at Mater Dei Hospital, they were seemingly forgetting the excellent service which patients were getting.

He said at a political conference the Emergency Ward at Mater Dei was calm this morning and everything was proceeding normally.

It was unfortunate, he said, that many people had not taken the flu jab and as a result the flu had peaked in the first days of this month, with many suffering chest infections.

The number of in-patients at the hospital had risen by 10%. And yet, not a single operation was cancelled because of this upsurge. The number operations was actually up 17% compared to the same period last year.

All this was a tribute to all the hospital workers, Dr Cassar said.

This high level of service would continue, and it would remain free of charge, Dr Cassar said.