2021Malta Healthcare Heroes COVID-19 - Presentation Pack

COVID-19 is a new virus linked to the same family of viruses as SARS - Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and to some types of the common cold. The term stands for COrona, VIrus, Disease.

The COVID-19 pandemic, is an ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease which was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak of Public Health Emergency of International Concern in January 2020 and a pandemic in March 2020. As of 18 January 2021, more than 95.1 million cases have been confirmed, with more than 2.03 million deaths attributed to COVID-19, across 190 countries around the world. Malta too was not spared as the first case were identified here by March 2020.

Fortunately, Malta's strong public healthcare system provided the necessary precautions and care so as to contain the spread of the disease. Adequate structures were set up to ensure that those at home and in hospitals were efficiently and suitably cared for by a large group of healthcare workers.

This set of stamps is issued in appreciation of all Malta's healthcare workers and to pay tribute to their sterling work. We are indebted to the carers, nurses, doctors and other hospital staff who quarantined with patients and who missed out on their personal life to ensure the safety and quality of care of their patients. The issue is also dedicated to all those working in the essential services. These persons deserve the gratitude of the community more so in the knowledge that a number of them were infected with the disease in the course of their duty.
Two of the set of three stamps are from paintings by Madeleine Gera and another by Andrew Micallef.
Andrew Micallef was born in Malta and studied graphic design at the Malta School of Arts and Crafts. Since 1986 he put up 12 solo exhibitions and formed part of various prestigious publications illustrating flora and fauna of the Maltese Islands. His favourite subjects include land and seascapes, birds and Maltese historic architecture. Andrew Micallef also drew several paintings that were later issued as Malta postage stamps.
Madeleine Gera was born in Malta and lived in Germany and Italy. Gera is a figurative painter and her focus of interest is the portrait and the figure within an urban space. She studied art in Florence, Italy and between 2006 and 2015 she ran her own studio in Valletta. Madeleine Gera has participated in several collective exhibitions in various European cities and has had numerous solo exhibitions in Malta.