A prisoner at the Corradino Correctional Facility was hospitalised last weekend and has now been diagnosed with tuberculosis, the Correctional Services Agency said in a statement on Wednesday.

The agency said that the prisoner was taken to Mater Dei Hospital for care after developing certain symptoms on Sunday 16 March.  Two days later, those symptoms were confirmed to be tuberculosis.

The agency continued that when the prisoner in question was admitted to the facility, all of the necessary medical tests as advised by the Public Health Department were carried out.

“While the majority of people in Malta are vaccinated against tuberculosis, the agency took and is taking all the necessary precautions,” it said.

It said that three weeks of contact tracing was conducted, and medical tests were administered on 82 people – both inmates and workers – which all returned negative results.

“The agency’s priority is that health of its officials and of those inside the Corradino Correctional Facility, and it will keep doing all the necessary work in coordination with health authorities and professionals,” it said.