The Health Ministry (MOH) will take advantage of the current low numbers of COVID-19 cases to restrategise, in terms of manpower mobilisation and operational plans, to prepare for a possible surge in cases.
Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said during this period too, MOH frontliners would be given time to rest after working hard for the past five months.
“For the past five months, healthcare workers and MOH personnel had been working day and night, and as a result of their sacrifice, COVID-19 positive cases had been decreasing.
“There has also been a drop in patients in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) and quarantine centres, in the past two weeks and this is the best time to give the MOH staff a break or counselling to encourage them perseverance, should there be a spike in cases.
“We need to prepare for the worst and hope for the best,” he told the daily COVID-19 daily press conference here today.
Dr Noor Hisham said building resilience among the MOH community was important as they are the last line of defence in the prevention of a bigger catastrophe involving deaths and escalation of COVID-19 cases in the country.
Once again, he thanked all healthcare workers, the Royal Malaysia Police, the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) and other enforcement agencies that had helped in the fight against the spread of COVID-19 infection.
On the 50,000 antigen rapid test kits (RTKs) for COVID-19 screening, sourced from South Korea, Dr Noor Hisham said they have been distributed and the results from the kits would probably be known tomorrow or the next day.
The RTK is to supplement Malaysia's reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) screening, which is more accurate but requires samples to be sent to laboratories.
Of the 50,000 units, 10,000 each was distributed to Sabah and Sarawak, while 15,000 each for the border at Johor Bharu and at the main entrances at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and klia2.
Dr Noor Hashim said MOH would be receiving another 100,000 kits by the end of this week and they would probably be distributed to health clinics.
Asked to update on Malaysia's part in World Health Organisation's (WHO) solidarity trials to combat COVID-19, Dr Noor Hisham said Malaysia has received doses of Remdesivir to be tested on 100 patients.
"Currently, there has been a reduction in patients in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) but the Remdesivir drug will be used in our study.
"We have begun recruiting patients, the first patient from the Sungai Buloh Hospital is the first ASEAN patient for the trial. We will have more patients for clinical research and WHO will get the report,” he added.
-- BERNAMA
Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said during this period too, MOH frontliners would be given time to rest after working hard for the past five months.
“For the past five months, healthcare workers and MOH personnel had been working day and night, and as a result of their sacrifice, COVID-19 positive cases had been decreasing.
“There has also been a drop in patients in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) and quarantine centres, in the past two weeks and this is the best time to give the MOH staff a break or counselling to encourage them perseverance, should there be a spike in cases.
“We need to prepare for the worst and hope for the best,” he told the daily COVID-19 daily press conference here today.
Dr Noor Hisham said building resilience among the MOH community was important as they are the last line of defence in the prevention of a bigger catastrophe involving deaths and escalation of COVID-19 cases in the country.
Once again, he thanked all healthcare workers, the Royal Malaysia Police, the Malaysian Armed Forces (ATM) and other enforcement agencies that had helped in the fight against the spread of COVID-19 infection.
On the 50,000 antigen rapid test kits (RTKs) for COVID-19 screening, sourced from South Korea, Dr Noor Hisham said they have been distributed and the results from the kits would probably be known tomorrow or the next day.
The RTK is to supplement Malaysia's reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) screening, which is more accurate but requires samples to be sent to laboratories.
Of the 50,000 units, 10,000 each was distributed to Sabah and Sarawak, while 15,000 each for the border at Johor Bharu and at the main entrances at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and klia2.
Dr Noor Hashim said MOH would be receiving another 100,000 kits by the end of this week and they would probably be distributed to health clinics.
Asked to update on Malaysia's part in World Health Organisation's (WHO) solidarity trials to combat COVID-19, Dr Noor Hisham said Malaysia has received doses of Remdesivir to be tested on 100 patients.
"Currently, there has been a reduction in patients in the Intensive Care Units (ICUs) but the Remdesivir drug will be used in our study.
"We have begun recruiting patients, the first patient from the Sungai Buloh Hospital is the first ASEAN patient for the trial. We will have more patients for clinical research and WHO will get the report,” he added.
-- BERNAMA
