Many critical COVID-19 patients could not be placed in wards, including Intensive Care Units due to congestion and lack of beds in hospitals.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah said some of the patients had to be placed at emergency and trauma departments at hospitals in the Klang Valley.
Photo via The Straits Times
The same situation has also affected Category 3 and 4 COVID-19 patients, who needed breathing support, as reported by NST.
DG Hisham added that these categories of patients could only be placed at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park (MAEPS) COVID-19 Quarantine Low-Risk Treatment Centre.
In his Facebook post, DG Hisham said: “To date, 1,224 COVID-19 positive patients including those suspected of contracting the virus, have been placed at ICUs.
“From this total, more than half or 567 are in the Klang Valley: Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Putrajaya. However, many more patients in critical condition could not be warded,” he continued.
Dr. Noor Hisham assured Malaysians that the Health Ministry (MOH) has taken necessary steps to overcome the problem by improving capacity at Kuala Lumpur Hospital (HKL) and at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s (UKM) Specialist Children’s Hospital to treat Category 4 and 5 COVID-19 patients.
HKL is also outsourcing non-COVID-19 patients from its hospital to nearby private hospitals.
Jumlah pesakit COVID-19 (termasuk kes suspected / probable) masih lagi tinggi dan belum menunjukkan penurunan khususnya...
Posted by Noor Hisham Abdullah on Sunday, July 4, 2021
“We have also improved capacity to treat COVID-19 patients at Selayang Hospital and Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital in Klang, while transforming the Ampang Hospital into a full COVID-19 hospital similar to Sungai Buloh Hospital beginning June 30th,” he added.
Currently, there are 17 hospitals treating COVID-19 patients in the Klang Valley.
Ending his post, DG Hisham hoped that the pandemic would quickly end and hoped that the patients would be given strength to fight the virus.
Guys, let’s do our part in flattening the curve. Stay at home and only go out when you need to buy food or go to work! Remember to always follow the SOPs, maintain physical distancing and wash your hands regularly
Stay safe, everyone.
By: Aishah Akashah Ahadiat
