COMMENT | Covid-19 and need for continued vigilance

COMMENT | Malaysia is now in the 4th Phase of the Six Phase Economic Recovery Plan (6Rs) specified under the National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana). Under the current recovery movement control order (RMCO), most businesses are already in operation with adherence to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) and the associated changes announced from time to time as the situation develops.

The Academy of Professors Malaysia (APM) has taken note of the spike in new Covid-19 cases this past one week, whereby the Ministry of Health has recorded 317 new cases on Oct 3 and 297 at the time of this writing, Oct 4, bringing the number of total cases in Malaysia to 12,381. It is also noted that the number of active cases at 1,961 is now more than double the number of active cases a week ago, on Sept 26 (858 cases).

The situations in Sabah and Kedah are particularly worrying, with the number of cases ranging from 90 to 150. It is especially so that many new cases in all states in the peninsula are attributed to people returning from Sabah, leading to the emergence of new clusters in Kedah, Selangor and Penang. Health Ministry director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah stated on Sept 30 that the country's R0 was back to above one at 1.25, with Sabah's and Selangor’s R0 at 1.26 and 1.95, respectively. A lot would need to be done to prevent the infection from doubling, should the RO value increase above two.

On Oct 3, Senior Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced that the MCO will not be reimposed since most of the new cases were mainly from Kedah, Sabah and Selangor. However, the increasing number of cases in Sabah and from those returning from Sabah, is now a cause for concern of potential spread of Covid-19 nationwide.

Thus, the APM is of the opinion that more needs to be done to reduce the spread of Covid-19. Among the measures that APM recommends are:

1. That all Malaysians travelling inbound from Sabah be placed under mandatory quarantine, preferably at a designated quarantine centre, for 14 days. These include people coming back from voting, and campaigners, including politicians who have spent time in Sabah.

2. That Malaysians postpone all non-essential travel to and from Sabah and Kedah, even though there is no interstate or inter-district travel ban.

3. All health centres, hospitals (government and private) have to be vigilant in triaging patients, especially those who have a history of travel from Sabah in the last 14 days.

4. That Malaysians are made aware of the possibility of compliance fatigue and compliance failure, whereby some people will just not follow the SOPs that have been put in place. This is evident by:

• not wearing mask or not wearing mask properly while in public places;

• bringing children to run around in crowded malls (an open space or a park is a better choice);

• bringing the elderly and the vulnerable to crowded places; and

• lax in recording temperature and names of people who visit outlets although there is an app for this.

Should anyone come across such lax in control measures, they should report to the authorities the centres that are non-compliant.

5. That Malaysians should follow the WHO Eastern Mediterranean nutrition advice for adults during the Covid-19 outbreak that advocates for a well-balanced diet in order to be healthier with stronger immune systems and lower risk of chronic illnesses and infectious diseases. It includes consumption of a variety of fresh and unprocessed foods every day to get the vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre, protein and antioxidants that the body needs. Drinking enough water as well as to avoid sugar, fat and salt to lower risk of overweight, obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and certain types of cancer.

6. That people should prefer eating at home to reduce rate of contact with other people and lower the chance of being exposed to Covid-19. Continue maintaining a distance of at least one metre between people, which is not always possible in crowded social settings like restaurants and cafes.

7. The people should be encouraged to exercise, outdoors if possible, not only for general health but to increase Vitamin D production (which is dependent on sunlight) which has been shown to possibly improve the immune system and its ability to fight infections.

8. That for now the Sarawak political leadership may not emulate the decisions made in Sabah, become society caring leaders and be a role model for others to follow. Show that people’s lives matter, keep them safe.

It is important that the government continues to empower the community to be responsible for their health to keep or work towards maintaining their green zone areas and to get them to maintain preventive measures in their areas. We cannot afford to go back into EMCO with immense economic repercussions, but the people need to be reminded to be vigilant.

To fellow Malaysians who are suffering from the disease, we pray for your fast recovery. For others complying with the MCO, thank you for your patience and obedience. For those who are feeling stressed or depressed, please seek help with the counselling or psychological support services. We know this MCO will not last forever, but for us to come out of this, we need to abide by the rules and regulations for the common good.

Stay home, stay safe and avoid non-essential outings!

This statement from the Academy of Professors Malaysia is issued by:

1. APM president Prof Dr Daeng Nasir Daeng Ibrahim of Universiti Malaysia Pahang;

2. APM deputy president and APM Economics and Social Wellbeing Cluster head Prof Dr Jamal Othman of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia;

3. APM Health and Medical Cluster head Prof Dr Adlina Suleiman of International Medical University; and

4. APM Health and Medical Cluster secretary Prof Dr Noor Azah Abd Aziz of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.