SHAH ALAM – The Covid-19 integrated quarantine and treatment centre 2.0 at Malaysia Agro Expo Park Serdang (MAEPS), with a capacity of 5,869 beds, is in the process of setting up another hall to accommodate the increasing number of patients, especially from around the Klang Valley.
The Selangor Health Department said in a post on Facebook that there currently are 3,454 patients, 80% of them being locals.
Average patient admission is around 600 a day, with daily admission once reaching 1,800 people.
“The initial stage of the MAEPS centre’s set-up aimed to take stable patients in categories 1 and 2, while elderly patients over the age of 70 and children under two years would be placed at the National Leprosy Control Centre (PKKN) in Sg Buloh.
“Due to the sudden increase in patients at present, PKKN was not able to accommodate the number of patients in that category and they had to be placed in the centre at MAEPS,” it said.
According to the department, the latest increase in Covid-19 cases also saw a sharp increase in category 3 cases when the integrated centre at MAEPS initially only provided 60 beds for that category, but it now has 752 beds and will increase its capacity to 1,000 beds in the near future.
It also commented on the article entitled “Enam jam untuk dapat katil, suhu terlampau sejuk, makanan tak cukup, tandas ‘jijik’” (“Six hours to get a bed, temperature too cold, not enough food, ‘disgusting’ toilets”) which was published in a news portal yesterday.
“Toilets are cleaned four times a day, with shifts from 10am-12pm, 3pm-5pm, 8pm-10pm and 2am-4am,” it said.
The department said a survey conducted among patients also found that 75% of them were satisfied with the level of cleanliness of patients’ toilets and 91% of patients were satisfied with the hall’s cleanliness, with positive comments from patients also being received through various social media platforms.
“Physical distancing is not an issue in the quarantine centre because all the patients involved have been confirmed Covid-19 positive,” it said.
The department said it is also trying its level best to provide food in sufficient quantities and to avoid wastage.
However, it said the MAEPS centre is always trying new approaches such as providing free food until 10pm to accommodate the number of new patients.
After 10pm, it said, food for new patients would comprise dry rations consisting of a loaf of bread, kaya spread, biscuits, mineral water, and a packet drink for each patient. – Bernama, May 18, 2021
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