KUALA LUMPUR – The Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia (APHM) will facilitate the sharing of human resources and movable infrastructure, such as medical equipment or devices, if required for treating Covid-19 patients and to enhance the vaccination rate at mega vaccination centres in the next few weeks.
APHM president Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh said in a statement today that chief operating officers of private hospitals in Klang Valley will be in direct discussions with the Health Ministry to have its maximum support rendered to the patients in the country.
“As of today, almost 100% of the designated Covid-19 intensive care unit beds in private hospitals are taken up by Covid-19 category five patients.
“We are in further discussion with the ministry to decant emergency cases and inpatients in government hospitals to private centres, so more public hospitals can be converted into Covid-19 hospitals to accommodate a few thousand more patients,” he said.
Dr Kuljit said that vaccination of private healthcare workers is proven to protect frontliners from Covid-19, with outcomes consistent with data provided by the government on healthcare workers and comparatively the same with international figures.
He said that according to the APHM’s 152 members, most vaccinated healthcare workers have not been infected with Covid-19, but the few that were had very mild symptoms and recovered very well.
“This is a testimony to how vaccination will be our main preventive tool to get this pandemic under control, as we have noticed that the current increased usage of ICU beds and high death rates are because of inadequate vaccines in the country in the first six months of the year.
“We had this problem because of the world shortage of vaccines and slow delivery of vaccines to certain parts of the world, including Malaysia,” he said. – Bernama, July 19, 2021
