BUKIT MERTAJAM – The disaster management ward at Bukit Mertajam Hospital is ready to accept patients, including those with Covid-19.
It was completed within three weeks, thanks to the generosity of former national shuttler Datuk Lee Chong Wei, who also calls Bukit Mertajam his hometown.
His foundation donated RM250,000 while civil society groups and well-wishers matched the donation to ensure the ward was completed.
Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim visited the ward yesterday and conveyed his gratitude to hospital staff and the donors for their effort as the constituency has among the highest infections in Penang.
The ward is an expansion of the hospital’s emergency services department where the bulk of the costs went to beds, medical equipment and other amenities.
Sim, who is federal-state Covid-19 coordinator, said that he will visit all medical facilities in Penang even though the number of daily cases has dipped of late.
“We have to be ready should there be a spike in cases,” he said on his Facebook page.
Meanwhile, Penang is now the third-highest in terms of Covid-19 deaths per one million population.
In the statistics published by CovidNow, Penang has a rate of 52.4, behind Perlis’ 82.4 and Sarawak’s 55.
The state as at 11.59pm yesterday reported 5,775 active cases, of which 88.8% are under home quarantine, 3.7% in low-risk quarantine centres, 6.6% hospitalised, 0.6% in intensive care and 0.4% require ventilation. – The Vibes, October 17, 2021
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