DIRECTOR-GENERAL of health Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah has acknowledged complaints on social media over conditions at the low-risk quarantine and treatment centre (PKRC) at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park (MAEPS) in Serdang.

As these centres reach full capacity, he said the Health Ministry is considering allowing positive cases who can pay, to isolate themselves at hotels, or at home.

He told The Malaysian Insight the increasing Covid-19 caseload is expected to take a toll on the quality of care at PKRCs.

“When you have a sudden increase in patient load, the quality of care will go down,” he said, responding to accounts by those placed in the Serdang PKRC on social media.

The government is now considering the option of alternative quarantine centres for those who can afford to pay.

“Yes, considering putting positive patients in hotels or if employers have (a) proper hostel, or even at home if it’s suitable,” he said.

Due to shrinking bed capacity, Noor Hisham earlier said those who test positive for Covid-19 but are asymptomatic are advised to isolate themselves at home as they may not be taken to hospital immediately.

On January 4, he said placements at PKRC would be prioritised according to a positive case’s ability to isolate at home, giving preference to those who lack a conducive environment for self-isolation at home.

It is not known how many positive cases who are asymptomatic are currently in self-isolation at home since Noor Hisham’s first announcement on the shift in Covid-19 management protocol in late December.

It was reported last month that the bed capacity at the Serdang PKRC, then at more than 6,000 beds, would be increased to 10,000 before the end of last month.

An expatriate, Lucy Mole, posted on Facebook recently her experience at the centre and the problems she encountered.

Covid-19 positive with mild symptoms, she said she was recovering well in isolation at home with good sleep, a quiet environment and healthy food.

But since it was the Health Ministry’s policy for all positive cases to be quarantined, she was taken to the MAEPS PKRC, despite being told initially that she would be sent to a hospital.

At the centre, she said there was no soap or tissues in the toilets, water leaks or shortages, while the camp beds were cold, and lights were constantly on.

Foodwise, she told the nurses repeatedly about her vegetarian diet but kept receiving non-veg meals.

The centre overall lacks hand sanitisers, rubbish bins are overflowing, water dispensers dirty and cleaning carried out irregularly.

“People are hiding their symptoms so they don’t get their stay extended,” she said.

She was told by medical staffers there that there ae only two doctors to attend to more than 2,000 women and children at the centre.

There are also conflicting accounts on social media, however, about the situation at the same place.

Twitter user Afifie Chan posted that the centre is comfortable and clean.

“The condition inside the centre. Scary? Not at all. Comfortable and clean. See for yourself. Those white sheets are hung on the bed as a shield to the light which is on 24 hours,” he said.

Chan also included short videos of the centre in his posts, showing proper bunk beds unlike camp beds Mole wrote about.

He also praised the three meals served daily, adding that the food and medicines are brought to patients’ beds.

The centre which can house up to 10,000 patients at a time is used to house those who fall in category one (not symptomatic) and category two (slightly symptomatic).

Daily Covid-19 numbers are now in the 2,000s, peaking at a record 3,027 on Thursday. As of yesterday, there were 28,554 active cases. – January 12, 2021.