COVID-19 cases in Selangor are expected to remain high, until the middle of next year at its earliest, as the state continues to top the daily tally for the 12th straight day, said its Covid-19 task force (STFC) chief Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.

“We in STFC don’t think that this will come down anytime soon.

“We foresee that this will be the trend going forward until the foreseeable future till the middle of 2021. Hopefully we will get to see the Covid-19 vaccine in the first quarter,” Dzulkefly told The Malaysian Insight.

Selangor has the highest number of active cases with more than 8,000 infections, while its cumulative caseload of 29,969 is the second highest among states.

Yesterday, the government extended the conditional movement-control order (CMCO) to January 14 in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Sabah because of the high number of daily Covid-19 cases in the three states. The CMCO was to have ended on December 31.

Dzulkefly said the escalation of cases is anticipated due to the Human Resources Ministry’s mandatory screening of foreign workers.

“We recall that this was preceded by positive cases among those in cluster cases in their dormitories, of those working in factories and construction sites.

“Selangor being the most industrialised state, by way of both factories and construction sites, would naturally be the hotbed for cluster outbreaks,” he said.

Additionally, the state has collaborated with Selcare Clinic and Islamic Medical Association of Malaysia’s Response and Relief Team (IMARET) to step up on community screening efforts.

Dzulkefly, the former health minister in the Pakatan Harapan government, said there is also a small number of sporadic cases detected on a daily basis as a result of sentinel screening of influenza-like illness (ILI) and severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) cases.

He said it is important to try to nip clusters in the bud so that they do not progress beyond the second generation of infection.

Adopt preventive programmes

The STFC has recommended for the state government to adopt the preventing outbreak on ignition sites (POIS) programme as a measure to curb the spread of the virus in the state.

Dzulkefly said POIS is essentially a proactive and pre-emptive programme to prevent the occurrence of an outbreak.

POIS aims to encourage the adoption of enhanced public health measures (EPHMs) by employers who have a large workforce.

In addition, it strengthens the early detection testing regime through rapid and frequent screening, which in turn, will help in identifying and acting on potential cases early on.

It also entails creating awareness among workers through health education, especially on Covid-19.

POIS is a cross-sectoral tripartite partnership between the government, private sector and civil society groups.

He said the programme will be on a voluntary basis and therefore, not enforced through legal mechanisms.

It will, however, provide supportive technical assistance to employers who need to protect their investments and to minimise disruptions caused by the Covid-19 outbreak.

“We have been engaging with many stakeholders or employer,” Dzulkefly said.

He added that response has been good and many employers are keen on the programme.

STFC is also willing to share the programme with the Health Ministry so that it can be implemented in other states as well, he said.

Malaysia at worst point of pandemic

Dzulkefly said the ministry’s recent announcement asking Covid-19 patients without symptoms to self-quarantine at home is a sign that Malaysia is at the worst point of the pandemic thus far.

Director-general of health Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said this new rule is necessary before healthcare facilities become overwhelmed as daily new infections continue to stay above 1,000.

This marked a significant shift in pandemic management protocol in the peninsula. Previously, all positive cases – regardless of whether they showed symptoms or not – were hospitalised.

Dzulkefly told Malaysiakini the same protocol was employed in Sabah back in October at the height of the pandemic in the state.

“These are all warning signs that the epidemic curve has crossed the healthcare capacity line.

“This is not new – this is exactly what happened in Sabah,” Dzulkefly was quoted as saying.

Hospitals there were overwhelmed after patients exceeded the number of available beds and as both medical front-liners as well as volunteers became infected. – December 29, 2020.