Dozens of staff and patients at Klang hospital infected with Covid-19.
Dozens of hospital staff and in-patients at Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (HTAR) in Klang have tested positive for Covid-19 in the past fortnight, raising concerns of an outbreak in the hospital.
It is understood that the patients were hospitalised due to health issues unrelated to Covid-19 and tested negative upon admission, only to develop Covid-19 symptoms during their stay.
The patients and hospital staff who tested positive have been transferred to Hospital Sungai Buloh for treatment, several reliable sources confirmed.
It is learnt that Health Ministry officials attended a briefing on a possible Covid-19 outbreak at the hospital this morning.
Reportedly, almost 100 people consisting staff and hospitalised patients had tested positive for Covid-19 in recent weeks.
Malaysiakini reported that at least 40 staff and more than 50 in-patients at the hospital have contracted Covid-19 in the past three weeks.
It is learnt that other hospitals across Selangor have also discovered Covid-19 cases among patients in general wards, who had earlier tested negative upon admission.
However, it is unclear if the infection occurred at the hospital or if the patients were already infected upon admission, but the virus was in the incubation period at the time of admission.
It is speculated that the infections at HTAR might have happened in lifts or crowded wards.
HTAR has 1,094 beds and receives the most number of patients among all public hospitals in Selangor, not including Universiti Malaya Medical Centre.
Last year, the government allocated funds to HTAR to upgrade its wards and equipment.
This is not the first time HTAR has experienced a spread of Covid-19 infections at the hospital.
In March, it was reported that several infections had occurred at HTAR, prompting the hospital to limit visiting hours and bar children under 12, who are not patients, from entering.
Such measures are now in place in all public hospitals to curb potential Covid-19 infection.
Meanwhile, Klang MP Charles Santiago lambasted the Health Ministry for allowing the hospital to keep the matter under wraps for so long.
“It is the World Health Organisation’s recommendation that infections must be quickly relayed to the public so that they can take their own precautions.
“It is very irresponsible of the hospital to have kept the matter hidden,” said Santiago.
He said red tape was also a catalyst in keeping information suppressed and hidden from the public.
“If you ask the district Health Department, they will tell you that they cannot divulge any information without the ministry’s green light,” said Santiago.
He added that such an approach would only worsen the situation with many unsuspecting people becoming open to getting infected.
“People living in Klang have already started to panic due to the high number of cases in the district.
“They should be kept informed so that they can take their own measures to protect themselves and their families,’’ said Santiago.
Klang is currently the worst-hit district nationwide, driven mostly by clusters within factories in industrial areas. The district recorded 3,512 cases in the past 14 days.
However, the cases are no longer contained among workers, with infections detected among communities living near the factories.