Parents' Lack Of Concern Leads To HFMD Outbreak, Says Chua

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 (Bernama) -- The increasing number of Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) cases in Sarawak is attributed to parents' perception that it was not a life-threatening disease, and thus they had not taken the disease seriously.
Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said: "But even so, there are already 10 deaths recorded to date and 13,000 children have been infected since the endemic started (in May last year)."
The spread of the disease was generally associated with the cleanliness level practised at home and in kindergartens, which he claimed had not reached a satisfactory level, the health minister told reporters after the MCA's Nine Point Party Platform Seminar at Wisma MCA here, Saturday.
"I was made to understand that only yesterday, there were 45 cases mainly in Sibu, Kuching and Bintulu, where seven were hospitalised.
"We view this disease occurring in Sarawak seriously and I am currently waiting for the report from the state and (the ministry's) parliamentary secretary, which I hope to obtain by this week," he said.
Chua said this time, the endemic disease lasted longer than usual and was very persistent, and stressed that until the community in Sarawak maintained cleanliness, they would always be faced with this problem.
He reminded parents and teachers to ensure that the children's environment such as the floors, toilets and toys were clean and that children with symptoms of infection should refrain from going to school.
The ministry was ready to mobilise its staff to tackle the disease and was able to send 30 to 40 personnel to the state if the need arose, he said.
Meanwhile, Chua who is also the MCA Vice-President said the meeting between Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, MCA leaders and Chinese business and commerce members tomorrow was to ensure the smooth implementation of the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP).
"We hope that through this one-and-a-half-hour meeting, we could overcome issues regarding the economy.