Flood Victims Told To Be Hygienic To Prevent Outbreak Of Diseases

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 26 (Bernama) -- The Health Ministry, Tuesday advised flood victims who have returned home to maintain hygiene and remove water clogging in their houses and compound as they can be breeding grounds for Aedes mosquitoes.
Minister Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek said if they did not do anything about it there could be an outbreak of dengue fever in the flood stricken areas in three weeks' time.
So far the ministry has not received any report on the outbreak of contagious diseases such as dengue fever, typhoid and cholera in the flood hit states of Johor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Pahang.
"There is no major problem encountered in the affected states as the hospitals are equipped with the medicines and sufficient personnel to deal with the situation," he told reporters after visiting Sungai Buloh Hospital here Tuesday.
"What is important is that the people look after the cleanliness, hygienic and sanitation," he said, adding that 400 health teams were deployed to provide medical care at relief centres in the four states.
On his visit, he said Sungai Buloh Hospital was one of the four hospitals built in the Klang Valley in the last 10 years to ease the burden at Kuala Lumpur Hospital. The other hospitals are Selayang Hospital, Ampang Hospital and Serdang Hospital.
He said each of the hospitals were given specialisation with Sungai Buloh Hospital catering for contagious diseases as well as neuro, plastic and bone surgeries.
Selayang Hospital caters for liver and eye ailments, and hand surgery, Serdang Hospital specialises in cardiology and respiratory problems, and Putrajaya Hospital focusing on endocrine and cancer.