Prepare business continuity plans, says Health D-G

Star: PUTRAJAYA: The corporate sector and government agencies should prepare business continuity plans to ensure essential services are available in the event of the influenza A (H1N1) spreading.
Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said the plans would guarantee that services such as banking services and petrol are available and not cause inconvenience to consumers.
Among the guidelines for business continuity are screening for influenza symptoms and daily temperature check among employees, contractors and visitors.
Others include allowing employees with flu symptoms to be excused from work and determining fitness to return to work based on company policy.
“Employees with flu symptoms should be allowed to stay home so that they do not infect others with the virus,” he told a press conference after chairing the 9th technical committee meeting for influenza A (H1N1) here yesterday. The framework for the preparation of a business continuity plan is available on the ministry’s website http://moh.gov.my
He also urged patients to wear masks when seeking treatment at hospitals and clinics to prevent spreading the virus to medical officers.
Dr Ismail said the country recorded 21 new influenza cases, of which seven were imported and 14 were locally transmitted. Twenty patients received outpatient treatment while one patient received treatment at the hospital for dehydration.
To date, there are 825 cases with 562 imported ones and 263 local transmissions.
Dr Ismail said 25 patients were being treated at hospitals while 97 received outpatient treatment.
“The remaining 703 or 85.2% of them have recovered from the disease.”
He said the situation at UiTM Lendu, where six confirmed cases were reported, was under control and there was no new cluster cases reported in the past 24 hours.
Sekolah Rendah Sulaiman 1 in Kuala Terengganu and three classes at SMK Mantin, Negri Sembilan, SM Aminuddin Baki and SK Intan Baiduri in Kuala Lumpur ended their quarantine yesterday.