Malaysia may turn into a competitor to India in clinical research soon

Pharmabiz: Malaysia may soon become a favored destination for clinical trials in the Asian region and can emerge as a possible competitor to India in clinical research in future, according to Prof Dixon Thomas, HoD of Department of Pharmacy Practice, Raghavendra Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (RIPER), Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh.
Prof Dixon Thomas is doing a research on the project Clinical Research Malaysia (CRM) launched by Malaysian government as part of the country’s Economic Transformation Programme (ETP). The ETP includes 12 national key economic areas (NKEA) which included clinical research. In view of the potential foreign investment to the country, contract clinical research has been identified as one of the entry point projects for the NKEA.
In a chat with Pharmabiz, Prof Dixon Thomas said Asia has 80 per cent of the world population and Malaysia being a country within the ASEAN region, is well-placed to achieve the status of a preferred destination for clinical trials in the region. Coordination of public and private hospitals, clinical research organizations, diverse patient pool, low cost and qualified professionals are the supporting factors that help the country to achieve that goal. The population in the ASEAN region provides huge potential both for the scientific pursuit of clinical trials as well as the subsequent pharmaceutical commercialization of research & development efforts.
According to him Clinical Research Malaysia is a project established to promote and develop the growth of industry sponsored clinical trials. Its main task is to encourage and support the pharmaceutical industry and clinical research organizations to select Malaysia as the preferred destination for contract clinical research and thus gain foreign direct investment from the global drug development industry. Its core function is to coordinate and foster greater collaboration among the ministry of health’s network of 24 Clinical Research Centres (CRCs) and other independent CR centres formed in private hospitals and academic centres, he said.
Regarding the progress of the project, he said Malaysia has made efforts in increasing the number of high-quality clinical trials being conducted by initially forming a One-Stop-Centre within the CRC, which acts as the main contact point for network of CRCs to facilitate access to 137 general and district Ministry of Health (MOH) hospitals. These hospitals act as the referral center for more than 4000 health clinics serving as potential sites for clinical trials. This One-Stop-Centre serves as the main contact point for industry and sponsors to access the sites and investigators. The Health Minister of the country, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, during the opening ceremony of National Conference for Clinical Research 2011, launched Clinical Research Malaysia (CRM) and announced that CRM would provide a unique strategy to attract clinical trials to Malaysia, Prof Thomas added.
When asked about the advantages of Malaysia’s Industry Sponsored Trials, he said the CRM will ensure better communications between potential pharmaceutical industry sponsors and CRO’s with the MOH sites and investigators. There is supportive research infrastructure such as National Medical Research Register, which is an online register in which every clinical trial conducted within the country is recorded. The researcher acknowledged that CRC has been instrumental in establishing patient registries in more than thirty disease areas. Since 1999, Malaysia has mandated that all clinical trial investigators must receive training in relevant research topics such as Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and Good Research Practice (GRP) in order to equip them with the necessary technical expertise and administrative capabilities when conducting the trials.
Another advantage is that the multi-racial and multi-ethnic local patient population providing an excellent opportunity for clinical trial investigators to conduct clinical research on a widely diverse patient population, especially pertaining to their genetic make-up. There is very good transport logistics, and costs are very manageable when conducting clinical trials in the country. Besides, the administrative and other costs incurred during the conduct of these trials in Malaysia will also be kept minimal, Prof Dixon Thomas said.

DAP MP protests unchecked powers in new medical Act

Malaysian Insider: KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 3 — The Dewan Rakyat today passed the Medical Device Authority Act, which grants absolute power to authorised enforcement officers to conduct raids and seizures over unregistered medical devices without producing a warrant.
The Act also stipulates the authorities will not be bound to pay damages or relief costs or be liable to court action for such seizures, unless a raid was conducted “without reasonable cause”.
During debate in Parliament today, Lim Lip Eng (DAP-Segambut) urged Putrajaya to withdraw and review provisions in the bill, arguing that it grants too much enforcement power to the Health Ministry and its agents.
“Section 57 gives blanket immunity to officials to raid or seize any medical devices. And no one can initiate any legal proceedings before any court,” he told the House.
The bill was tabled by Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai for the second and third readings today, before being passed by majority vote.
Under the Act, “medical device” refers to “any instrument, apparatus, implement, machine, appliance, implant, in-vitro reagent or calibrator, software, material or other similar or related material intended by the manufacturer to be used on human beings” for various purposes such as “diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, treatment or alleviation of disease” and other reasons.
The law compels all manufacturers, importers or distributors to register their medical devices with the newly formed Medical Advice Authority (MAA), following safety standards set by the Conformity Assessment Body, an independent regulatory agency formed under the Act.
Unregistered devices are also banned from being advertised and any person who violates this provision will be liable to a fine not exceeding RM3,000 or a maximum three-year jail term, or both.
Speaking to The Malaysian Insider later, Lim said he was not opposed to the requirement for all medical devices to be registered in order to meet safety standards.
“But the wide scope of powers granted to health officials could be open to abuse and the manufacturers or retailers are offered no protection,” he said.
He pointed out that any negligence by health officials would be overlooked as no court action could be initiated to question their decisions.
According to Section 48 of the Act, the health minister may, in writing, authorise any public servant to exercise enforcement powers.
Section 50 states that the authorised officer “shall have all or any of the powers of a police officer of whatever rank in relation to police investigations in seizable cases as provided for under the Criminal Procedure Code”.
While Section 51 stipulates the officer should obtain a search warrant from a Magistrate, Section 52 states the said officer could also conduct the raid without a warrant if he has reason to believe that any delay in obtaining the warrant could adversely affect the evidence.
The Act also allows any “aggrieved” persons to appeal to the minister, who has the power to confirm, reverse or vary the decision of the MAA.

Health Minister unveils 7 medical devices projects, RM17.1b revenue

The Edge: KUALA LUMPUR: Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai unveiled seven new medical devices related Entry Point Projects (EPPs) which are expected to generate RM17.1 billion in revenue.
A statement from Pemandu on Thursday, Sept 29 said the new EPPs were expected to contribute to RM 11.4 billion in gross national income (GNI) and create 86,000 jobs by the year 2020.

The seven new EPPs are:
1) Tap into the fast-growing In-Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) market through academic-industry partnerships
2) Create next generation of single-use devices (SUD)
3) Build hub for high-value medical device contract manufacturing
4) Create Malaysian clinical devices champions
5) Orchestrate contract manufacturing supply chain
6) Medical equipment refurbishment hub
7) Build medical hardware and furniture cluster

Demand for healthcare for the aged set to rise significantly

SinChew: KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 (Bernama) -- The demand for healthcare for the aged is expected to rise significantly in the coming years based on projections by the United Nations (UN).
Chief executive officer of Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Tan Sri Azlan Zainol, said under the UN definition, the Malaysian population was ageing.
"We are now classified as an 'ageing' nation, with over seven per cent of our population aged 60 years and older," he said in his keynote address at the Malaysian Private Pension and Healthcare Conference 2011 here today.
Azlan said with old age medical expenses were expected to increase.
He said health spending in Malaysia has grown from RM9.8 billion in 2007 to RM12.2 billion last year while the federal government's health expenditure was expected to be RM13.2 billion.
"This rise is moving in synchrony with the ageing demographics of the country and with rising healthcare costs," he said.
Azlan said the demand for healthcare was so strong that the country now has 217 private hospitals when 30 years ago, there were just a handful.
He said EPF was cognizant of its members' needs and for those most urgent, it has provided withdrawal schemes from members' account two such as for housing, education and critical illnesses.
"Specifically for critical illness withdrawals, we have raised the number of critical illnesses eligible for withdrawal from 36 to 55," he said.
Azlan said for critical illnesses, the EPF has in the past three years seen steady amounts of withdrawals, from circa RM46 million in 2006 to around RM35 million last year for a total of RM220 million in these past five years.
"We note, with some satisfaction that these amounts have been falling, implying, among other things, the increased awareness of the importance of retirement savings despite the rise in medical costs," he said.

Health Ministry To Look Into Kidney Trade Allegation

Bernama: KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 26 (Bernama) -- The alleged involvement of Malaysian hospitals in illegal kidney trade will see the health ministry liaising with the federal police to launch an investigation.
Health director-general Datuk Dr Hasan Abdul Rahman said the ministry took a very serious view of a recent media report on this matter.
He explained that kidney transplantation in Malaysia was currently performed at specific hospitals, namely Kuala Lumpur Hospital, Selayang Hospital, Universiti Malaya Medical Centre and a few private hospitals in the Klang Valley.
Dr Hasan said it seemed a little far-fetched for such an illegal activity, especially involving foreigners, to have been conducted in any of the said hospitals.
"However, if there is evidence that such a thing had happened in any of the hospitals, the ministry will certainly take serious action against them," he vowed.
The report alleged that donors from remote villages in Bangladesh were allegedly flown to Southeast Asia to sell their kidneys.
Dr Hasan said the ministry encouraged cadaveric organ transplantation and transplants from live, related donors.
He noted that transplants from unrelated donors needed to be vetted by an independent body called 'Unrelated Transplant Approval Committee', appointed by the health director-general.
"Hence, the alleged transplants from unrelated foreigners (from Bangladesh) would have required prior approval from the ministry. Our records show that there have been no such requests or applications," he said.
As a member of the World Health Organisation and signatory to The Declaration of Istanbul on Organ Trafficking and Transplant Tourism, Malaysia is committed to ensuring that illegal organ trade did not occur in the country, said Dr Hasan.
"To further regulate transplantation, the ministry is currently in the midst of drafting a new and comprehensive Transplantation Bill," he said, adding that the National Organ, Tissue and Cell Transplantation Policy was established in 2007 to guide the development of transplantation based on best ethical practices in Malaysian hospitals.

A healthy lure for tourists

Star: PETALING JAYA: Foreigners will find Malaysia an attractive place for healthcare as the country offers affordable and quality medical treatment by accredited healthcare providers.
Launching the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Exhibition 2011 in Hong Kong yesterday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said Malaysia had many highly-trained specialists with recognised qualifications, mostly from Britain, Ireland and the United States.
“Many of them have been involved in revolutionary and ground-breaking research which has garnered internationally-acclaimed awards and recognition,” he told visitors to the show.
He added that besides state-of-the-art equipment and treatment, patients from Hong Kong and China would have no problem conversing with doctors as Mandarin, Cantonese and English are all widely spoken.
“With a favourable exchange rate, Malaysia has an advantage in terms of cost of care,” said Liow, adding that the country adopted a single pricing policy for private medical treatment where foreigners enjoyed the same rate as locals.
The exhibition, organised by the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) and the Association of Private Hospitals of Malaysia, featured 17 exhibitors from hospitals and related industry players.
Present at the launch were MHTC chief executive officer Dr Mary Wong Lai Lin, Malaysian celebrity Michael Wong, who was named the country's health care travel ambassador, Hong Kong artistes Nat Chan Pak Cheung and Petrina Fung Bo Bo and Malaysia consul-general in Hong Kong Jilid Kuminding.

Who’s using it?

Star: BASED on the latest Malaysian Population and Family Survey, only around 52% of couples in Malaysia are using at least one form of contraception, whether natural or artificial.
The 2004 survey conducted by the National Population and Family Development Board (better known by its Malay acronym, LPPKN), spoke to a sampling of married women aged between 15-49, and were either currently using, or whose spouse was using, at least one form of contraception.
This included artificial methods like hormone pills, condoms, and intra-uterine devices (IUDs), as well as natural methods like periodic abstinence using the rhythm method, withdrawal, lactational amenorrhea method (using breastfeeding and the absence of periods as an indication of non-fertility) and folk methods.
The percentage of these women is considered the contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR).
The surveys, which are carried out every 10 years, show that the CPR in the country has been holding relatively steady around 50% ever since 1984. Ten years before that, it was 36%.
The survey reports that for the major ethnic groups, 64.3% of Chinese couples practise some form of contraception; followed by couples of other races, 59.3%; Indian couples, 51% and Malay couples, 39.3%.
And while urbanisation and education has increased the CPR, LPPKN Human Reproduction Division director Dr Norliza Ahmad says that “the differentials between urban (50.7%) and rural couples (43.3%), and across education categories (primary or no schooling 46.5%; secondary 48.6%; and post-secondary 49.3%) are much less pronounced than ethnic differentials”.
The most popular method of contraception is the oral contraceptive pill (14%), while the rhythm method is the most used among the natural, or non-modern, methods (9.3%).

The survey also showed that around one quarter of married couples wanted to stop or delay having children, but were not using any contraceptive methods for various reasons. This “unmet need for contraception” was highest among women in their 40s (64.4%).
Dr Norliza says that this could be due to a couple of factors.
“Number one is they might think that they are not fertile, This perception is partly true because at this age, there is a natural decline in fertility. However, the chance of getting pregnant is still there.”
Currently, women less than 50 years old are advised to continue using contraception until they have had no periods for two years, and women above 50 to continue for 12 months after their last period.
“Secondly may be because they are unaware of the contraceptive choices available. This could be due to inadequate advice by healthcare providers.” She adds that education and awareness is a very important part of LPPKN’s work as many women are afraid of the side effects of artificial, or modern, contraceptive methods.
In addition, Dr Norliza says that a wider range of contraceptive methods, such as low-dose oestrogen and long-acting formulations need to be made widely available to the community, and that effective counselling is a priority.
“More concentrated efforts are also needed to encourage and facilitate active male participation, and to reduce their objection to family planning practice.
“Nevertheless, women’s rights to decide on contraception and fertility will not be neglected.”
According to Dr Norliza, future areas of research for LPPKN include emergency contraception, unmet needs, and family planning usage among singles.

Malaysia Against Delays In Introducing New Generic Drugs

Bernama: KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 19 (Bernama) -- Malaysia does not want the introduction of new generic drugs to be obstructed and delayed by conflicting interpretations of national legislation and regulations on trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIPS) by various parties.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said with the increasing number of patients with non-communicable diseases (NCDs), many countries were faced with a huge challenge in providing sufficient access to essential medicines to treat such cases. The positive economic impact of generic substitutions can be enormous. For Malaysia which provides free medical care to its citizens, generics are essential to meet the continuous delivery of healthcare to its population," he said in his speech at the United Nations High-Level Meeting On NCDs in New York Monday.
The text of his speech was made available to the media here.
Liow noted that the United Nations Declaration on HIV/AIDS in June had endorsed important flexibilities guaranteed by the World Trade Organisation (WTO) TRIPS Agreement to ensure that trade would not violate patients' rights.
"While the promotion of international trade is important, especially within a rules-based trading system, the WTO should provide flexibilities, particularly to developing countries," he said.

Ministry tightens rules over bird’s nests

Star: KUALA LUMPUR: Owners of bird's nest processing premises have been given until Oct 1 to register their businesses with the Health Ministry in a move to regulate and control the product's quality.
“At the moment, the premises are only registered with the local authorities, not with the ministry,” said minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai, adding that the Chinese Government had expressed concern over the high levels of nitrite contained in the nests exported to the country.
“China is taking the issue very seriously,” he said at a press conference here yesterday.
Liow said the Government had agreed that any food item exported to the China would have to be certified by the ministry and the Veterinary Services Department.
“We will take action against premises that do not register with us by Oct 1,” he said, adding that they could also be fined up to RM10,000 for not doing so.
Their registration forms can be obtained from the state health department, district health offices or online at fosimdomestic.moh.gov.my.
Liow said the processing premises would be given until the end of the year to implement the food safety assurance system or be fined up to RM10,000.
He said operators could choose from the 1Malaysia Food Safety Scheme (SK1M), Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) or the Good Manufacturing Practice, all of which were endorsed by the ministry.
He said the SK1M, which is free of charge, was implemented to assist small and medium entrepreneurs.
“To date, 64 companies have already obtained the SK1M certification.”

Malaysia On Alert Although No Influenza A (H5N1) Outbreak - Liow

Bernama
PUTRAJAYA, Sept 8 (Bernama) -- Malaysia is on Influenza A (H5N1) alert although there has been no outbreak in the country since 2003, Health Minister, Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said today.
However, he said the Health Ministry's surveillance team had been activated to monitor the situation on the ground from time to time.
"Malaysia has been free from Influenza A H5N1 since 2003 as there have been no positive samples.
"However, we are working closely with the Veterinary Services Department. If chicken are affected, we will ensure the situation is contained so that there will be infection of humans," he told reporters after attending the Health Ministry's Merdeka Raya celebration here Thursday.
Liow advised the public to take preventive measures, including seeking immediate medical attention at clinics if they develop influenza-like illness symptoms.
On the haze problem, Liow urged the people to avoid outdoor activities at areas where the Air Pollution Index (API) was unhealthy.
"Patients with eye-disease, asthma and chronic bronchitis should seek immediate medical attention," he said.
Asked whether the ministry would distribute face masks if the air quality deteriorated further, he said ministry would not as they were cheap and easily available in the market.

‘Medication programme’ aims to cut waste at govt hospitals

Star: PETALING JAYA: As healthcare costs soar, the Health Ministry has found that a substantial amount of medicine dispensed by government hospitals goes unused or expired.
Through its “return medication programme” implemented last year, the ministry now wants to find out more about the causes of this waste and reduce it.
According to Datuk Eisah A. Rahman, the ministry's senior director of pharmaceutical services, the medicine returned to the pharmacy at Kuala Lumpur Hospital for the first half of the year was valued at RM128,818 while at the Sarawak General Hospital, it was valued at RM82,436.
The returned medicine last year at Seberang Jaya Hospital in Penang, Tuanku Fauziah Hospital in Perlis and Tuanku Ja'afar Hospital in Seremban was valued at RM27,899, RM53,769 and RM190,616 respectively.
The ministry is collating data from the other government hospitals.
Eisah said the current figures alone reflect the amount of medicine wasted.
“If we take into account all the hospitals, it would be a substantial amount,” said Eisah.
There are 135 hospitals in the country with the ministry spending RM1.6bil on medicine in 2010, an increase of 14.48% from the previous year.
Eisah said one reason behind the campaign was to help reduce the possibility of the prescription drugs being misused by others.
Most government hospitals and clinics have counters or containers where patients can return or deposit unused medicines.
“There is still lack of awareness about the programme,” she said, adding that Australia, Canada and the United States had similar programmes.
She said that only medicine that had not expired would be reused.
Eisah admitted that a large amount of the returned medicine had to be disposed of, and this was done in a proper way to reduce harm to the environment.
“Improper disposal through the water sewage might pollute our water supply,” she said.
Eisah said the most common medication returned comprised those used to treat cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, anti-hypertensive agents and anti-cholesterol drugs.
Eisah also said a study in the United States showed that one-third of all medicine prescribed ended up unused or expired.
“The amount of medicine dispensed is based on the prescription. Theoretically, they should be finished, and we encourage patients to finish their medicine. If for some reason they can't, then they can return them to us,” she said.

Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Sabah to have top-notch cardiac centre

Star: KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will have a heart surgery centre equipped with sophisticated equipment on par with the National Heart Institute when the cardiac services unit at the Queen Elizabeth II Hospital (HQE II) is fully operational at the end of this month.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the HQE II started a heart surgery service in April and at the end of this month, it would have another operation unit costing about RM5mil.
"This is a huge achievement and its good news for Kota Kinabalu residents, in particular, and the people of Sabah, in general, as they are getting top-notch facilities," he told reporters after inspecting the upgrading of HQE II in Damai Luyang here on Sunday.
Liow also announced an additional allocation of RM3mil to tide over the costs of services at the heart surgery centre, including analysis and diagnosis on heart related ailments.
He said the new heart surgery centre was part of the HQE II improvements besides upgrading of car parks, elevators and structures from levels 6 to 8 costing about RM76mil.
When completed, the number of beds for patients at the hospital will increase from 130 to 384 beds besides the 71 beds, which are rented to a private hospital, Sabah Medical Centre, he added.

First Natural Medicine Programme To Be Launched Next Year

Bernama: KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 (Bernama) -- In a joint effort between Malaysian and Taiwanese institutions, an Executive Diploma programme in Natural Medicine will be launched in Taiwan after the Chinese New Year next year.
It will be the first programme to be jointly developed and conducted in the field of natural medicine by the Institute of Professional Development, Open University Malaysia (IPD-OUM)), the Integrative Health Academy (IHA) and the Taiwan Natural Medicine Education Organisation (TNMO).
IHA director Dr Cyril Gunapala said the programme would be taught in Mandarin and offered at the diploma and certificate level.
"However, other programmes will be established in the future and the subjects will be taught bilingually (in English and Mandarin)," he said after a visit by a 15-member delegation from TNMO, here, today.
The delegation visited IPD-OUM to follow up on the many discussions that had taken place to jointly develop and conduct programmes in the field of natural medicine in Taiwan, Malaysia and regional countries.
Natural medicine is a form of natural therapy that includes herbal medicine, homeopathy, and traditional Chinese medicine that has had tremendous growth.
Also present were the head of the Taiwanese delegation Prof Master Yung-Ching Ho and president of the Malaysian Association of Natural Medicine Education (MANME) Prof Dr Y.S. Cheng.

Health Minister: Total of 63 hospitals now open to housemen

Star: KAJANG: More hospitals are being made available to universities so that nearly 10,000 medical students can be trained compared to 6,500 housemen now, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
The ministry has added 22 district government hospitals, bringing the total number of hospitals hosting housemen to 63, he said.
“The chosen hospitals will be able to give better service with the addition of more staff and, in return, provide new facilities to train medical students.
“Housemen need to practise their specialties at district level as there is a lack of specialists in district hospitals,” he said after witnessing the signing of three Memoranda of Agreement between the ministry and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar), here, Monday.
The agreements signed would allow UTAR students studying nursing, physiotherapy, biomedical science, biochemistry and microbiology to be placed at one of 13 hospitals or eight health clinics in the country.
Meanwhile, Liow said the Traditional and Complementary Medicine (TCM) bill would not be postponed as all the relevant parties, including Traditional Chinese Medicine associations and practitioners, had been consulted on the Act.
Once the bill is passed, the industry would be registered under a council and regulated the same way doctors are monitored by the medical board.
“Treatment will better regulated and practitioners can be held liable if they do not give proper treatment to their patients,” said Liow, adding that the act would also cut down on fly-by-night TCM practitioners.
Ayurvedic and Traditional Malay medicine practitioners would also be regulated under the new act.
Liow said the objective was not only to regulate and enforce the industry, but to allow the ministry to officially fund research for evidence-based TCM.

Docs: Local med students must sit for licensing exam, too

Star: PETALING JAYA: Senior doctors have called for local medical graduates to also sit for the proposed medical licensing examination which will be imposed on all foreign medical graduates.
Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Dr David Quek said many supervising clinicians have expressed concern about the commitment and quality of some recent graduates from local medical schools.
“There are concerns that some private schools are influenced by profit and adequate teaching facilities and teachers were not the most important criteria,” he said.
Foundation courses were also shortened to three to seven months to attract weaker students, said Dr Quek, adding that a moratorium should be imposed not only on the number of medical schools but also the student intake.
Last Thursday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai told the Dewan Rakyat that the Medical Act 1971 would be amended to allow students to pursue medical studies at any institution of their choice overseas but they would have to sit for the licensing examination when they return home.
Currently, under the Act, only students in unrecognised foreign medical schools are subject to the Malaysian Medical Council’s (MMC) qualifying examination.
A senior doctor, who declined to be named, said local universities should not be exempted from the examination.
“The quality of medical services is in danger of deteriorating, and we need a drastic solution,” the doctor said.
Meanwhile, MMC member Datuk Dr Abdul Hamid Abdul Kadir said it was not necessary for local students to sit for the licensing examination as they were evaluated periodically.
“However, students studying locally with tie-ups to foreign schools should be subject to the exam,” he said.

Act amendment for medic students to pick varsity of choice

NST: KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian students will be able to pursue medical studies at any institution of their choice anywhere in the world once the Medical Act 1971 is amended, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said one of the amendments would be the nullification of the Second Schedule which lists all the 375 recognised medical institutions.
Under this approach, the students would be able to choose the institutions of their choice, provided they obtain the "No Objection" certificate before hand from the Ministry of Higher Education, he said.
"After graduation, the students will have to sit for the Licensing Examination to determine their ability to function as quality and competent doctors," he said when replying to a question from Dr Tan Seng Giaw (DAP-Kepong).
Liow said that students who passed the examination would be eligible to register with the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) to serve as doctors in the country.
"It cannot be denied that it is difficult to conduct regular monitoring of the quality of medical studies by institutions abroad in view of the geographical and logistical factors and prohibitive cost involved in sending an evaluation panel overseas," he said.
Liow said the moratorium on new medical programmes offered at local institutions of higher learning would come into force once it had been approved by parliament.
The moratorium, being worked out by the Ministry of Higher Education with input from relevant government agencies, was necessary to prevent the creation of a surplus of medical graduates, he said.
Liow also said that the number of medical graduands registered with the MMC had grown from 2,527 in 2008 to 3,150 in 2009 and to 3,257 last year.

Medical gear to be of top grade

Star: NILAI: Manufacturers of medical devices will be required to register their products with the Health Ministry soon.
This requirement comes following the soon-to-be introduced Medical Devices Act to ensure healthcare providers only use quality equipment to treat patients.
These medical gadgets, including imported ones, will also have to be registered so that they are protected under the country’s patent rights.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the Medical Devices Bill would likely be tabled in Parliament during this month’s sitting or at the latest during the June session.
“It is time that such provisions are put in place. Apart from safeguarding patients’ rights, we want to ensure inferior medical products are not dumped here by fly-by-night companies,” he said at the opening of the RM30mil BioMolecular Industries Sdn Bhd nuclear medical research and production facility.
He said the ministry had discussions with stakeholders in the industry, who agreed that such provisions should be introduced for the good of all parties.
Alluding to the fact that Malaysia’s medical device industry was still developing, he said such laws were needed as the Government wanted to set high standards for the healthcare sector.
According to estimates by the Association of Malaysian Medical Industries, the medical devices market in the country grew to RM2.7bil in 2010.
It is expected to hit RM2.9bil this year and RM5bil in 2012.
At the launch, BioMolecular Industries chairman Datuk Seri Tai Hean Leng said with the commissioning of the state-of-the-art facility, which was a joint venture between Belgium’s Ion Beam Applications and Masteel Bhd, treatment for cancer, heart and neurological disorders would become more affordable for Malaysians.

Boost for Miri Hospital

Star: MIRI: The Health Ministry has allocated RM20.2mil for the implementation of four major projects at the Miri General Hospital.
They are the construction of two new operation theatres and sterilisation units at a cost of RM8.5mil, a new ward for infectious disease (RM4.5mil), the upgrading of its pathology unit to a medical laboratory (RM5mil), and the construction of a medical laboratory and store for RM2.2mil.
“All the projects will be carried out this year,” said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai during a visit to the hospital.
He said Sarawak received a total of RM1.1bil under the Ninth Malaysia Plan for 118 health-related projects and half of them have been implemented. The remainder, he said, would be continued in the 10th Malaysia Plan.
He also announced yesterday that the ministry was providing an allocation of RM360,000 to the Miri General Hospital, out of which RM260,000 would be for patients who needed treatment in hospitals in Kuching or Kuala Lumpur and RM90,000 would be to help cover the transportation cost of the hospital’s rural patients.
Asked whether there was a plan to build a cancer treatment centre or cardiovascular specialist centre at the hospital, Liow said: “We are in the process of strengthening the number of specialists we have here first.
“Currently, the hospital has 17 specialists and we are looking at increasing the number gradually.”
Apart from a visit to the hospital, Liow is also scheduled to visit various government clinics in the city including the 1Malaysia Clinic at Taman Tunku, attend a dialogue with Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) leaders, a luncheon with Chinese community leaders and a visit to Rumah Panjang Tusi in Marudi.
He will leave Miri this evening.

Revised fees for all hospitals

Star: RAWANG: Private and government hospitals will have to adhere to a revised set of guidelines for doctors’ fees and other medical charges to be announced in March.
A National Medical Arbitration Committee has been established by the ministry to draft the fee schedule and guidelines, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai adding that details of the new fees would be announced later.
Estimating that 30,000 doctors in the country would be governed by the new fee schedule, he explained that the ministry had received many complaints about the high hospital and consultation fees charged by private hospitals.
“The ministry will also monitor all additional hospital fees including those for food and medicine.
“This will ensure patients are not overcharged when they seek medical care,” he said, adding that the previous review of doctors’ consultation fees by the ministry was in 2004.
Liow also said the ministry was looking at cutting costs through outsourcing the sterilisation of medical instruments at government hospitals.
Separately, Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said a mechanism would be included to control the cost of medical charges under the new guidelines on consultation fees and hospital charges.
“The cost of medical treatment at private hospitals will be controlled so that there will be no overcharging,” he said when asked to comment whether consumers would have to pay more.
Earlier, Dr Ismail launched the Malaysian Medical Council’s Annual Practicing Certificate (APC) online application and payment system to facilicate application of APCs by practitioners in the private sector.
Dr Ismail, who is also MMC president, said the system, which would be ready for utilisation on Jan 15, would also enable practitioners to check and update their particulars online from time to time.
He added there are 32,250 medical practitioners registered with the council last year and 4,000 new practitioners were expected to apply for registration this year.
When the Medical Act was gazetted in October 1971, there were only 837 practitioners.

Exam for docs won’t cause brain drain

Star: PETALING JAYA: A proposed amendment to the Medical Act to compel all overseas medical graduates to sit for a common licensing examination will not worsen the brain drain situation, Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said.
“The Malaysian Medical Council examinations are not meant to make things difficult for them but to assess their core knowledge. They should not worry if they have passed their university examinations,” he said.
Dr Ismail, who is also Malaysian Medical Council president, said in view of the weakness in monitoring foreign institutions, the council had proposed to do away with the Second Schedule of the Medical Act, containing the list of recognised foreign medical schools.
“Students can choose any university they wish to attend abroad but they have to sit for and pass a common licensing examination before being accepted for registration,” he said, adding that this was practised in many developed countries.
The proposed examination, which would be different from the current Medical Qualifying Examination for students from unrecognised universities abroad, would ensure that doctors were “fit to practise” as safe and competent doctors, he said.
Recently, Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the examination was one of the proposals it was looking into when amending the Act.
Although the Malaysian Medical Association and senior doctors had suggested that all medical graduates be made to sit for a common examination, Liow said it would only apply to overseas graduates.
It was not necessary for local graduates to sit for the examination as local institutions were easier to monitor, officials said.
However, senior doctors advocated otherwise, claiming that local schools could lower passing grades to make their universities look good.
Recently, The Star reported on the lack of training hospitals to meet the influx of housemen and a doctor had expressed concerns that some graduates lacked core knowledge and could jeopardise patient safety.
Asked where people could get advice on medical schools that met the country’s requirements if the Second Schedule was removed, Dr Ismail said they could get this from colleges and the council.

Liow: Specialists can help ease shortage in district hospitals

Star: SERI KEMBANGAN: The Health Ministry is hiring qualified foreign specialists on a contract basis to provide improved access to medical services at the district level.
Its minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said putting these experts in district hospitals would help reduce congestion in general hospitals.
He said the ministry would work directly with the governments of Egypt, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka to bring good quality specialists in six disciplines – internal medicine, paediatric, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, orthopaedic as well as anaesthesia.
However, this would be a short-term measure while the government trained more local doctors, he told reporters after attending a charity dinner organised by Ser­dang Lions Club on Thursday.
Liow said many district hospitals did not have specialists, so patients turned to general hospitals for medical services.
“The public’s expectation has changed and people prefer to see specialists rather than general practitioners. Currently, we need a few hundred specialists at district hospitals.”
Liow said there were some 30,000 doctors in the government and private sectors, out of which only 5,000 were specialists.
The country has enough doctors, but is short of specialists, he added.

Liow also said employers were required to buy a health insurance policy for their foreign plantation workers and domestic helpers from this year, adding that the Government had decided that employers in the two sectors would have to bear the cost of the insurance.
“For foreign workers who are already working in Malaysia, they are required to purchase their insurance policy within three months (from Jan 1),” he said in a press statement yesterday.
From Jan 1, foreign workers must buy a RM120 premium per year Foreign Worker Hospitalisation and Surgical Scheme (SKHPPA) that provides RM10,000 coverage a year, he said.
Liow said for workers who are currently working in the country, the premium cost would be based on the calculation of days left from the work permit.
“Foreign workers who failed to get the insurance would not be allowed to renew their work permit when the permit expired.”
Liow said 17 insurance companies had agreed to provide the insurance scheme, adding that 11 companies were ready to offer the scheme from Jan 1.
They are AXA Affin General Insurance Bhd, Berjaya Sompo Insurance Bhd, Jerneh Insurance Bhd, Kurnia Insurans (M) Bhd, Lonpac Insurance Bhd, Malaysian Assurance Alliance Bhd, MUI Continental Insurance Bhd, Progressive Insurance Bhd, RHB Insurance Bhd, The Pacific Insurance Bhd, Tokio Marine Insurance (M) Bhd.
Four companies will offer their scheme from Feb 1 and they are Allianz General Insurance Company (M) Bhd, QBE Insurance (M) Bhd, Overseas Assurance Corporation (M) Bhd and Syarikat Takaful (M) Bhd.

Watch on errant hospitals

Star: PETALING JAYA: Private hospitals will be monitored to ensure that they do not put patients through unnecessary procedures just because they have medical insurance, said Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican.
“The ministry will continuously direct private hospitals, managed care organisations (MCO), insurance companies and other interested parties to ensure that the cost of healthcare is reasonable, detailed and transparent.
“This will help patients make informed decisions on getting treatment as they will be more aware of the charges that will be incurred,” he said in a statement here yesterday.
He said the ministry would also look at ways to address the discrepancies between charges for self-paying patients and those with insurance policies as this problem had also contributed to overall healthcare costs.
He said the problem was also compounded by some private hospitals being pressured by their shareholders to charge more to fulfil their key performance index.
His statement came following a meeting last Friday with the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia, Malaysian Medical Asso­ciation, Malaysian Medical Council, hospital chief executive officers, private hospital and MCO representatives, insurance companies and several healthcare professional groups and independent professionals.
“The purpose of the meeting was to explore ways of curbing increasing private healthcare costs,” said Dr Ismail, adding that several points were agreed upon, including making insurance policy holders aware of the medical coverage they were entitled to.
Hospitals, he said, must also inform patients about all professional and potential charges before they were admitted or treated.
He said it was also agreed that MCOs must not interfere with the clinical judgment management of patients by medical practitioners, including by general medical practitioners.

D-G: Private hospitals must report all irregularities

Star: PETALING JAYA: All private healthcare facilities are required, beginning Jan 1, to report incidents that jeopardised patients’ safety to the Health director-general.
These could be cases such as unexplained deaths, brain injuries during a hospital stay, fire causing deaths, assault or battery of patients and haemodialysis patients detected with Hepatitis B or C, Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said.
“These incidents and deaths will be evaluated by special committees to ensure that lessons are learnt and disseminated in order to prevent a recurrence,” said Dr Ismail, who is also the Patient Safety Council of Malaysia chairman.
Under the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act, individual offenders can be fined up to RM10,000 or RM30,000 for a corporation and/or jail for not more than three months, he said yesterday.
He added that he had issued a directive to all private healthcare facilities and services following a national briefing conducted by the Medical Practices Division and Medical Care Quality Section on Dec 17. A document that outlines the processes necessary for patients’ safety titled “Achieving Excellence in Clinical Governance” was launched at the council’s meeting on Tuesday.
It would be distributed to healthcare facilities for implementation.
“The council would monitor the implementation progress on a regular basis,” he said, adding that senior management in hospitals should continue talking to front-line staff on patient safety while he and his team would conduct surprise visits to inculcate a safety culture.
The Patient Safety Council will announce the Patient Safety Goals and Targets that need to be achieved by all healthcare facilities in Malaysia in the near future, he said.
“These goals will cover key safety issues such as medication safety, safe surgery, clinical governance, infection control, prevention of falls, blood transfusion safety, clinical incident reporting, clinical care bundles, patient safety research, patient safety projects; all of which are expected to make the patient care experience a safer one,” he said.
Dr Ismail also said that initiatives to ensure medication safety must be targeted at all levels of the healthcare system since drug therapy or pharmacotherapy was the main form of treatment.

Liow: More docs need to treat obesity

Star: BANTING: The Health Ministry wants 50 new nutritionists to be roped in every year to overcome the shortage of food specialists in government clinics, Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said.
He added that there were only 283 nutritionists registered with the ministry although there were 800 clinics available nationwide. The ministry, he said. aimed to achieve a ratio of one nutritionist to every 10,000 people.
“Our country is deprived of nutritionists, and this may cause an increase in obesity cases in the country,” Liow told reporters after handing over 25 food hampers to a government clinic here yesterday.
Asked on the ideal number of nutritionists that should be employed in government clinics, Liow said his ministry wanted at least 5,000 of them to be employed over the next few years.
“Previously, doctors would advise patients on their diet plans. But now, we want a specialised department for nutritionists to combat obesity,” said Liow, who himself is a food science and nutrition graduate.
He said three local universities provided nutrition training courses and expressed hope that they could produce more qualified nutritionists.
He also said the country had the most cases of obesity compared to its Asian neighbours.
However, he said number of children under the age of five with ideal body weight had increased since 1999.
“In 1999, there were only 79.1% of children under the age of five who had the right body weight, but the percentage has increased to 93.2% in 2009,” he added.
Liow also advised new mothers to breastfeed their babies at least during the first four months, adding that mothers should ensure that their infants received proper nutrition.
“Awareness campaigns will be held to highlight the importance of breast-feeding,” he added.
Liow said that in 1990, 16 out of 1,000 infants born had died because they were not breast-fed, but the number had dropped to six in 2008.

Miri folk can get medicine posted to them

Star: MIRI: A home-delivery service for medicine — the first of its kind in the state — has been launched here.
Initiated by the Health Ministry, patients registered with the Miri Hospital will be able to ask for their medicine to be delivered to their home address using Pos 1Malaysia service at RM6 per delivery.
Miri Divisional Health and Medical Services director Dr Faizul Mansor said the service would eventually be extended to other towns in the state.
“Under the system, anyone who goes for medical check-ups in the Miri Hospital and gets registered as a patient and is treated by a doctor, will qualify for the service.
“When he is at the hospital, he is eligible to get one month’s medicine supply from the pharmacy after his treatment. After that, he can ask the hospital for the home-delivery service,” Dr Faizul explained.
He said the medicine can be delivered to patients for two months.
He added that there were several strict conditions including that the medicine be delivered directly to the patient concerned, and not through a third party; the address of the patient must have a government-recognised postcode; and the medicine must be in tablet form.
“Liquid medicine and powdered medicine will not be delivered in this manner,” said Dr Faizul.
He pointed out that the Miri Hospital was the nucleus hospital for the northern region of Sarawak, serving some 400,000 patients in Sarawak’s northern districts of Miri, Niah, part of Bintulu, Marudi, Limbang and Lawas.
Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin, who launched the service, said: “This service is a big step forward in improving healthcare in Sarawak.
“Patients living far away from Miri have to spend a lot of money just to come to Miri Hospital to get their medicine. Now that this new service is in place, it will help them save travelling expenditure.”
Chin also said riverine folk living along the Baram River would soon be able to get medical treatment and health checks from mobile clinics.
He said the new and innovative services were part of the community-transformation programme initiated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Razak to help improve the quality of life of people living in the far reaches of the state.
Starting next year, the Health Ministry will deploy boats equipped with proper treatment facilities and trained medical staff on the Baram River so that people living in riverine settlements can board them for health checks and medical attention.

Associations lament severe shortage of medical frontliners

Star: PETALING JAYA: Paramedics are the frontliners in the medical services industry but a severe shortage of those qualified in this field is affecting the lives of the people in emergency cases, particularly road accidents.
There have been cases where hospitals could only send out ambulances with just a driver and a junior nurse, thus depriving victims of the crucial medical aid before they reach the hospitals.
Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) president Dr David Quek said:
“Trained paramedics should be in the medical team because they are the frontliners. Unfortunately, the lack of paramedics has made the situation less than ideal for patients in cases of emergencies.”
He said there had been cases where lives could have been saved if they had been given pre-admission medical attention before reaching the hospital.
“Paramedics are needed to perform timely and life-saving emergency medical aid to the seriously wounded while they are being sent to the hospital,” he told The Star.
He said the acute shortage of trained and qualified paramedics to provide on-the-spot treatment to stabilise patients could make a difference between life and death.

St John Ambulance Malaysia (SJAM) commander-in-chief Da­­tuk Dr Low Bin Tick concurred, saying paramedics were difficult to come by.
He said based on SJAM estimates, there were only 50 qualified paramedics in the country.
Expressing concern over the startling figure, he called on the Government to train more paramedics to overcome the shortage.
“The problem arose because of the lack of career opportunities for paramedics to pursue the specialisation full-time and the low salary,” said Dr Low.
He added that there was no clear-cut career path for paramedics.

Malaysian Red Crescent Selangor branch training director S. Rama­nuja Muniandy agreed with Dr Low, adding that paramedics needed the support of the authorities in terms of career advancement.
“Paramedics would usually be employed at emergency units of hospitals and are not sent out on the field,” he said.
Ramanuja said there were many first-aiders or lay-rescuers but not qualified paramedics in the country.
“We give a lot of on-the-job, first-aid and emergency training to employees in factories and ambulance drivers in the private sector.
“However, they are not pursuing it full-time.
“A highly-trained paramedic would need to undergo at least three years of certified intensive training in these areas and be able to give efficient on-the-spot emergency treatment,” he said.
Ramanuja said Malaysia was still lagging behind Western countries like Canada and Britain in terms of giving emergency rescue and medical response to victims of a disaster.
“In Canada, paramedics have a degree in pre-hospital care,” he said.
He said ambulance services would normally focus on transporting patients to a hospital instead of giving them the crucial on-the-spot medical attention.
“The authorities should look into this matter very seriously to prevent unnecessary loss of lives,” he said.

Ministries order five-year moratorium on medical courses

Star: PETALING JAYA: The Government will impose a five-year moratorium on medical programmes as an immediate measure to prevent the glut in housemen from becoming worse.
The moratorium will prohibit the launch of new medical programmes in the country. Existing medical schools will be encouraged to focus more on quality.
It is hoped that this would put the brakes on the rise in the number of housemen.
The move – a joint effort between the Higher Education and Health Ministries – is similar to a moratorium in July which stopped the establishment of new nursing colleges and prohibited the launch of diploma programmes in nursing.
“It should stop more higher education institutions from offering new medical programmes,” Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said.
“We will be able to meet the national target to have a doctor to population ratio of 1:600 by 2015 and 1:400 by 2020 with the present capacity,” he told The Star.
Mohamed Khaled was referring to existing medical programmes in Malaysia’s 10 public universities; 12 local private providers; foreign medical schools; as well as students who were studying at about 50 accredited foreign universities.
The 1:400 ratio has been achieved by many Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development member nations and is often regarded as the benchmark for a developed nation.
Mohamed Khaled said the ministries would examine the effects of the impending moratorium from time to time as private medical schools were bringing in foreign students and this could not be disrupted.
Both ministries, he said, had always worked closely to ensure quality at medical schools.
This was done through regular joint meetings to resolve issues related to healthcare, accreditation panels, professional development activities and the sharing of hospitals and support staff, among others.
He added that his ministry was committed to ensuring the quality of medical graduates and local medical schools had to possess the “appropriate resources”, such as healthy operating budgets; good infrastructure; competent and experienced medical lecturers; and a commitment to student welfare.
On Nov 27, The Star highlighted concerns about a glut on the number of housemen and the quality of fresh medical graduates.
Subsequently, Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai told the Dewan Rakyat on Dec 6 about plans for the moratorium.

Delist poor quality med schools

Star: PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Medical Association wants the Government to stop issuing licences to new medical schools and de-recognise existing ones which are of poor quality.
Its president Dr David Quek said stringent quality mechanisms should also be imposed on existing schools to ensure students are not short-changed.
“If medical schools do not have sufficient teachers or cannot offer adequate patient contact time, their student numbers should be reduced,” he said in an e-mail interview.
Recently, The Star reported that a high number of medical students graduating each year had crowded limited resources resulting in many housemen not having enough patients for adequate training with supervisors being overworked.
Sources also voiced concern that many graduates from lesser-known medical schools did not have adequate core knowledge to treat patients.
Dr Quek urged the Health Ministry to act quickly by sending “weak” new graduates for re-training.
In his blog on MMA News December 2010, he said there were 31,000 doctors and housemen and the Ministry wanted to reduce the doctor-population ratio by achieving 85,000 doctors for a projected 35 million population by 2020.
“This goal of trying to achieve so many doctors in so short a time is happening way too fast and too soon,” he said, adding that the issue was not about doctors wanting to protect their ‘turf’, rather their concern over patient safety.
While there were complaints of a glut in some hospitals, in rural hospitals in Sabah, housemen were complaining of being overworked.
A houseman, who declined to be named, said rural hospitals suffered from a severe lack of doctors and housemen had to work round the clock to care for patients.
“We have to be ‘on-call’ continuously for a whole week and go without sleep on some nights,” he said in an e-mail.
A mother of a houseman based at Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in Cheras also complained that her daughter’s feet had swelled after having to stand for long hours every day.
Acknowledging that there was a severe shortage of doctors in certain hospitals, Dr Quek said the Health Ministry should work out a better distribution mechanism to overcome the problem.

Too many new doctors and too few hospitals to train them

Star: PETALING JAYA: The number of medical housemen undergoing clinical training in most government hospitals has increased and this has given rise to concern that they may not get sufficient experience.
With new medical schools opening up locally and lower fees being offered at new institutions abroad, around 4,000 Malaysian medical students are expected to graduate annually from 350 universities all over the world in the coming years.
Senior Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) consultant physician Datuk Dr S. Jeyaindran said each specialist was supervising four times as many housemen compared to a decade ago.
“Five years ago, one houseman looked after 10 patients in hospital wards at any one time but now it is one to four patients,” said Dr Jeyaindran, who is HKL department of medicine head and national head for medicine at the Health Ministry.
“The concern is that these interns are seeing fewer patients and hence, have fewer opportunities to carry out adequate procedures. In some hospitals, there are more housemen than patients.”
Dr Jeyaindran said they were not only concerned about the increase in numbers but also their attitude.
“Some lack responsibility towards their patients,” he said, adding that there were also those who did not know how to give an accurate diagnosis and relied too much on investigative tools instead of clinical skills and getting the proper patient history.
Malaysian Medical Council ethics committee chairman Datuk Dr Abdul Hamid Abdul Kadir said several specialists had expressed concern about the large numbers and training hospitals were finding it difficult to cope.
“In the past, it was five housemen in each department but now it could be 20 to 30 for each department,” he said, adding that some specialists were overburdened by the workload.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the ministry was aware of the issue and would be increasing the number of training hospitals.
He said the ideal ratio should be one specialist supervising five housemen with one houseman taking care of 14 hospital beds depending on discipline.
There were 38 hospitals providing training to more than 3,058 housemen last year.
However, the number increased to the current 6,253 housemen since the ministry increased the duration of housemanship from one year to two.
“This led to most hospitals, including those in Sabah and Sarawak, having an excess of housemen,” he said.
Hospitals that were chosen must be able to cater to six areas in which housemen need training – medical, surgical, paediatrics, obstetrics and gynaecology, orthopaedic and accident, and emergency, he said.
Liow also said that they would be getting 58 contract specialists from Egypt, India and Pakistan next month to help supervise housemen and reduce the burden of the specialists now.
He also said that the ministry had taken steps to overcome the lack of experience among housemen by making training compulsory for two years instead of one.

More brain docs soon

Star: KUALA LUMPUR: There will be at least two neurosurgeons in each state to provide core neurosurgical works when the Government expands resident services in the discipline, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
Currently, he said, eight states that still did not have resident neurosurgical services were Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Selangor, Negri Sembilan and Malacca.
“We are now training 26 students to become neurosurgeons and once they graduate, we will be able to have at least two neurosurgeons in all these states,” he told reporters after opening the 8th Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons and 1st Asian Neurosurgical Nursing Cong­ress here yesterday.
Liow said there were currently 74 neurosurgeons in the country with only 45 of them in the public sector.
“There is an acute shortage, especially in the east coast, northern region of the peninsula and East Malaysia.
“However, this is still a vast improvement as in 2004 there were only 36 neurosurgeons in the country,” he said.
However, he did not reveal the number of neurosurgeons needed based on the country’s population.
Liow said a comprehensive local training programme in collaboration with international faculties, which was established in 2001, had increased the number of trained neurosurgeons in the country since 2005.
He said the ministry also hoped to strengthen its six regional centres at Johor Baru, Kuala Lumpur, Sungai Buloh, Penang, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu with at least four neurosurgeons each to provide more advanced sub-speciality neurosurgical works.

Specialist centre to start operating on Jan 1, but minus some major services

Star: KUCHING: A long-delayed public specialist hospital in Samarahan will open by Jan 1, but without some major services that were planned initially.
A well-placed source said the facility would begin operations with heart care only, despite high-tech cancer care equipment already being installed at the facility, formerly known as the Sarawak International Medical Centre.
“At this point, all we know is that cancer care will have to wait. We hope cancer services will be included eventually,” said the source, who asked not to be named.
In June, Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr George Chan confirmed talk that the facility, which had never been used, would be converted and renamed the Sarawak Heart and Cancer Hospital.
According to several sources, no clear explanation had been given by the Health Ministry over its sudden back-tracking of planned services for the hospital.
One speculation, the source said, was that the Health Ministry was unsure about spending large amounts of money to operate and run a cancer centre in Sarawak, where specialists were scarce.
“It seems we may have to prove our capabilities first, before the original plan can be implemented. In fact, the ministry’s indecision is actually in line with the Economic Transformation Plan. They are calling for track record before spending,” said the source.
The hospital, which is about 20 minutes drive from Kuching city, has long been in the limelight, mostly for the wrong reasons.
It began construction in 2003 but the project was never completed.
The facility, owned by the state government under Sarawak Specialist Hospital & Medical Centre Sdn Bhd, was planned as a top-end private hospital, which could also do research.
Initially, US-based Mayo Clinic was hired as a consultant, but not long after the building started, the non-profit organisation pulled out. No reason was given.
For almost half a decade, the project was left idle and vacant, until the announcement of the turnaround plan earlier this year.
For now, the facility remains a construction site. Two weeks ago, the Association for Wives of Ministers, Assistant Ministers and Assemblymen (Sabati) visited the facility.
What they saw were buildings being cleaned and decontaminated, while cracked walls were fixed and mouldy ceiling boards changed.
It was understood that a few people closely related to the project were trying to get the association to fund minor projects for the hospital, like converting an existing site office into a half-way house.
Association members were brought to see for themselves the best and worst aspects of the facility.
They saw the linear accelerator – a room-sized device used to pinpoint cancer cells – that had been installed, but were told cancer services might not be available.
“Although there are signboards listing cancer services everywhere, the final decision on whether cancer care would be offered will only be made in the coming weeks,” said another personnel.
With plans up in the air again, even the name of the hospital cannot be finalised.
Meanwhile, National Heart Association Malaysia president Prof Dr Sim Kui Hian, said he was aware of the situation.
“We will begin with the Cardiac Unit first. We are already in the process of moving,” he said.
Dr Sim, who heads the Cardiac Unit at the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) in Kuching, said he preferred not to speculate on the cancer facilities.
“Whatever happens, the heart unit will be operational no later than Jan 1,” he said.
The hospital would be the first new public medical facility in Kuching since Sarawak General Hospital opened in 1910, he said.
“For us to have gone this far in a few months since the turnaround plan was announced is itself quite an achievement,” Dr Sim added.
However, he said Sarawakians deserved better healthcare.
“There are still too many patients waiting for beds in SGH. The hospital bed-population ratio in Kuching must be improved,” he said.

Health Ministry to spur research in IMR and government hospitals

Star: PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry will work with the Special Innovation Unit (Unik) to patent and commercialise innovative products produced by the Institute of Medical Research (IMR) and government hospitals, said Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
The Minister said the IMR and government hospitals had come out with various innovative products that could benefit the public.
“The Health Ministry lauds the setting up of Unik under the Prime Minister’s Department and we hope the unit will spur innovation programmes among government agencies,” he said after opening his ministry’s Innovation Day at Putrajaya International Convention Centre here yesterday.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, when tabling Budget 2011, had announced the setting up of Unik to assist research and development in universities and research centres so that innovative products produced by them could be commercialised.
Later, when opening the The 2010 Pharmaceutical Inspection Cooperation Scheme seminar in Kuala Lumpur, Liow said the generic pharmaceutical products industry would contribute US$5bil (RM15.4bil) in revenue for the country by 2020.
In this regard, he urged bioequivalent (BE) research centres to study quality generic products due to the high demand domestically and internationally because of their lower prices and easy availability.
“At present, there are only six BE centres in Malaysia. This number has to be increased because by 2012, the ministry will make it mandatory for all generic pharmaceutical products to be tested by BE centres so as to ensure only quality products are marketed,” he said.
The three-day seminar, organised by the National Pharmaceutical Control Bureau (NPCB), was attended by participants from 40 countries.

Liow said the ministry was now allowing doctors in the private sector to work in government clinics and hospitals on a contract basis.
He said the move was taken following discussions between the ministry and the Malaysian Medical Association in the wake of complaints that the 1Malaysia clinics had affected the income of doctors running private clinics.
On the health situation in Kedah and Perlis which had been hit by massive floods, Liow said only one case of viral infection had been reported in Perlis, adding that the patient had high fever and was being treated at a hospital.

Only 233 psychiatrists to treat 28 million Malaysians

Star: IPOH: Malaysia is running short of psychiatrists. Health Ministry technical adviser on psychiatry Datuk Dr Suaran Singh Jasmit Singh said the country only has 233 psychiatrists to treat the population, which works out to a ratio of 0.8:100,000.
“The ideal ratio is 1:50,000,” he said after the opening of a public forum on handling stress at Ipoh City Hall yesterday.
Dr Suaran, who is Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta director, said of the 233 psychiatrists available, 15 were attached with the Health Ministry and three with the Defence Ministry.
He added that there were 22 psychiatrists in Perak.
“Their number is just enough to cope with the workload,” he said, reiterating the need for more psychiatrists.
Dr Suaran, however, said that more people were willing to take up psychiatry, which was quite a new medical discipline in Malaysia.
“The ministry is working to increase the number of psychiatrists in the country,” he added.
He noted that the country also had 55 private psychiatrists, but almost 45% of them were based in the Klang Valley.
On the public forum, Dr Suaran said it was organised in conjunction with Hospital Bahagia Ulu Kinta’s 100th anniversary to educate the public on coping with stress.
Perak executive council member Datuk Dr Mah Hang Soon, who opened the forum, said mental illness must be treated.
“People with such illnesses need help and there are a lot of new treatments available,” he said, adding that psychiatric patients also required good care and support from their family members.

Specialist shortage is the heart of the matter

Star: KUALA LUMPUR: About 2,000 to 3,000 children in Malaysia need to undergo cardiothoracic surgery every year but both public and private hospitals can only cater to 1,200 of them due to the lack of specialists in the field, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
He said there were about 180 cardiologists and 58 cardiothoracic surgeons in Malaysia, of whom only 26 cardiologists and 14 cardiothoracic surgeons were in ministry hospitals.
“Treatment for heart diseases is almost unreachable to some due to the rising cost of heart operations and the scarcity of cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons,” he said.
Due to these reasons, the Government had been sending children from poor families to the Naraya Hrudayalaya Hospital in Bangalore, India, for cardiothoracic surgery.
“From July 2008 until Oct 5, 138 children, the majority aged between one and five, have successfully undergone surgery,” he told a press conference after witnessing a joint venture signing ceremony between AriyaDana Equities Sdn Bhd and Narayana Hrudayalaya Pvt Ltd here yesterday.
The deal is a business plan to invest in an existing specialist medical centre in Nilai and collaboration to manage and operate the hospital, which will be known as the Narayana International Medical Centre.
AriyaDana Equities director Nathan Mahalingam said the hospital would initially be refurbished to have 100 beds in six months and upgraded in stages.
“An investment of more than RM250mil will be made within the first five years to achieve this objective,” he said.
Narayana Hrudayalaya chairman Dr Devi Prasad Shetty said a team of cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons would be brought in from Bangalore to join the existing 160 medical staff at the medical centre.
He said the medical centre would be able to conduct cardiothoracic surgery that would cost between 20% and 25% cheaper than other hospitals here.

Malaysia to carry out landmark GM mosquito trial

AFP: KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia's health minister Sunday said the country would carry out a landmark field trial by releasing genetically modified mosquitoes designed to combat dengue fever by the end of the year.
Liow Tiong Lai said the delayed field trials, which were to have begun this month, were now back on track as laboratory tests had been done and the country's biosafety board had approved the mosquitoes' release into a controlled environment.
"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the GM anti-dengue mosquito trial will take place by the end of this year," Liow told AFP.
"On my side everything is clear. Now it's under the ministry of natural resources and environment, who will submit the plan to cabinet for final approval," he said.
Malaysia's death rate from dengue fever has spiralled 53 percent this year and the public is being urged to take action to eradicate the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes -- which spread dengue -- from homes and workplaces.
Liow's comments came ahead of a World Health Organization regional meeting starting on Monday in the Malaysian capital.
WHO regional director Shin Young-Soo welcomed the field trials.
"Over the last 10 years the number of dengue cases in the world has doubled and the situation this year is significantly worse than last year, so we welcome how Malaysia is responding to this threat," he said.
In the first experiment of its kind in Asia, 2,000-3,000 male Aedes mosquitoes are to be released in two Malaysian states.
The insects in the study have been engineered so that their offspring quickly die, curbing the growth of the population in a technique researchers hope could eventually eradicate the dengue mosquito altogether.
Females of the Aedes species are responsible for spreading dengue fever.
However, environmentalists are concerned the GM mosquito could fail to prevent dengue and could also have unintended consequences.
Critics have said the larvae will only die if their environment is free of tetracycline, an antibiotic commonly used for medical and veterinary purposes.
Dengue infection leads to a sudden onset of fever with severe headaches, muscle and joint pains, and rashes, which can lead to death if left untreated.

Understand menopause better, women urged

Star: PETALING JAYA: Many Malaysian women are suffering unnecessarily from menopausal symptoms due to a lack of understanding and a negative perception on treatment methods, said Malaysian Menopause Society president Dr Ho Choon Moy.
She said a survey by Universiti Malaya’s Health Research Development Unit revealed that more than 60% of middle-aged women appeared to be lacking in knowledge about health risks associated with menopause.
On top of that, only 6% of women seek hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in Malaysia, she said, adding that more could be done to increase awareness about menopause. Symptoms associated with menopause such as incontinence, hot flashes, excessive sweating, depression, memory loss, weight gain and osteoporosis can be treated, Dr Ho said at a press conference in conjunction with a World Menopause Day 2010 forum here yesterday.
She said a Women Health Initiative study in 2002 had wrongly created some negative reaction towards HRT treatment.
While there was no increased risk of breast cancer among women who took HRT in less than five years, the study claimed there was an increase of just eight cases (in every 10,000 women) among those who took HRT for more than five years.
“It is actually very low,” said Dr Ho, adding “what people failed to see were the many benefits – prevention of osteoporosis, good skin and teeth, good well-being, 30% increase of lifespan and a better quality of life.”
On herbal remedies, studies in Asia showed that 30% of women take natural or herbal remedies, she said.
On whether menopause could lead to suicide, Dr Ho said severe depression symptom was uncommon.
They were usually nothing more than mood swings, irritability and mild depression, she said.
“Women suffering from depression should get themselves checked to determine whether it was due to menopause or a psychiatric problem,” she said.

Malaysia To Celebrate World Organ Donation Week

Bernama: KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 7 (Bernama) -- For the first time, Malaysia will celebrate World Organ Donation Week with various programmes, aimed at increasing awareness in the registration of pledges to donate organs or tissues after death.
The 2010 Organ Donation Week will be held at the Astaka, Taman Titiwangsa, beginning Oct 17.
Its highlight is the 'Heart Talk' programme jointly organised by the National Heart Institute and IJN Foundation, as tribute to the sacrifices of organ donors and their families.
It also enables organ recipients to express gratitude for a chance at life.
According to Datin Dr Lela Yasmin Mansor, chief national transplant procurement manager of the National Transplant Resource Centre, Kuala Lumpur Hospital, organ donation was always remembered in most developed nations.
For the first time, Malaysia was also celebrating the event, she said Thursday.
The programme will begin with the Life Saver Walk Hunt in the morning, followed by an aerobic exercise before ending with the launch of the Organ Donation Week 2010.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai will officiate the donation week.

Liow To Doctors: Come Back And Serve The Country

Bernama: DUBLIN, Sept 27 (Bernama) -- Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai urged Malaysian medical specialists who are currently working abroad to return and serve their home country.
Saying that although they could show patriotism anywhere in the world, it would be more meaningful if they could return to Malaysia and help strengthen its medical sector which was still facing shortage of specialists.
"We need them. They can either work in government or private hospitals," he said after meeting 22 Malaysian doctors and specialists here.
Liow said that at the meeting, several doctors expressed willingness to return while others said they needed more time to consider the matter and to gain more experience.
The government, Liow said, would provide facilities for the returning specialists in terms of promotions and salaries, saying the government would not stop them from joining the private sector.
Those working with the government would also be provided with assistance to further their studies and that they would be considered for promotions in various grades such as the UD43, UD47, UD51 and UD53 depending on their experience and qualifications.
At the meeting, Liow told them of the various improvements implemented by the government in the medical service especially in the specialist sector.
He said that time-based promotions had been implemented which allowed UD41 house officers to achieve the UD54 grade in 12 years, for non-specialists, and in nine years for specialists.
Doctors in government service also had ample training opportunities through programmes such as the "Open Master's Programme" which was given to 600 doctors since 2008 and would be increased to 800 next year, he said.
Also present at the meeting were Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk S.K. Devamany and Deputy Foreign Minister Datuk Richard Riot.
Meanwhile, Dr Tidi Maharani Hassan, one of the specialists at the meeting, expressed regret over the perception that doctors who served abroad were wasting the government's money.
Dr Tidi Maharani, who at 27 is the youngest specialist in Dublin, said many Malaysian doctors decided to serve abroad to gain experience which would be useful when they later return to serve their home country.
The pulmonologist said she was grateful for all the assistance given by the government but said that she took up employment abroad because of the laboratory facilities available apart from the training given.
Another doctor, Dr Kama Muhammad, 38, a consultant surgeon, urged the government to carry out improvements in all aspects of the medical service, not just in terms of the salary scales.

Six health institutes to come under one roof

Star: KUCHING: Six research institutes under the Health Ministry will be brought together under one roof to better serve the people.
The institutes for Medical Research, and of Public Health, Health Management, Health System Management, Health Behaviour Research and Clinical Research Centre will be housed in the proposed 1National Institutes of Health (1NIH) integrated complex in Setia Alam, Shah Alam. They are currently spread all over town.
Health Deputy Director-General Datuk Dr Maimunah Abdul Hamid disclosed that the Cabinet had approved the project which would be developed in a few years. The building cost has not yet been ascertained.
“We want all the six research institutes under the ministry under one roof,” she told reporters after opening the state Health Research Day in conjunction with Sarawak General Hospital’s 100th anniversary yesterday. “They were spread out because they were created one after the other.”
She said it was important for these centres to come together since health issues were interconnected.
“A lot of problems are not answered by one research question.
“Take dengue, for example. It involves research on the virus itself, people’s behaviour and how to deal with it.
“It’s all integrated,” she said.
Dr Maimunah also said the ministry would work with the tourism sector to promote healthcare to foreigners, especially those in the region and the Middle East.

Johns Hopkins University to set up medical school and hospital in Malaysia

Star: NEW YORK: The world-renowned teaching and research medical institution Johns Hopkins University will be setting up a medical school and hospital in Malaysia.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said a site at Serdang in Selangor had been picked to set up the facilities, which would become a medical research hub for the region.
The medical school, he said, would offer a four-year programme, adding that it would be a private initiative between Malaysian and American investors.
It will be Malaysia’s first private teaching hospital with research facilities.
Speaking to Malaysian newsmen here on Friday evening, he said an agreement would be signed early next month.
The Prime Minister did not give details of the project but it is understood that a Malaysian public listed company would be involved in the medical city plan, estimated to cost RM1.8bil.
There are Johns Hopkins University campuses in China, Singapore, Italy and the United States. The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, is a private, non-profit institution.
Earlier, Najib met Dr Mohan Chellappa, the president of Global Ventures, Johns Hopkins Medicine International, where the Prime Minister was believed to be given an update on the 600-bed private hospital.
The prime minister said Johns Hopkins Medical International was a world-renowned medical school and had adopted a different curriculum compared to other schools.
“They are using the ‘Genes to Society’ curriculum, which is a more personalised medical approach,” he said, adding that the school provided a four-year programme and planned to take 100 students each year.
“Johns Hopkins has got a very good name. The idea is to create Malaysia as a hub,” he added.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai in welcoming the move said the presence of such a prestigious research facility in the country would boost Malaysia’s health tourism industry.
This, he said, was another feather in the cap for the country’s healthcare industry and would also prompt more Malaysian-born specialists and other health care professionals to come back and serve in the country.
Liow is currently in London in an effort to persuade Malaysian professionals involved in healthcare to return home and serve the country.
“I am here to convince them to return home and serve. I believe many will find it more gratifying to work in Malaysia now,” he said when contacted.
He is also speaking to Malaysian medical students and fresh graduates to convince them to return home once they complete their studies.

Firm working on vaccine to treat HFMD

Star: GEORGE TOWN: A Malaysia-based biotech company is set to develop a vaccine in eight years for the EV71 virus, which causes the infectious and potentially fatal hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD).
The company embarking on this ambitious task is Sentinext Therapeutics Sdn Bhd with its laboratory in Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Penang.
Its chief scientific officer Prof Dr Jane Cardosa said there was currently no vaccine or anti-viral agent to prevent or treat EV71 infection.
She added that the lab had found a vaccine candidate and was going through pre-clinical tests.
“Hopefully after 18 months, we can move to Phase 1 where we will test its safety on humans followed by efficacy trials (Phase 2). If the vaccine is taken up when it is (fully) developed, children can be protected from EV71, HFMD and some other diseases,” she said at a media briefing in USM yesterday.
“However, we won’t see the end of HFMD as it can still be caused by other viruses.”
The 59-year-old professor retired as Universiti Sarawak Malaysia Institute of Health and Community Medicine director in late August and is now a visiting professor at USM.
The vaccine being developed by Sentinext Therapeutics is a significant breakthrough because the EV71 virus has been consistently causing outbreaks of HFMD in many countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Prof Cardosa said the Singapore government had funded a company to research and develop a vaccine for the virus but it ceased operations after running out of funds.
The China government has also invested in a similar project but has a different approach from what Prof Cardosa’s lab is doing.
“Our vaccine is formulated from empty capsids to mimic the virus particle but there is no genome. So, it is not infectious,” she said.
Sentinext Therapeutics received a RM40mil fund from the Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund and Malaysian Technology Development Corp.
Besides developing and researching a vaccine for EV71, the company is also looking at vaccines for other tropical infectious diseases like malaria and dengue.

Rules on healthcare ads relaxed, says Liow

Star: PUTRAJAYA: Private healthcare providers will now be able to advertise their services in all mediums following the government’s decision to liberalise provisions under the Medicines (Advertisement and Sales) Act 1965, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai.
Liow said this would allow private healthcare providers to make their services available to both locals and foreigners.
He said the move was in line with the Government’s decision to promote health tourism in Malaysia and raise the number of foreigners coming here by 20% annually from 336,000 visitors last year.
The liberalisation would also ensure that Malaysia maintained its competitiveness in attracting health tourists.
“The liberalisation of the provisions, which comes into effect immediately, will allow private hospitals, clinics and even dental clinics to advertise their facilities and services in newspapers, the electronic media and on the Internet as well as put up banners to announce new facilities.
“They can also advertise abroad but they will have to abide by the laws in those countries as well as the laws here.
“They can mention the latest equipment or treatment they have but they are not to use superlatives like ‘best’ or make comparisons,” he told a press conference after attending his ministry’s Hari Raya celebration.
Before this, private healthcare providers were only allowed to advertise through healthcare magazines and related publications and were not allowed to place advertisements outside Malaysia.
Liow said to further help the industry’s growth, the ministry’s Medicines Advertising Board had also shortened the time to approve applications for advertisements from six weeks to between three and five days now.
He however warned that the ministry would keep close tabs on advertisements related to the industry and those flouting the law would face a fine of up to RM3,000 and a year’s jail or both for the first offence and up to RM5,000 fine or two years’ jail or both for subsequent offences.
He said healthcare providers could go to www.pharmacy,gov.my or contact the ministry’s secretariat on medical advertisements at 03-7841 3200.
He said the ministry would also launch a large-scale campaign against dengue in Kelantan after the number of cases in the state rose by 160%

Malaysia's dengue death rate spirals 53 percent this year

AFP: KUALA LUMPUR — Malaysia said Monday its dengue fever death rate spiralled 53 percent this year, but backed away from a controversial trial of releasing genetically modified mosquitoes to wipe out the disease.
"There was a major rise in deaths due to dengue fever, with 107 deaths so far this year compared to 70 deaths for the same period last year," said deputy premier Muhyiddin Yassin.
Muhyiddin said the majority of the deaths could have been avoided, and urged the public to take action to eradicate the Aedes aegypti mosquitoes -- which spread dengue -- from their homes and workplaces.
"We have identified 19 hotspots throughout the country where the disease is prevalent, and action is being taken to tackle the situation in these areas," he said.
However, Muhyiddin was cool on a plan to release genetically modified mosquitoes designed to combat dengue fever, in a proposed landmark field trial that has come in for criticism from environmentalists.
In the first experiment of its kind in Asia, 2,000-3,000 male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were to be released in two Malaysian states in October or November if the plan had won government support.
The insects in the study have been engineered so that their offspring quickly die, curbing the growth of the population in a technique researchers hope could eventually eradicate the dengue mosquito altogether.
Females of the Aedes species are responsible for spreading dengue fever.
Muhyiddin said the project would not be implemented "at the moment".
"Seemingly it is quite an interesting (solution) to deal with such a problem but I think... not until and unless every aspect of research being carried out is clinically tested and... environmental issues have been addressed," he said.
"And of course most importantly at the end of the day, it is endorsed by international organisations -- that it is something we can apply for the purposes of dealing with the epidemic."
The development is a boon for environmentalists who were were concerned the GM mosquito could fail to prevent dengue and could also have unintended consequences.
Critics have said the larvae will only die if their environment is free of tetracycline, an antibiotic commonly used for medical and veterinary purposes.
The field trial for the GM anti-dengue mosquitoes was developed by a British-based insect bio-tech company, Oxitec, and was to be undertaken by the Malaysia's Institute for Medical Research, an agency under the health ministry.
Dengue infection leads to a sudden onset of fever with severe headaches, muscle and joint pains, and rashes.
The virus has historically been found in tropical regions, particularly in urban and semi-urban areas, but has spread in recent years to colder and higher places and is now endemic in more than 100 countries.

Liow: Lack of child nutrition a concern

Star: BENTONG: New mothers should breastfeed their babies for at least six months.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said there was a drop in the number of mothers who continuously breastfed their babies for at least four months, from 29% to 19% between 1996 and 2006.
“This shows we need to raise awareness to encourage more mothers to breastfeed.
“The first six months are crucial for the child’s growth, so good nutrition, especially mother’s milk is crucial before introducing the child to semi-solids or solids,” he told reporters yesterday after handing out food hampers to 52 malnourished children in Bentong Hospital.
On the large number of malnourished children up to six years old in the country, Liow urged local and district health authorities to strengthen monitoring and raising awareness among parents, especially in rural areas, to provide adequate nutrition for their children.
“In Malaysia, the practice of ensuring proper nutrition for infants is less than satisfactory,” he said.
Liow added there were 11,796 undernourished children nationwide, half of whom were in the rural areas.
He said undernourished children were usually from poverty-stricken families or those whose diets were not nutritionally balanced.
He said the National Health and Morbidity Survey in 2006 also showed that only 41.4% of Malaysian infants were given proper nutrition.
“The time from birth to two years old is the most critical. If a child is malnourished at this stage and suffers stunted growth, it will not be easy to remedy when the child grows older,” he cautioned.
On another matter, Liow said the Cabinet had given the go-ahead for a national council for local government aimed at stopping the spread of dengue. It would be chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
The first inter-agency coordination meeting led by the Housing and Local Government and Health Ministries would be held after Hari Raya, he said.
“This meeting will include executive councillors from all states. We need to find ways and means to fight dengue in a more concerted effort,” he said.