Disinfectant sprays at Sarawak border - FEB 4, 2004

INDONESIAN travellers entering East Malaysia's Sarawak state are being sprayed with disinfectant in a bid to prevent the spread of bird flu.

State Agriculture Department staff at the Serikin checkpoint also sprayed disinfectant on the tyres of vehicles entering the country from Kalimantan, the New Straits Times said.

The department, with the assistance of the police and military, is mounting 24-hour checks along the border with Indonesia to prevent the smuggling of poultry into the country.

Several Indonesians have been turned away for attempting to bring in chicken through Serikin, about 70 km from the state capital Kuching. -- AFP

Bird Flu Watch: Malaysia on full alert, says Chua

MUAR, Feb 3:
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The country is on full alert against any outbreak of the bird flu, Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng said today.
He said tests on chicken farms by the Veterinary Services Department nationwide showed no sign of the virus.

He said security forces at the Malaysia-Thailand border were also stepping up checks to prevent smuggling of chicken products and livestock.

Chua said strict enforcement was needed to stop any attempt to smuggle in dressed chicken from Thailand which is sold at RM3 per kilo there compared to RM5 per kilo in Malaysia.

"We are monitoring the situation closely and will act swiftly if the need arises,” he told reporters after attending two Gong Xi Fa Cai celebrations organised by Chinese associations and community here.

Chua said the ministry was also concerned over the re-emergence of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in China and fears in Vietnam that pigs might have caught the bird flu, which could result in a new and powerful strain that could be passed on to humans.

He called on private hospitals and clinics to notify the ministry immediately of suspected bird flu victims.

In the event of an outbreak here, he said measures similar to those used to contain SARS would be put into effect.

Chua also advised those returning from countries affected with the bird flu or with symptoms such as sore throat, fever and cough, to seek immediate treatment.

Sabah bans chicken imports from West Kalimantan

KOTA KINABALU Feb 1 - Sabah has imposed an immediate ban on imports of chicken and related products from Indonesia following reports of bird flu outbreak in West Kalimantan.

State Agriculture and Food Industries Minister Datuk Abdul Rahim Ismail said the ban covered all types of chicken, turkey, pheasant, quail, geese, rooster, eggs, hatching eggs as well as frozen and processed chicken.

"The ministry is seeking the cooperation of the authorities manning the border between Sabah and Kalimantan, particularly in Tawau, to help enforce the ban," he said in a statement Sunday.

Neighbouring Sarawak has also imposed a similar ban.

Rahim urged traders, air, sea and land passengers from Indonesia not to bring in the banned products into Sabah.

"All enquiries on the ban can be directed to the Sabah Veterinary Services and Animal Industry Department," he said.

Rahim said Sabah was still free from the deadly birdflu virus and his ministry was monitoring all chicken farms in the state to detect any signs of disease.

The ministry would also conduct checks on migratory birds to determine whether they carried the killer virus, he added.

Weaker US dollar leads to higher medicine prices

PETALING JAYA: The depreciation of the US dollar will have an “indirect effect” on the price of medicines and health supplements if American manufacturers import raw materials from countries with currencies which have appreciated against the greenback.

Boehringer Ingelheim general manager (Malaysia/ Singapore/ Brunei) Tan Ki Sing said main currencies like the euro, Swiss franc, sterling pound and Australian dollar were becoming stronger.

“Therefore, the cost of products would be higher if manufacturers imported raw materials from European countries and Australia.

“This is the reason for the increase in the price of medicines and health supplements lately,” he added.

Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society president John Chang advised consumers to switch to local products if they could not afford the imported items.

“We should support products made in Malaysia as they are also of good quality,” he said.

Fairchem Pharmacy Sdn Bhd pharmacist Elaine Khoo said the price of medicines and health supplements manufactured in the US saw the most obvious rise compared to items from European countries and Australia.

“The price of these items have increased to about 50% last month. In the end, consumers will be the ones who feel the pinch as we have no other way but to pass the cost to them.

“However, it will not affect pharmacies or consumers much as we can always switch to cheaper brands,” she said.

Yahoo! News - Bird Flu May Have Passed Between Humans

Does this spell bad news for Malaysia and the rest of Asia?:

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HANOI, Vietnam - Two sisters who died of bird flu in Vietnam may have caught the disease from their brother, in what would be the first known case of human-to-human transmission of the illness in its current outbreak, the World Health Organization (news - web sites) said Sunday.
The source of the two sisters' infection has not yet been conclusively identified, said Bob Dietz, a WHO spokesman in Hanoi.

"However, WHO considers that limited human-to-human transmission from the brother to his sisters is one possible explanation," he said.

Laboratory tests in Hong Kong verified that the sisters, aged 23 and 30, had been infected by the H5N1 bird flu virus, he said.

Vietnam now has a total of 10 confirmed cases of bird flu — eight of whom have died. One 8-year-old girl remains in a Ho Chi Minh City hospital while a 4-year-old boy has recovered and been discharged.

Seven of the cases are children under 14 years of age.

"The investigation failed to reveal a specific event, such as contact with sick poultry, or an environmental source to explain these cases," WHO said of the sisters' deaths. "At the same time, such exposures cannot be discounted, either."

The two women became sick after attending their brother's wedding reception. Their 31-year-old brother died Jan. 14 but was cremated so no samples were available to determine whether he also had bird flu.

The sisters, whose identities have not been released, were admitted to the Institute of Clinical Research for Tropical Medicine on Jan. 13 and died Jan. 23.

Health officials have said they believe the disease is contracted through contact with sick chickens. Up until now, there has been no evidence of human-to-human transmission.

Health officials have warned of the danger that the bird flu virus could combine with a human influenza virus. The two flu viruses could swap genes, resulting in a hybrid with the virulence of bird flu and the contagiousness of human flu, triggering a possible global flu pandemic.

Avian influenza has swept through Asia, infecting millions of chickens in at least 10 countries. Thailand has reported two confirmed human deaths. Governments have been scrambling to destroy the infected birds in a bid to contain the epidemic's spread.

There were instances of limited transmission between people of the H5N1 virus during an outbreak of bird flu in Hong Kong in 1997 which killed six people. That outbreak never developed into a significant public health threat.

Database on patients with SARS, bird flu symptoms:

A nationwide database on patients with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and avian flu symptoms is being planned.

Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng said the Government was concerned about the reemergence of SARS in China and the avian flu outbreak in 10 countries that had claimed 10 lives. The ministry's concern came in the wake of fears in Vietnam that pigs may have caught the bird flu which could result in a new and powerful strain that could be passed on to humans.

"The compilation of database on patients with SARS and avian flu symptoms is part of our national surveillance programme to ensure no one in the country is infected with the diseases," Chua said at his Chinese New Year open house in Bukit Damansara today.

He said government hospitals, clinics and health centres had been told to start compiling information of patients, including foreigners, coming in with the symptoms. They were also told to ask if the patients had been to countries affected by SARS and avian flu.

"Specimens from patients suffering from the symptoms such as atypical pneumonia will be sent for laboratory tests," he said.

Government hospitals, clinics and health centres have to send their database, including laboratory test results, to their State Health Departments which in turn will send the data to the ministry.

"We will then study if there has been a dip or rise in the number of people suffering from flu, atypical influenza and atypical pneumonia. The report will also reveal whether the victims were suffering from normal pneumonia or whether there is a need for concern," he added.

An AFP report today said that Beijing had reported a new confirmed case of SARS, bringing the number of confirmed cases in China to four.

Meanwhile, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam have reported outbreaks of avian flu in poultry, while Taiwan and Pakistan have reported weaker strains of the virus.

The virus has claimed 10 lives, eight in Vietnam and two in Thailand.

"Private hospitals and clinics will also help in the national surveillance," said Chua.

Asked whether the avian flu was more serious than SARS, Chua said it was not as the flu was transmitted from poultry to humans, and not from human to human.

"Although no cases of SARS or avian flu have been reported so far, the nation is on the alert with tight security at the borders to prevent the smuggling of livestock from affected countries."

‘MedikTV’ goes on call

The programme launch of ‘MedikTV’ gave the VIP guests, including Health Minister Datuk Dr Chua Jui Meng, the jitters when one of the production crew passed out on the stage.
Nurfarahin Jamsari, who is the co-host of the weekly medical programme, was about to introduce the crew on stage when one of them had a heart attack. Panic then ruled the floor.
The minister was aghast, and health experts from several specialist hospitals in Klang Valley were awestricken. Should we help?
The MedikTV production crew, one a plastic surgeon and the other an orthopaediatrician, were on hand to perform CPR, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation, while others gripped their seats in fear.
The MedikTV senior broadcast journalist survived, of course, as it was just an act, but what if it wasn’t? Would the general public know how to react?
At the press launch, MedikTV asked and made an important statement – don’t ignore your health.
The half-hour programme aired live every Saturday at 5.30pm is packed with crucial health facts to exterminate mythical beliefs on certain medical conditions.
The station’s chief executive officer Datuk Farid Ridzuan said the programme would give the audience an in-depth report on the issues it tackled without the jargon.
“The programme will be informative yet not filled with medical jargon. We want our viewers to be able to understand the diseases or ailments and seek proper treatment,” said Farid.
The programme, however, received feedback on being too brief, giving the audience and the issues discussed limited time on air, despite being well-researched.
“We’re aware of this and if the need arises we will extend the airtime accordingly,” said Farid.
The programme helmed by senior producer Mazlin Nordin underwent four months of research before any production works.
“None of the production crew had medical training, let alone been doctors. But we have to put together this programme, understand the issues and let it reach our viewers,” said Mazlin Nordin.
Mazlin understood the challenge to equip the crew with medical knowledge in order to produce a factual, credible and serious programme like MedikTV.
“The time spent on research was unlike any other programmes that I did before,” said the senior producer whose experiences include producing Majalah 3, Nona and Misteri Nusantara.
“MedikTV’s approach is different. We have to be specific and there’s no room for guessing. Everything is factual, detailed and correct to the issue, right down to pronunciation.”

The MedikTV crew has sought co-operation from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Hospital to advise and counsel.
The hospital generously ‘loaned’ two of its young experts to partake in the show: Dr Mohamed Nasir Zahari and Dr Ismail Saiboon.
Dr Mohamed Nasir co-hosts the programme with Nurfarahin, who regularly appears in Malaysia Hari Ini (TV3 morning talk show) advising on health matters.
Dr Ismail assisted the crew on emergency tips, for example how to perform a CPR and other medical matters featured on the show, right down to correct pronunciation and jargon translations.

“They’re a boon to the show,” said Mazlin.
The programme got the crew donning surgical masks and sterilised robe to film surgeries in operation theatres.
“If the operation takes 10 hours, they will have to stay until the end.”
Patients’ privacy are also looked into as they will have to sign an agreement to be documented on the show.

One thing worries Mazlin – keeping the show human.
“That’s the most challenging aspect of the show. We can get loads of information but to research for a human angle is even more difficult. Without it, the programme will become dry and banal.”
The programme features patients fighting diseases and other conditions. Some cases even lead to tragic aftermaths which altered their whole lives.
“What we offer are insights into the lives of these patients, how to deal with these conditions, and what options are available.
“We also talk on the symptoms of these conditions, so that our audience will be more aware of their health, and therefore help them make better decisions,” said Mazlin.

Popularity of the show is on the rise judging from the call-ins.
“We can only take two calls but the lines are jammed,” she said.
According to Farid, if everything goes well, including viewership rating and interest of sponsors, the programme will be extended and a second season will be considered.

MedikTV is aired every Saturday at 5.30pm.

Malaysia prevents bird flu outbreak effectively: minister

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan. 30 (Xinhuanet) -- The measures taken by the government so far had been effective in preventing outbreak of the bird flu in Malaysia, Health Minister Chua Jui Meng said on Friday.

"Although many countries, including our neighbors, have been affected by the outbreak, we are still safe," he told a press conference at his office here.

Chua said Malaysia was prepared to face the outbreak and had taken initial preventive step by banning poultry imports from Thailand, apart from drawing up specific action plans if the disease spread to Malaysia.

He said his ministry had not received any reports of the bird flu or avian flu virus attacking the poultry bred in the country.

So far, 10 people -- eight in Vietnam and two in Thailand -- died of the epidemic, while countries like South Korea, China, Cambodia, Laos, Japan, Pakistan, Chinese Taiwan and Indonesia haveconfirmed the spread of the virus to the World Health Organization(WHO) in Geneva.

Chua said if the outbreak reached Malaysian shores, the first step that must be taken was to destroy the chicken and ducks in the farms to ensure the virus did not infect human beings.

"This step has been taken in Hong Kong, the United States and in the Netherlands not long ago, it proved successful to contain the disease," he said.

Chua also urged livestock breeders to monitor and submit reports to the ministry as soon as possible if they spotted signs of infection in their animals besides carrying out immunization.

The ministry had also ordered hospitals and medical laboratories to be ready to face the possibility of having to dealwith the virus like conducting early diagnosis of the disease, quarantine or monitor the affected areas, he said.

He said the Veterinary Services Department had also been asked to monitor bird sanctuaries and other locations to detect if the bird flu virus was carried by migratory birds.

Earlier, Chua attended a meeting in Bangkok, which discussed the bird flu outbreak along with agriculture and health ministers from the region, besides officers from the European Union, the United States, World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Enditem

Don't import chickens with bird flu, farmers told

POULTRY farmers have been told not to import chicken affected by bird flu, Sin Chew Daily reported National Public Health Laboratory consultant virologist Dr Chua Kaw Bing as saying.

He said poultry farmers should learn from the Nipah virus outbreak which was caused by a small group of pig farmers who purchased affected pigs due to low prices.

Dr Chua urged poultry farmers to follow the directive from the Agriculture Ministry and the Health Ministry.

The daily also reported that the Federation of Livestock Farmers’ Association of Malaysia as urging poultry farmers to report to the Veterinary Services Department if a large number of chickens died in their farms.

The association’s broiler unit chairman Yap Kim Hwah said this would enable the officers from the department to collect samples for tests to prevent any possible spread of the bird flu.

Yap said locally bred chicken was safe to consume and he had not received any reports of local farms being affected by the bird flu.

He said the department had also instructed the poultry farmers to increase hygiene standards at farms.

Yap said his association would brief members on the directives from the department so that they would carry out the preventative measures.

Nanyang Siang Pau quoted Veterinary Services Department director-general Datuk Dr Hawari Hussein as saying his department would intensify random checks to ensure locally bred chicken would be safe for consumption.

He gave assurance that affected chickens and eggs would not be on sale in the market.

Meanwhile, Sin Chew reported that the United Chinese School Teachers Association, or Jiao Zong, has urged those accepted for study in the Chinese Language section of the Teacher Training Colleges to report to their colleges.

Jiao Zong hoped they would become primary and secondary school teachers after undergoing the training as they could help ease the lack of Chinese language teachers in schools as well as contribute to Chinese education.
--
Note: Dr Chua Kaw Bing is the discoverer of the Nipah virus

M'sia prepared to cull chickens if need arises


MALAYSIA said yesterday it remains free of the bird flu that has hit regional neighbours Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia - but is ready to take measures that could include the mass slaughter of chickens should the need arise.

Contingency plans, including practices 'institutionalised after the Nipah outbreak, are already in place', said Health Minister Chua Jui Meng.

In a one-year period over 1998 and 1999, the government oversaw the slaughter of more than a million head of swine, as well as some cats and dogs, in a bid to stem the outbreak of the Nipah strain of the Japanese Encephalitis virus, which claimed about 100 lives.

The Agriculture Ministry's Veterinary Services Department 'already has a plan and we are happy with the plan' in the event that bird flu is detected in Malaysia, Mr Chua said yesterday.

Singapore's Agri-food and Veterinary Authority said on Monday that it will curtail imports of live chickens from Malaysia, estimated at some 120,000 a day, should bird flu spread to Malaysia.

Malaysia's poultry farming industry is almost self-sufficient, and the latest figures from the Agriculture Ministry show the country exported RM580 million (S$259 million) of live poultry, processed chicken and eggs in 2001.





According to data released in the Economic Report 2004 in September last year, the government expects output of eggs and poultry this year to increase 16.2 per cent and 13.8 per cent respectively.

Poultry farmers continued to remain upbeat yesterday, although investors on the Malaysian Securities Exchange (MSEB) sold down poultry-related counters for a second straight day.

'We are not affected as there have been no cases of the virus in Malaysia,' said Alex Ding, group managing director of DBE Gurney. DBE, which is among the top five live-broiler producers in Malaysia, intends to proceed with plans to expand operations to include producing frozen chickens and chicken parts for exports, he said.

DBE's RM14 million initial public offer for a second board listing on MSEB closes this week.

Malaysia: High alert against unusual flu cases

MALAYSIA is on high alert for any unusual deaths among its poultry stock and any spike in human flu cases despite barring chicken imports to prevent the avian influenza from entering the country.

Officials said they are prepared to start culling livestock if the bird flu infects animals.


Malaysia produces more than one million chickens a year and Singapore imports live chickens - some 120,000 a day - only from Malaysia.

Malaysian Customs and veterinary officials are keeping an especially close watch on the porous Malaysia-Thai border for any attempt to bring in poultry from Thailand.

'There must be no smuggling of chicken. This happened during the Nipah virus outbreak,' said Health Minister Chua Jui Meng yesterday. When the deadly Nipah virus struck Malaysia's pig population in 1999, unscrupulous farmers breached quarantine rules by smuggling out infected pigs to uninfected farms.

This led to the disease spreading throughout the country. More than 100 farm workers died as a result.

'I want to ask Malaysians not to be tempted by cheap prices and engage in smuggling,' Datuk Chua said.

He said procedures for dealing with any possible outbreak of the avian influenza had been institutionalised and was based on lessons learnt during the Nipah and Sars outbreaks.

Health officials at all government clinics, especially in the rural areas, have been asked to report any unusual flu cases, particularly among farm workers.

Farm workers and government veterinary officials are also on the lookout for unusual deaths among the chicken population.

Datuk Chua said government laboratories have so far only detected the human flu virus among cases sent for tests.

'It is very comforting. So far, there has been no big jump in flu cases,' he added.

The minister will attend a meeting in Bangkok today on the bird flu crisis.

Malaysia to cooperate with Singapore and ASEAN to contain bird flu

SINGAPORE: Malaysia's Health Minister said his country will work with Singapore and other ASEAN countries to prevent the bird flu from spreading.

Speaking to reporters in Singapore, Mr Chua Jui Meng says ASEAN Health Ministers will meet in Thailand next week to discuss the issue and prevent the smuggling of birds and animals across borders.

"We have banned the imports of meat as well as live chicken from Thailand. That's done by their agriculture ministry and health officers, public health officers are working very closely with the vets to make sure there's no infiltration of any animals or birds illegally.

"The Ministry of Health is helping to advise the farmers to protect themselves in the unlikely event of any infection but there is none so far in Malaysia and we intend to keep it that way," said Mr Chua who was part of the Malaysian delegation on a visit to Singapore led by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi.

The deadly strain of avian influenza has killed six people in Vietnam and had infected both humans and chickens in Thailand. - CNA

Chicken products from Thailand banned

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 23:
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Malaysia has banned with immediate effect the import of live chicken, eggs and chicken meat from Thailand following an outbreak of bird flu in the kingdom.
Thailand has also voluntarily stopped all chicken exports following the confirmed cases of bird flu in the country today.

Thai medical authorities also announced the first death of a person suspected to have contracted the disease, a 56-year-old man who raised fighting cocks at his home.

Agriculture Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said today that he had asked Veterinary Services Department director-general Datuk Dr Hawari Hussein to inform all importers of the ban.

He said the ministry had initially suspended the import of live chicken and eggs several days ago following reports of possible bird flu cases in Thailand.

"With confirmation now, we are banning imports totally," he said. The ban remains effective until further notice.

A similar ban is imposed on Vietnam where another 17 people are believed to be infected with the H5N1 strain of avian influenza which has also been reported in Japan and South Korea.

Meanwhile, wire agencies confirmed yesterday that two Thais have caught the bird flu which has already killed five Vietnamese.

"The result from the Department of Medical Science said two were positive and one was negative," Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan said, referring to tests on three patients.

The two, boys aged six and seven from different provinces west of Bangkok, were in "critical but stable" condition, she said.

Children appear most at risk. No one knows why, but four of the five killed in Vietnam were children.

Bird flu affects people who have come into contact with diseased chicken. The first symptoms are fever and bronchitis.

The World Health Organisation has expressed fears that bird flu could evolve into an epidemic worse than SARS. The European Union, Hong Kong and Bangladesh have also banned Thai poultry.

Leong Hup Holdings Bhd executive director Datuk Francis Lau, one of the country's largest producers of chicken, said that Malaysia was self-sufficient in meeting the country's chicken demand and imports very little chicken meat for processing.

"Malaysia is free from the avian influenza," Lau added.

"We produce RM400 million worth of chicken meat per year, and less than five per cent, about RM20 million worth, is imported.

The Leong Hup Group operations cover poultry breeding, slaughtering, processing and retailing. Its products are marketed under the brand name of "Ayam A1". Its breeder farm is one of the largest in the country producing about 100 million chicks a year, about 26 per cent of the local market.

In Brussels, Alberto Laddo-mada, a European Commission expert in animal health told a news conference, that there was only a tiny risk of people catching bird flu by eating infected poultry meat.

"It's unlikely humans would get the infection from eating poultry meat," Laddomada, said, adding that people were catching bird flu after being in contact with poultry.

There is no evidence of the virus jumping from human to human, a doomsday scenario where bird flu in poultry and the virus in humans would mix to unlease a killer bug similiar to the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, he added.

MALAYSIA BUSINESS BRIEFS: Pantai Buys Cheras Hospital
KUALA LUMPUR (Dow Jones)--Malaysian health care group Pantai Holdings Bhd. (8036.KU) is buying hospital operator Cheras Medical Center Sdn. Bhd. for 8.8 million ringgit ($1=MYR3.80) which will be paid through the issuance of 8.3 million new Pantai shares. Pantai is also buying a piece of land and a five-storey hospital building - where Cheras Medical Center operates - for MYR25.4 million, which it will pay for by issuing 24.0 million new shares.

Health Minister: No avian flu cases in Malaysia

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s poultry industry is not affected by the recent outbreaks of avian flu in the Asia region and the world situation is being watched closely, said Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng.

“As far as we are concerned, there is no avian flu in the country. The Institute of Medical Research as well as the laboratory technicians with the Veterinary Services Department are monitoring the situation,” he said.

Chua said the ministry had issued an advisory to the department on guidelines for farmers should there be an outbreak in Malaysia.

“It is a precautionary measure which I am sure is taken by other countries.

“The advisory is based on scientific evaluation, which is part of modern agriculture,” he told reporters after the official opening of the Regulation and Safety of Dietary Supplements in Safeguarding Public Health seminar yesterday.

Asked for details of the advisory, Chua said it was drawn up based on lessons learnt from the JE, Nipah and the recent SARS outbreaks.

“It serves as a reminder to farmers. Usually protective clothing is used to protect the animals as human beings can infect animals.

“But in the event of an outbreak, the clothing can provide protection for farmers. It is part of good agricultural practice,” he said, adding that other measures included preventing importation from affected countries.

Chua said the issue was brought up at the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday and the Health Ministry and Agriculture Ministry had been directed to take action as required based on current developments.



“The Public Health Division has also been watching the situation closely through the World Health Organisation’s website and is also contacting our counterparts in the affected countries,” he added.



When asked if there was any advice for Malaysians travelling to Vietnam, South Korea and Japan, he said it was not likely that Malaysians would visit chicken farms.



On the three suspected SARS cases reported in Singapore, he said Malaysia was working closely with Singapore to monitor the latest developments.

Malaysia on high alert against bird flu

KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia is on high alert against the bird flu virus following the recent outbreak of the disease in Vietnam and Japan.

It plans to impose a ban on avian products from all affected countries to try and keep its poultry industry disease-free.

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Malaysia, one of the biggest poultry exporters in Southeast Asia, said its top priority now was to prevent the importation of the disease by banning all avian products from the affected countries.

Health Minister Chua Jui Meng assured the public that Malaysia is free from the disease, according to studies done by the ministry's Institute of Medical Research.

But while the poultry industry is not affected by the current outbreak in Vietnam and other countries, he stressed the need for precautions.

Mr Chua said: "It is our mission and duty to ensure this does not take place in this country. We have sent advisory to departments to advise farmers on actions to be taken in the unlikely event there is avian flu in this country."

Besides preventing the importation of the disease from affected areas, Malaysia chicken farmers are also advised to step up precautionary measures including putting on protective clothings at all time."

Mr Chua said Malaysia's veterinary and health officials were working closely with the World Health Organisation to monitor the situation.

He said no travel advisory would be issued against visiting affected countries as it has not been proven that the bird flu virus can spread from human to human.

With Singapore a major export market for Malaysian chickens and ducks, the Health Ministry assured its closest neighbour that Malaysia will stay as alert when it comes to developments on the bird flu, as for the SARS outbreak. - CNA

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M'sia's largest private hospital eyeing Brunei

The biggest private hospital operator in Malaysia, KPJ Healthcare Bhd is planning to spread its wings to Brunei Darussalam in the near future.
In a statement, the private hospital said it has initiated talks with relevant authorities in Brunei Darussalam. The hospital is also interested in expanding their healthcare activities to other countries such as the Middle East, China, Indonesia and Singapore.

Initial talks to open doors for the hospital to operate here were held during the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) and Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) meetings in Kuala Lumpur recently. KPJ Healthcare's managing director Datin Paduka Siti Sa'adiah Sheikh Bakir said since the September 11, 2001 attacks, Middle East countries had shifted their focus away from the US and Europe for healthcare expertise.

KPJ Healthcare started 22 years ago and had developed enormous hands-on experience in almost every aspect of the healthcare business, right from the feasibility and design stage to the implementation and running of operations.

Other than hospitals, KPJ also provides support services such as retail of pharmaceutical products undertaken through PharmaCare Bhd, and a nursing college through Puteri Nursing College Sdn Bhd.

As for design and construction, it has already built a number of hospitals, including the Ampang Puteri Specialist Hospital and Damansara Specialist Hospital, using its own in-house design and expertise.

"We are already in talking terms with several interested parties locally and abroad to have working relationship in the management, building and commissioning, healthcare technical services, bio-technical engineering support and maintenance of their hospitals," she said.

In Malaysia, KPJ owns 11 hospitals, following the injection of nine from Kumpulan Perubatan Johor Sdn Bhd, Tawakal Holdings Sdn Bhd and Medical Centre (Johore) Sdn Bhd in late 2002.

Since its listing in 1994 until that injection, KPJ had only been operating two hospitals under its wing, the Johor Specialist Hospital and Ipoh Specialist Hospital.

Shortly there will be two more hospitals: one in Kuching will open for outpatient services business soon while the other in Seremban will be operational by April this year.

With the injection, KPJ is set to see improvement in its financial results in 2004. Its nine months to September 2003 showed pre-tax profit of RM17.95 million on turnover of RM375 million.

"Medicines, laboratory resources and even food could be procured through one centre and there should be tremendous savings just from these activities," she said.

She said KPJ had been able to maintain profitability as most of the hospitals in the group were "matured" and their healthy and well-balanced composition had enabled the company to manage its earnings at a profitable level.

Malaysia remains SARS-free

KUALA LUMPUR, Thurs:
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Malaysia, which remains SARS-free, will closely monitor the situation abroad as China reported a new suspected case today.
Health Ministry's Disease Control Division deputy director Dr Cheng Hoei Hom said Malaysia need not worry as all precautions have been put in place to ensure the disease did not reappear here.

She said the World Health Organisation had not issued any warnings yet as they were still confirming with China on the suspected case.

It was reported today that health officials in the southern province of Guangdong said a 20-year-old waitress was under quarantine at a hospital with SARS-like symptoms.

Practise hygiene, travellers told

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians travelling to China should practise a high level of personal hygiene and avoid coming in contact with people having Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) symptoms such as coughing, Health Minister Datuk Chua Jui Meng said.

He said that precautionary measures were necessary though the current situation did not warrant a travel restriction.

He gave this advice after the Chinese Health Ministry confirmed that a 32-year-old man down with SARS symptoms had the virus yesterday.

In an immediate response, Communicable Disease Control director Dr Ramlee Rahmat said that Malaysia would have to wait for World Health Organisation (WHO) advice on the next course of action.

However, he said the ministry had activated its surveillance and screening for SARS while hospitals were on alert.

“We are keeping tabs on the situation and doing all we need to do at the moment,” he said.

On a 31-year-old Malaysian woman isolated at Kuala Lumpur Hospital on Sunday upon her return from Guangzhou on Saturday with high fever, cough and sore throat, Chua said she was found to be healthy yesterday.

He said she would not be discharged until doctors were satisfied it was safe for her to leave.

“As of today, the patient’s fever was down, her chest X-rays were clear and she had no symptoms of SARS,” Chua said.

A ministry official said the woman was diagnosed to have suffered from viral fever, adding that results of specimens sent for testing at Institute of Medical Research would be known in a few days.

Chua said the ministry started screening passengers from Guangdong at four international airports - KLIA, Bayan Lepas, Kota Kinabalu and Kuching – since Saturday.

“Of the 3,270 screened so far, only one had fever,” he said, adding that the 31-year-old woman had visited Guangdong, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai before returning to Guangzhou to board a flight back to KLIA.