More burns units needed

SHAH ALAM: The Health Ministry hopes to open more burns units in public hospitals nationwide, following the growing number of burns cases.

Deputy Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Hilmi Yahaya said the increase in number of patients posed a big challenge for hospitals treating and managing burns cases, specifically major ones.

He said not all public hospitals were equipped with the infrastructure and facilities needed to house burns units.

“However, major hospitals in the states have burns units, one of them being Kuala Lumpur Hospital.

“I hope more hospitals can operate burns units and attend to the rising number of patients.

“With the availability of burns units at all hospitals, burns cases can be treated with optimum care and efficiency, reducing the mortality rate,” he said after the 4th Kuala Lumpur Hospital Burns Seminar here yesterday.

Last year, Kuala Lumpur Hospital received 150 major and minor burns cases, with 16 mortalities, as compared with some 100 cases, with 10 mortalities, in 2014.

Dr Hilmi said many industrialrelated and domestic burns cases had been reported over the years.

“There have also been electrical burn injuries, which resulted in the death of many victims, due to fire incidents in houses and factories in the Klang Valley this year.

“Human negligence has been identified as one of the key factors contributing to the increase in burns cases, such as scalding burn injuries, with Kuala Lumpur Hospital receiving more than 40 such cases last year.”

He also called on non-governmental organisations to play a pivotal role in treating burns victims by offering mental and physical support.

“I hope more people will join the hospitals’ Burns Support Groups and offer moral support and counselling to burns victims. These are what we call ‘unseen scars’.

“They need strong willpower to move on after having gone through such tragedies.”

On Selangor recording the highest number of dengue cases this year as of last month, Dr Hilmi said construction sites remained the top breeding spot of Aedes mosquitoes in the state.

Malaysia recorded 70,447 dengue cases this year, out of which Selangor had 38,420 cases.