On the brink

Healthcare workers feeling the brunt of rising infection rate

PETALING JAYA: Healthcare workers, the last line of defence in the Covid-19 war, are bracing for the worst. Resources are already spread thin but worse for them is the fact that people continue to flout the standard operating procedures (SOP) and patients continue to withhold information or lie outright.

According to a government medical officer at the Sungai Buloh Hospital, that makes it difficult to ensure thorough contact tracing, leaving gaps that allow the virus to spread further.

“If the defence cracks and collapses, all fingers should point at those irresponsible people who can’t even follow simple instructions under the SOP,” he said.

The infection is already spreading at an alarming rate. Last Friday, there were 4,498 new cases and the following day, it climbed to 4,519, before dropping to 3,733 yesterday.

The worst is yet to come, according to Health Ministry Secretary-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah. At a press conference on Saturday, he warned that the number of new cases daily could exceed 7,000 by the end of this month.

The medical officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorised to talk to the press, said ignorance on the part of the people poses a serious threat to healthcare workers.

“One of my colleagues is already under observation on suspicion that he had been infected through contact with a patient,” he told theSun.

“This is very stressful. We also have families to care for. I’m utterly speechless.

“Why are people not upfront with their travel history or who they have come into contact with until we press them? It’s tiring,” he lamented.

Another medical officer, who serves at a primary care clinic in Cheras, described each day as “frustrating”.

She told theSun that there are times when patients revealed that they have been in close contact with Covid-19 patients or people under quarantine only after they have entered the doctor’s consultation room.

“They are supposed to be screened first but some of them even lose their temper for having to answer a few questions before being allowed to see the doctor.”

She said there are others who are not happy when told that members of their family are not allowed to go into the doctor’s office with them.

Doctors have to keep each consultation to only 15 minutes to deal with long queues but some patients refuse to understand that and demand longer sessions, she added.

“We have no choice but to lay down the ground rules to reduce the risk of getting infected,” she said.

The medical officer, who was working at a Covid-19 ward in the Cancelor Tuanku Muhriz Hospital in Bandar Tun Razak from Jan 25 last year to March 7 this year, described her term there as emotionally and physically exhausting.

While doctors and nurses in the wards are supposed to be on 12-hour shifts, they usually work longer.

They do not get enough sleep or proper meals, and time spent with family is a luxury they cannot afford now.

There is also the fear that they could end up taking the virus home and infecting their loved ones.

The Sungai Buloh Hospital medical officer spoke for all his colleagues when he made an appeal to Malaysians to stay at home. “Don’t go out, especially during the Raya holidays. Do us a favour by staying at home, and be honest about why you need it if you come for a swab test,” he said.

As of yesterday, more than 159 million people around the world have been infected, and the global death toll has reached 3.3 million.