Clean-up programme announced as dengue surges

GOMBAK: In a concerning development, dengue cases in Malaysia have increased by 139% from January to July 2 this year compared to the same period last year, according to Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa. She revealed that there were a total of 59,057 dengue cases recorded nationwide, a significant jump from the 24,743 cases reported last year. Specifically, Selangor witnessed a 93% surge in cases, with 29,382 cases registered compared to last year’s 15,207 cases. Dr Zaliha also mentioned the alarming increase in dengue-related deaths, which rose by 122.22% to 40 deaths this year. Selangor accounted for seven fatalities due to dengue fever complications.

During the launch of the inaugural Madani Afiat program, Dr Zaliha announced the initiation of the One Hour Malaysia Clean Up program. The program aims to encourage public participation in communal cleaning activities every fourth Saturday of the month, with the objective of maintaining the cleanliness of the surroundings and eliminating potential Aedes mosquito breeding grounds. Additionally, she emphasized the importance of the public’s involvement in destroying Aedes breeding sites on their properties for at least 10 minutes per week, especially within residential areas, workplaces, and educational institutions, as part of the ministry’s Gotong-Royong Mega 1.0 Perangi Aedes program.

While highlighting the significance of the Madani Afiat program, Dr Zaliha underscored its objective of fostering a closer relationship between leaders and the public through the context of public health. The program includes house visits by the Health Ministry leadership, community leaders, and healthcare teams. Dr Zaliha also emphasized the opportunity for related agencies to collaborate with the Health Ministry in organizing localized activities to raise awareness about existing health programs.

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The Madani Afiat program also serves as a platform to promote the importance of health screenings in detecting and preventing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in line with the health reforms outlined in the Health White Paper. Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari, present at the function, expressed the state administration’s interest in enhancing the role of local authorities in public health. He revealed plans to potentially require all local authorities to have a doctor specializing in public health within the next two years. Collaborations between local authorities and the state health department were also highlighted as essential for addressing issues beyond dengue, such as NCDs. Amirudin emphasized the need for collective efforts and a change in mindset to ensure cleaner surroundings, comparing the approach to battling dengue to the unified response witnessed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Credit: The Star : News Feed