EAST MALAYSIA STATE TO GET ITS OWN H1N1 TEST LAB NEXT MONTH

KUCHING (Malaysia), Aug 21 (Bernama) -- Sarawak, an East Malaysia state,
will get its own test laboratory by the middle of next month to enable the
Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) to conduct tests for Influenza A(H1N1).

Deputy Chief Minister Dr George Chan said Friday the lab would speed
up the Influenza A (H1N1) tests without having to send the samples to the
Institute for Medical Research (IMR) in Kuala Lumpur or the Queen Elizabeth
Hospital in Sabah.

"Four medical staff are undergoing training (to conduct tests) while some of
the equipment are here and a few more are to be bought. We think that by
mid-September we should be able to test our own samples," he told reporters at
the state Health Department here.

Previously, swab specimens from suspected Influenza A (H1N1) patients were
sent to the IMR and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital where results are usually known
in 24 hours but because of the backlog of cases, results take much longer.

Dr Chan, who is also the state Disaster Relief Committee chairman, urged the
people to brace for the peaking of Influenza A (H1N1), signalling that the worse
is yet to come.

"We believe that the flu has not reached its peak in the state. We hope it
would peak soon. The sooner it peaks the better so the transmission rate will
come down," he said.

He added that the number of people seeking treatment for
influenza-like-illness(ILI) as well as those needing admission in the state
continued to increase.

He said that in mid-July this year around 0.5 per cent of total outpatient
attendances in government clinics showed ILI but one month later the figure had
increased to 5.5 per cent in mid-August.

"The number of clusters occurring in schools, higher learning institutions
and childcare centres in Kuching, Sibu and Miri has declined dramatically since
its peak in the first week of August," he said.

He advised pregnant women to take precautions to avoid getting infected
because half of the six deaths reported in the state were related to pregnancy.

"Pregnant mothers should avoid crowded places, observe strict personal
hygiene, especially hand washing, use face masks and seek early treatment if you
have signs and symptoms of flu," he said.

-- BERNAMA