KUCHING, Jan 20: Sibu Hospital currently has the most Covid-19 patients hospitalised in Sarawak with 841 cases as of today (Jan 20) as Pasai Cluster continued to face harrowing increases in cases.
State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC), in a statement today, reported a total of 1,318 Covid-19 patients are being isolated and treated in hospitals throughout Sarawak.
There were 282 cases in Miri Hospital, 132 cases in Sarawak General Hospital (SGH), 62 cases in Bintulu Hospital and one in Limbang Hospital.
In Sibu Hospital, two patients were receiving treatment in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) while three cases in Sibu Hospital and one each in SGH and Miri Hospital required medical equipment but their conditions were reported to be stable.
Meanwhile, Pasai Cluster in Sibu continued to record triple digit cases with 139 cases detected today. Of the figures, 78 cases were from Sibu.
As the cluster had spread out to other districts, Kanowit reported the second highest cases of 43 cases related to the cluster and thus elevated the district status to red zone with a total of 73 cases detected in the last 14 days.
Other community transmissions linked to cluster reported include in Kuching (2 cases), Betong (8 cases), Bintulu (4 cases), Miri (2 cases), Dalat (3 cases) and Kapit (1 case).
To grasp the gravity of the Covid-19 situation in Sarawak, it was reported yesterday (Jan 19) that 13 staff from Sibu Hospital have been infected with Covid-19.
State Health Department director Dr Chin Zin Hing said they were also being hospitalised while contact tracing has been launched to trace and ring-fence possible cases.
Acknowledging that Sibu Hospital will see a staff shortage, Dr Chin said that the Health Department was resolving the problem by mobilising medical staff from other hospitals and clinics to help the affected hospital.
As contact tracing and active screenings will continue to be conducted and would possibly detect more cases, the public healthcare facilities as well as staff especially in Sibu Hospital are being pushed to the limit.
It is at risk of buckling under the strain of soaring numbers of infections not only from Sibu but also nearby areas and districts.
To address the bed capacity in hospitals which do not only cater for Covid-19 patients but also other critical patients, nurses hostels and various other institutions have been acquired to be converted to isolate low-risk patients as well as for quarantine purposes.
SDMC chairman and Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas and Minister of Local Government and Housing Datuk Seri Dr Sim Kui Hian has made numerous calls for Sarawakians to remain vigilant, play their part seriously and strictly comply with standard operating procedure (SOP) to stop the spread of infections and flatten the curve. — DayakDaily
