PUTRAJAYA: The Health Ministry is monitoring the current hot weather across several states closely and will issue advisories and alerts accordingly, if necessary.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said the situation is being closely monitored by his ministry, adding that the ministry will also make announcements regarding school closures, if there is a need to do so, based on the analysis by Health director-general, Datuk Seri Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan.
"Don't worry, as soon as there is a situation like (the closing of schools), (we) will immediately make an announcement," Dr Dzulkefly told the media after attending the Medical Devices Authority's (MDA) Excellent Service Award Ceremony here, today.
He said this when asked on the need to close schools due to the current hot weather. Yesterday, Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, was quoted as saying that the hot weather, following the El Nino phenomenon in the country, is expected to continue until July.
According to Bernama, Dr Dzulkefly said the existing standard operating procedure (SOP) in relation to hot weather, including cutting back on outdoor activities in schools, still remains, with the Education Ministry, including headmasters, having been instructed not to allow students to carry out outdoor activities if the temperature is at 35 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days.
In another development, Dr Dzulkefly said the plan to deal with the shortage of graduate medical officers (PPS) in district hospitals will be announced in the near future.
"Tonight (there is) an emergency meeting with the Health Ministry's top management to deal with this matter (and) in a day or two, the implementation plan will be announced," he said.
On April 26, Dr Dzulkefly reportedly ordered the management of the ministry at the central and state levels to examine the workload issue at hospitals, as well as re-evaluate the actions that have been taken regarding the placement, and working methods of PPS.
He said the country once went through a phase of 'dumping' medical graduates, of between 6,000 and 7,000 per year, but now that there are less than 3,000 medical graduates per year, the number of PPS in hospitals has dropped to worrying levels.
At the ceremony, Dr Dzulkefly also launched the Medical Devices Authority (MDA) strategic plan 2024-2028 to transform the agency into an international standard regulatory operation.
The plan, according to him, reflects MDA's determination to be at the forefront of quality control, safety assurance and industry regulation.
