KUCHING: Maintain good personal hygiene and environment to reduce the risk of the Hand, Foot and Mouth Diseases (HFMD).
Before leaving for a vacation or kampung or longhouse, make sure there are no empty containers where mosquitoes can breed in your home. This is to prevent yourself from dengue fever.
If you are bitten by a dog or cat, immediately wash the bite wound with water and soap for at least 15 minutes before seeking treatment at a nearby clinic or hospital. This is to prevent rabies infection.
These were some of the health guidelines issued by the director of the State Health Department Dr Jamilah Hashim to the public in view of the current school holidays and forthcoming Gawai Dayak and Hari Raya celebrations.
On HFMD, Jamilah added in her press statement, “Parents need to ensure that children are always practising good hygienic practices such as hand washing with soap and water including before meals and after toilets, covering their mouths and noses with tissues when coughing or sneezing and immediately disposing of the tissues in the trash.
“Make sure the appliance, tool or surface contaminated by the nose or mouth fluid is cleaned and disinfected before it is reused.”
She added that parents must be alert and immediately take their children to a clinic or hospital if they had symptoms such as fever, mouth ulcers and rashes on the palms, soles or buttocks.
“Make sure the HFMD-infected children stay at home and are not taken to public places, including visits to relatives or friends, until all the blisters have dried up.
“During this period, they should be isolated from other children, including siblings, until they recover as this is to prevent the spread of the disease,” she advised.
Jamilah also advised all supervisors of child care centres who were still operating during the school holidays to continue their proactive efforts in detecting children who showed symptoms and signs of HFMD so that they would be immediately isolated.
“Initial checks before entering the care centres are strongly recommended; in fact, HFMD-infected children should not be present at the care centres for at least 10 days from the onset of the symptoms,” she said.
On dengue prevention, Jamilah said, “Insert larvae killer material into permanent water reservoir if it will not be used for more than one week or close the container.
“If you have symptoms of fever, body aches, joint pain, vomiting or headache, seek immediate treatment at a nearby clinic or hospital as early detection and treatment of dengue fever can save lives and prevent severe complications due to it,” she advised.
On rabies, Jamilah reminded the public that Sarawak was still not free from the risk of rabies infection.
“Therefore, communities are reminded to avoid being bitten by animals, especially wild dogs and dogs.”
Jamilah also reminded the public to be moderate in eating during the holidays and reduce their intake of sugar and salt in addition to drinking plenty of water “as together we celebrate this festive holiday with gratitude and good health”.
For any further information on the health guidelines, contact the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC), the Sarawak Health Department hotline: 082-443248 / 082-441780 or via e-mail (cprc_sarawak@moh.gov.my).
