Health personnel deployed to Sabah experienced to combat COVID-19

Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali said the report claiming that the personnel are inexperienced was inaccurate as the ministry had made the necessary screening before they were sent there.

“It was a nationwide selection and before they were sent, we have checked their qualifications, areas of expertise and specialisation.

“We held interviews to ensure that only the right persons are selected and deployed,” he said when asked to comment on a news portal report which quoted a Sabah medical doctor as saying, though several nurses from the peninsula had been mobilised in Sabah, the number has not resolved the manpower shortage.

Dr Noor Azmi, who is also Bagan Serai MP, was speaking to reporters after handing over food basket aid to residents of Semanggol state constituency here today.

In the report, the doctor who wanted to remain anonymous, claimed that the healthcare workers arriving in Sabah had to undergo quarantine for one or two weeks, and once the quarantine was over most of them could not start work immediately as they were ‘juniors’ and inexperienced and had to be taught.

In the meantime, Dr Noor Azmi said the ministry would not open quarantine centres in areas of districts that have low numbers of COVID-19 positive cases due to several factors, among them, high operating cost.

“Several medical personnel will be needed even if there are very few patients should we decide to open a quarantine centre. Nevertheless, we will look into this but for now there are no plans to do so,” he added.