KOTA BHARU: The Kelantan Health Department (JKNK) has frozen the Aidilfitri leave of 14,000 employees to handle the state’s rising COVID-19 cases which have reached three digits in the past fortnight.

“We need all hands on deck at the moment to ensure patients receive treatment.

“The Ministry of Health (MOH) has also sent health personnel from around the country to help us in Kelantan, including the district hospitals, etc,” its director, Datuk Dr Zaini Hussin, told reporters during a visit to the Low Risk COVID-19 Quarantine and Treatment Centre (PKRC) in the Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Health Campus in Kubang Kerian today.

Kelantan PKRC director, Dr Mohd Azman Yacob and Hospital USM director, Prof Datuk Dr Ahmad Sukari Halim, were also present.

The USM PKRC is able to treat 500 male patients and will be receiving 150 patients at 4pm today, said Dr Zaini.

 On the possibility of health personnel transferred from Kedah to Kelantan being asked to return to the northern state due to the rising cases there, Dr Zaini said they have a plan ready just in case.

“Among the strategies is to utilise and deploy our employees, including from Hospital USM. I also believe MOH will replace them with people from the other states,” he said.

As at May 2, Kelantan reported 400 new daily cases and 34 active clusters.

-- BERNAMA