In a tweet, Noor Hisham wrote of the dire situation in the hospital, sharing a clip of the ICU ward to show how bad it was.
“We are almost running out of beds. Please stay healthy and stay safe,” he said.
Bernama later reported that based on reports sent to the National Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC), Noor Hisham said six hospitals were found to have exceeded the alert threshold of bed utilisation rate of more than 70%.
Besides the Sungai Buloh Hospital, the others were Kuala Lumpur Hospital, Ampang Hospital, Serdang Hospital, Selayang Hospital and Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital in Klang, with some of them already approaching 100%.
“The University of Malaya Medical Center reported the use of its critical and intensive care unit beds for Covid-19 patients at more than 50%,” he said on his official Facebook account.
As such, he said elective surgeries and procedures in hospitals around the Klang Valley would be reduced or postponed to enable more hospital beds to be reserved for treatment of Covid-19 patients.
“This will also enable the medical personnel to be mobilised to more critical places for the care of Covid-19 patients.
“The health ministry will also continue to work with private hospitals, teaching staff or universities in the Klang Valley to increase the capacity of critical beds,” he said.
Noor Hisham said the collaboration included outsourcing non-Covid-19 patients with certain cases and procedures for treatment at private hospitals.
The cost will be borne by the government at an agreed charge.
Meantime, he said, Sungai Buloh Hospital, which is fully operational as a Covid-19 hospital, will increase the capacity of critical treatment beds in phases to meet the increasing needs.
The health ministry has been procuring the necessary medical equipment, such as ventilators, since last year to enable the hospital to increase the capacity of critical treatment beds, he added.
Yesterday, Noor Hisham had described the spread of Covid-19 in the country as becoming critical again, urging everyone to strictly comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs).
He said the people needed to return to practising the 3Cs, which is avoiding crowded places, confined spaces and close conversation.
“They must also practise the 3Ws — frequent washing of hands, wearing of face masks in public places and heed the warning on avoiding handshakes.
“Seek immediate treatment if one has any symptoms,” he said.
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