KUALA TERENGGANU: The Terengganu flood management template continues to get better with the Health Department introducing transit centres to cater for high risks patients suffering from chronic diseases cases as well advance maternity cases.
The recent floods in Kemaman proved that such centres were necessary as a precaution and to provide proper treatment for evacuees with chronic diseases or maternity cases. It became part of the flood management template after a post mortem of previous floods.
State Health Department director Dr Mohammad Omar said the transit centres for high risks patients and maternity cases would now become a standard in future flood management measures nationwide.
“Our inclusion of this move received thumbs up from the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA). It became part of the flood management plan when we saw that evacuees suffering from chronic diseases needed to be moved out of affected areas to somewhere considered safe by volunteers.
“Similarly advance maternity cases needed to be moved out to safety on higher grounds but not to a centre specifically set up to handle delivery during a flood situation that offers safety and security for mother and child,” he told the New Straits Times.
He said the centre at Sekolah Kebangsaan Agama Al Falah in Kemaman, was a good example how all agencies involved in flood management worked together to minimise loss of lives and other incidences during the height of the disaster.
“All of us worked under the National Blue Ocean Strategy. All our roles were monitored and managed by NADMA. Every agency contributes ideas and mitigation measures to ease the trauma faced by disaster victims.
“We had included our transit centres for high risks patients to further fine tune the disaster management functions to become even better. We may come up with new ideas to minimise the effects of other problems in future.
“Every year the effect of floods, for example, were different. During one of the worst years, we failed to provide adequate public hygiene facilities, not because we were not prepared but because on the unprecedented nature of the floods,” he added.