KUALA LUMPUR: Up to 450 beds will be made available for Covid-19 care at the Selayang Hospital, said Health deputy director-general (public health) Datuk Dr Chong Chee Keong.
This after the status of the hospital has changed from a hybrid Covid-19 hospital to a full-fledge Covid-19 hospital.
As such, Dr Chong said non-Covid patients at the hospital will be decanted to private hospitals in the region to increase bed capacity for Covid patients in categories 3, 4, and 5.
"Our 'Operation Selayang' is already underway and should be completed within the next 48 hours, providing up to 450 beds for Covid-19 care," he said in a statement today (Saturday).
The move, he said, was among the strategies identified by the Greater Klang Valley Special Task Force (GKVSTF) to mitigate the surge of Covid-19 cases in Klang Valley.
Dr Chong added other strategies include ensuring a predictable and uninterrupted supply of oxygen, life-saving medicine, and other supplies.
"A shift in focus will also be on symptomatic people where testing will be prioritised for this group.
"All symptomatic Covid-19 cases will still need to be assessed, either virtually or physically at the Covid-19 Assessment Centre (CAC) of district health offices."
He said all cases who are asymptomatic will be asked to undergo home isolation for 10 days and report themselves using digital home assessment tools such as MySejahtera, e-COVID, or the SELangkah Home Assessment tool.
In the same statement, Dr Chong said asymptomatic close contacts to positive cases will be strongly encouraged to obtain a rapid Covid-19 test, either at the nearest available clinic or via self-test kits and self-isolate.
"This will allow the region to pivot towards mitigation and away from the late containment stage.
"Following the self-test and home isolation policy, total case numbers may appear lower as it will no longer capture asymptomatic contacts.
"This will be offset once self-test kits are more widely accessible," adding that all eligible adults should register for the vaccine and abide by the standard operating procedures.