The Health | April, 2019
06
Current News
National kidney care’s
new benchmark
The National Kidney
Foundation – as part of
World Kidney Day, presented
the Clinical Practice Guide
on Chronic Kidney Disease
management
T
he second edition of the Clinical Practice
Guideline has been launched to address the
rise of chronic kidney disease. Statistically,
850 million people worldwide are now esti-
mated to have kidney disease from various
causes. Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) causes
at least 2.4 million deaths per year and is now the sixth
fastest growing cause of death.
“Diabetes is the leading cause of advanced kidney
disease worldwide. In fact, Malaysia has among the
highest rates of Diabetic End Stage Kidney Disease in
the world, with a staggering 65% of all new ESKD cases
being due to diabetes in the year 2016,” emphasised Dr
Sunita Bavanandan, President of the Malaysian Society
of Nephrology.
In Malaysia, there are more than 40,000 individuals
on dialysis with more than 7,000 new patients every year.
To set a new benchmark for kidney care, the Ministry
of Health (MOH), the Malaysian Society of Nephrology
(MSN) and the National Kidney Foundation of Malaysia
(NKF) have collaborated to launch the second edition of
the Clinical Practice Guideline (CPG) on management of
Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).
The CPG serves to assist healthcare practitioners in
making decisions about appropriate care for CKD such
as identification of risk in developing CKD, screening
and early detection, treatment of early CKD to prevent
progression and management of the disease.
The launch of the CPG on management of chronic
kidney disease is an important milestone in the develop-
ment of kidney care in Malaysia and its primary objective
Dr Lee Boon Chye says that care for Chronic Kidney
Diseases needs to be more regulated as dialysis
centres are mushrooming around the country.
is to educate healthcare providers hence ensuring that optimal
kidney care is provided to everyone, everywhere,” said Dr Lee
Boon Chye, Deputy Minister of Health.
The second edition of the CPG was launched on World
Kidney Day, an annual global awareness campaign aimed
at raising awareness of the importance of kidney health. In
line with the theme this year – “Kidney Health for Everyone
Everywhere” – the launch highlighted the increasing burden
of kidney disease and the need for strategies for prevention of
kidney diseases and management on a national level.
“NKF thanks the team that work tirelessly on this revised
COG. Our dialysis centres nationwide are the heart of NKF’s
mission. This CPG will help our dedicated healthcare profes-
sionals to futher improve the management of chronic kidney
disease among out patients,” shared Dato Dr Zaki Morad bin
Mohamed Zaher, Chairman of Board of Directors of National
Kidney Foundation of Malaysia. — The Health
Work together
against TB
T
he World TB Day is commemorated on 24 March
every year on a global scale. It is the day to observe
the first discovery of the tuberculosis bacteria by
Dr Robert Kock in 24 March 1882. The World TB day
is celebrated at the national level annually as a way to
strengthen the awareness, commitment, and the sup-
port of various authorities in regards to preventative
efforts and the monitoring of tuberculosis nationwide.
The theme for this year’s TB Day in Malaysia is ‘This
Is The Time: Identify, Treat, And Be Cured From TB’.
The theme means to let us know how to identify the
symptoms, and get treated quickly. An individual to
experience prolonged coughing (more than two weeks),
fever, night sweats, loss of appetite, sudden weight
loss, and blood during coughing should quickly go to
the clinic for a tuberculosis screening test, which is a
phlegm test and chest x-ray.
Lacks awareness
There are some who would think that coughing caused
by tuberculosis are just harmless coughing, which
would heal by consuming medication and antibiotics
for a week or so. When in reality, medications for
tuberculosis are to be taken for at least six months.
This misconception is the cause for the virus to still be
airborne, and can infect the public.
It is still a growing concern
The World Health Organisation (WHO) have estimated
around 10 million new tuberculosis cases reported in
Tuberculosis has been a growing concern in
Malaysia, as cases of the diseases being reported
more in recent times.
2017, and 1.3 million deaths were caused by the dis-
ease. In Malaysia, there has been 25,837 reported cases
of tuberculosis in 2018, which is a 1.3 percent decrease
from last year’s 26,168 cases.
The death rate for tuberculosis in 2018 were 6.6 out
of 100,000 people, and has increased since last year - at
6.5 out of 100,000 people in 2017. Treatment result
analysis have shown one death in every 10 registered
cases.
Following this, it is important for patients to receive
early treatment to prevent further complications and
death caused by tuberculosis, while preventing the
spread of the virus among the population.
The message against tuberculosis will continue to be
spread so that the right information about the disease
circulates the public awareness. Social stigma regarding
the disease should also be corrected.
The Ministry of Health implores the commitment of
every relevant parties, including private health facili-
ties, NGOs, local governments, and local communities
to work together and fight against tuberculosis and
ensure safety and well-being of society.
With strong commitment from the ones involved,
the hope for Malaysia to be free of tuberculosis will
soon be established. — The Health
Briefs
Colgate and Malaysian
Dental Association Drive
Oral Health Month 2019
Colgate-Palmolive Malaysia (Colgate)
and the Malaysian Dental Association (MDA)
continue their annual partnership through an
initiative to highlight healthy dental habits in
conjunction with Oral Health Month 2019,
taking place in March each year. This year’s
theme – ‘Whole Mouth Health’ – expounds
the importance of a holistic oral health and to
achieve its objective, Colgate has upped its
effort to spread education among Malaysians
through a campaign of the same name.
According to the National Oral Health
Survey in 2010, nine out of 10 Malaysian
adults have experienced periodontal disease
and dental caries, while a staggering 75 per
cent are unaware of the need to maintain
oral hygiene. Colgate’s ‘Whole Mouth Health’
campaign endeavours to turn the ignorance
into awareness about the importance of oral
hygiene among Malaysians.
SJMC provides gift
of mobility to home for
disabled children
A 395-bed multidisciplinary private hospital
under the Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care
(RSDH) Group, today held a wheelchair
presentation ceremony in conjunction with
the two-day Diabetes Awareness Campaign
organised from 22 to 23 March at the SJMC
Outpatient Centre.
Trish Hogan, Hospital CEO of SJMC
and Santha Kumari, Head of Finance and
Administration of Yayasan Sime Darby
presented a customised wheelchair to
Richard Cheah Siong Nyin, Trustee of Pusat
Penjagaan Kanak-Kanak Cacat Taman
Megah (PPKKCTM), and a home for disabled
children.
The fundraising initiative is part of SJMC
Run 2019, set to be held on 7 July and
themed ‘Love Your Feet, Adios Diabetes’ to
promote healthy living among Malaysians, as
well as raise awareness on diabetes and its
complications, particularly foot complications.
For every run registration, SJMC will
contribute RM1 to the wheelchair fund. The
closing date for registration is 30 April or upon
reaching 3,500 participants, whichever is
earlier.
Two Malaysian Hospitals
Among Winners of CSSD
COE Award in Asia Pacific
The Asia Pacific Society of Infection Control
(APSIC) awarded the winners of the 2017-
2018 Central Sterile Supply Department
Centre of Excellence (CSSD COE) Award
at the APSIC congress 2019 on the 19th of
March 2019. Held in Vietnam, the congress
was organised by APSIC and sponsored by
3M to celebrate and promote best healthcare
practices in Sterilization and infection control
at hospitals across Asia Pacific.
The 2017-2018 edition of the award
received a total of 28 entries across 11
countries with a total of 15 winning hospitals
chosen for the APSIC COE Award 2017-2018,
including two from Malaysia; Gleneagles
Hospital KL and National Heart Institute (IJN).
Entries were judged according to a
stringent set of criterion including delivering
quality disinfection and sterilisation services,
committing to education and research, taking
on a leadership role to help and support other
CSSD institutions in their implementation
of CSSD education programs, as well as
performing steam sterilisation and sterility
assurance in health care facilities. — The
Health