Pelaksanaan cukai ke atas minuman bergula dapat kurangkan kos perubatan masa depan
KUALA LUMPUR: Pelaksanaan cukai ke atas minuman bergula bermula hari ini, dapat membantu kerajaan mengurangkan kos perubatan berikutan pengambilan gula yang berlebihan dalam kalangan rakyat.Presiden Persatuan Akauntan Percukaian Malaysia (MATA), Datuk Abdul Aziz Abu Bakar, berkata duti eksais sedia ada yang dikenakan seperti ke atas rokok dan arak bertujuan mengelak rakyat daripada menghadapi masalah kesihatan.“Kerajaan tidak akan mendapat banyak hasil daripada pengeluar kerana mana-mana negara yang memperkenalkan cukai soda, pengeluar akan menukar produk mereka supaya dapat menghasilkan produk yang dapat mengelak daripada membayar cukai gula.“Rakyat perlu faham, mereka (kerajaan) telah menimbang tara dan kerajaan sudah memberi banyak masa kepada komuniti perniagaan untuk menyesuaikan diri dan mengambil peluang untuk menyusun strategi daripada segi produk dan cara pengeluaran.
Read more: Pelaksanaan cukai ke atas minuman bergula dapat kurangkan kos perubatan masa depan
Pencemaran udara merebak ke SMK Tanjung Puteri Resort
PASIR GUDANG - Pencemaran udara terus merebak ke Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Tanjung Puteri Resort di sini apabila beberapa pelajar mengalami sesak nafas, loya dan muntah.
Kejadian berlaku sekitar pukul 8 pagi tadi ketika sesi persekolahan baru berjalan sebelum beberapa pelajar mengalami simptom-simptom tersebut.Pelajar tersebut kemudiannya ditenangkan guru sekolah berkenaan sementara menunggu kehadiran ambulans untuk menghantar mereka ke hospital bagi mendapatkan rawatan susulan.
Difahamkan, pihak sekolah sudah mengeluarkan arahan kepada ibu bapa untuk membawa pulang anak masing-masing sebagai langkah keselamatan dan bagi mengelak keadaan bertambah buruk.
Sesi persekolahan terpaksa ditangguhkan setelah menimbulkan panik sejurus beberapa pelajar mengalami simptom akibat pencemaran udara.
Ini adalah kali kedua SMK Tanjung Puteri Resort terjejas akibat pencemaran udara selepas kali pertama ditutup akibat pencemaran toksik di Sungai Kim Kim di sini pada Mac lalu. -UTUSAN ONLINE
Orang Asli deaths: Kampung Kuala Koh declared 'red zone'
GUA MUSANG: Police have declared Kampung Kuala Koh, where several Oramg Asli from the Batek tribe died recently, a “red zone” area.This effectively serves as a ban on entry into the village to all except those who have permission to do so.District police chief Superintendent Mohd Taufik Maidin said the move was for the safety of not only the Orang Asli villagers, but also officers of the various government agencies as well as outsiders.“Except for the special officers who are on duty for the operation to locate the 12 graves (of Orang Asli said to have died over the past month), others are banned from entering the area.“The agencies that are allowed to be in the area include the police forensic unit, members of the General Operations Force and a few others,” he said.
Taufik said strict checks would be carried out on vehicles entering the village.Asked whether police had started the operation to locate the grave, he said the operation might not start yet due to a “certain matter”.However, he did not disclose any information about it.Kelantan police chief Datuk Hasanuddin Hassan visited the district police headquarters and is scheduled to have a meeting with Taufik and his officers later today.Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department P. Waytha Moorthy had disclosed on Sunday that 14 Batek villagers had died over the past month.Two died of pneumonia on Sunday, but cause of death for the other 12 is not known.
Read more: Orang Asli deaths: Kampung Kuala Koh declared 'red zone'
Better protection for kids
THE pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) was first made available in our country in 2005. Within a few years, healthcare professionals in Malaysia had begun calling for the inclusion of PCV into our national immunisation programme (NIP) following the growing practice in other countries.This move reflected widespread recognition of the vaccine’s importance in preventing some of the most devastating diseases caused by the Streptococcus pneumoniae bacterium. Based on Malaysian studies, its impact is profound, as shown below:
2. S. pneumoniae is believed to cause 23.4% of bacterial meningitis (inflammation of the brain membrane) cases in our country;
3. Bacteraemia (blood infection), which may lead to shock and organ failure, occurs in about 30 in 100,000 children under five years old in Malaysia; and
4. There are about 500,000 cases of pneumococcal otitis media (middle ear infection resulting in deafness) in children under two years old every year.
For the parents and other family members, there is untold grief and trauma when any child becomes permanently disabled or dies as a result of pneumococcal disease. Parents not only have to care for their sick children, but most low- or middle-income families will also have to struggle with debilitating hospital bills. Their livelihood may be put at risk if they have to take time off work, leading to salary cuts or even job loss. This can put tremendous stress on the individuals, disrupt everyday lives and even break some families apart.As a children’s health advocacy initiative by parents, we in MyHealth Outreach were very moved by the plight of all parents and children affected by pneumococcal disease. Thus, we decided to play our role and actively advocate for the inclusion of PCV in the NIP. In 2013, we ran a “Say YES to Pneumococcal Disease Protection” petition. Over 20,000 parents and paediatricians expressed their desire to have PCV in the NIP. We presented the results to our former health minister but were sorely disappointed that the ministry was unable to fulfil the public’s wish.
Fast forward to 2018, we were very encouraged when Pakatan Harapan pledged, in its election manifesto, to provide PCV to all Malaysian children under two years old. Inspired by our current Health Minister’s passion and commitment to realise the promise, MyHealth Outreach started an online petition in English (http://chng.it/D9nB4zYxc6) and Bahasa Malaysia (http://chng.it/p7kshMBsG4) in April.
Health scheme needs a shot in the arm
IT is time for the Selangor state government to start addressing the numerous complaints against the Peduli Sihat medical assistance scheme, which has been suspended since the beginning of this month, and rectify the problems plaguing this novel and noble healthcare initiative.
1. The Peduli Sihat cards are not being topped up every year for those who have used up their annual entitlement, which is RM200 for individuals and RM700 for families. How is the topping-up done?
2. There has been a lull in new applications as many of those who had applied for the card last year have yet to receive it. Many have lost their enthusiasm over this medical assistance scheme due to the uncertainty, red tape and waiting period for the applications to be processed. These issues must be resolved quickly.
3. Cards that are ready should be posted to the applicants, as the address and telephone numbers are provided. A lot of cards are currently piled up in the state representatives’ offices because they are not being immediately handed out or collected by the applicants.
Lam Thye: Consider insurance coverage for mental health
PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry needs to take serious steps to address growing concerns over mental health issues, says social activist Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.
Lee, who is patron of the Malaysia Psychiatric Association, suggested that insurance coverage be made available for mental healthcare and treatment."There is a need to initiate the subject.
Such an initiative should come from the Health Ministry," he said, adding that such coverage had been offered in Singapore.Lee also said NGOs supportive of mental health issues could play a role in explaining the need for insurance coverage for mental health problems by sending a memorandum to both the government and insurance association.
Lee also lauded the Health Ministry's support for better mental health by improving the country's mental health assessment system through programmes like Health Mind for secondary school students, as well as the Suicide Prevention Initiatives.
"Nevertheless more improvements are required, mainly through collaborative efforts among the communities and governmental and non-governmental agencies," he said in a statement on Wednesday (May 22).Based on statistics from the National Health and Morbidity Survey 2015, Lee said about 4.2 million Malaysians aged 16 and above, or 29.2% of the population, suffered from various mental problems.This was an increase of 11.2% compared to 2006.
Lee added a survey done in 2017 on mental health among youths also revealed that one of five adolescents felt depressed; two out of five felt anxious; 11.2% had suicidal ideas and 10.1% had attempted suicide.
When diagnoses are wrong
THE hallmark of a profession is its ability to self-regulate. This right is grudgingly granted by the government and public to members of the profession. This is because professionals are considered so specialised and highly skilled in their knowledge that it would be difficult for an external agency to regulate without stifling.Members of the profession in turn understand this concern that the public has and prove their ability to self-regulate by having robust internal mechanisms to keep their profession scientifically updated and professionally ethical. This includes ensuring that specialist qualifications are of the highest standard.However, a recent editorial co-authored by Yale histopathology professors Dr David Rimm and Dr Robert Homer titled “False-positive pathology: improving reproducibility with the next generation of pathologists” in Laboratory Investigation 2019, points to a situation where this self-regulatory mechanism seems to have failed.
Before I get into that, let me explain who histopathologists are. Briefly, histopathologists (aka surgical pathologists, anatomical pathologists) are medical doctors who work primarily outside of wards/clinics and in laboratories.One of the most important aspects of the work is in cancer diagnostics. Cancers are rarely diagnosed or treated without a written report from a histopathologist. It goes without saying that an accurate diagnosis is essential.What is the difference between histopathologists and clinic doctors? Clinic doctors see a patient from start to finish, that is, they see the full disease cycle (diagnosis, treatment, outcome). Hence they have a two-pronged feedback mechanism to ensure that they are providing accurate treatment. The first is informal-direct observation of how previous individual patients responded to their treatment, and the second is formal-clinical research whereby data of previous groups of patients are collected and analysed. Together, they provide a check-and-balance mechanism that ensures that future patients are treated based on the best possible medical evidence.
Histopathologists, on the other hand, are only present in one part of the disease cycle (ie, the diagnostic stage). We usually have no access to the informal mechanism – ie, no direct knowledge of how our diagnosis worked out in any individual patient since we do not participate in the complete disease cycle. We are almost fully dependent on the formal mechanism – ie, clinical research – to ensure that we are making the correct diagnosis.
‘MMR vaccine is the way to go’
PETALING JAYA: Stern action will be taken against doctors and those who promote alternatives to the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine, says Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye (pic).While he respects those who are against vaccination as they have the right to voice their concerns, he hopes they will not “convey a message that is wrong or confusing to the public”.“We know there are those who advocate alternatives, which clearly do not work. There are also those who advocate homeopathy – the natural way.“If there are doctors who are involved in such practices, we will take action against them.
“Those who promote alternative methods, we too will take action against them because they are conducting a practice that will harm the health of a child,” he said during a press conference at the launch of the Halcyon radiotherapy machine at Beacon Hospital yesterday. The Halcyon radiotherapy machine is said to be the first of its kind in South-East Asia to treat cancer.As part of Beacon Hospital’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme, the hospital also launched a RM3mil Halcyon Radiotherapy Welfare to lessen the financial burden of cancer patients.Dr Lee said he was not worried about other vaccines such as the human papillomavirus (HPV), hepatitis B, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, and polio as coverage was above 95%. But the MMR coverage in the country was still short; where coverage was only at 89% in 2017 and rose to 90% in 2018.
Ground-breaking research combats chronic disease
With the establishment of Newcastle University Medicine Malaysia (NUMed) - the first international branch university of the United Kingdom-based Newcastle University, with over 180 years of history in the field of medical research, interested students can obtain a solid grounding from a top medical institution right here in Malaysia.In just over a decade, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that diabetes will be the seventh leading cause of death worldwide. As well as causing serious long-term health problems, including impaired vision, blindness and amputation of the lower limbs and feet, diabetes is a major cause of kidney failure, heart attack and even stroke, as well as causing serious long-term.Type 2 diabetes has long been regarded as a chronic disease with a complex and unknown cause. However, research by Newcastle University’s Professor Roy Taylor using innovative magnetic resonance methods has confirmed his Twin Cycle Hypothesis – that Type 2 diabetes is caused by excess fat within the liver and pancreas. By clearly defining the cause of the disease, a planned treatment can reverse the processes.
The research has established that people can reverse their Type 2 diabetes to the point where they no longer require medication. More importantly, recent findings by Prof Taylor who is also Newcastle Magnetic Resonance Centre Director, showed that diabetes stays away provided that the excess weight is not allowed to reaccumulate.Now, a trial is underway, aiming to find an effective and accessible way to put Type 2 diabetes into remission for good. Results from the first year of the trial, published in late 2017 by Prof Taylor, identified that people in the first six years of Type 2 diabetes who follow a low-calorie programme with support from their general practitioner (GP) can reverse their diabetes for at least a year.
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