Covid-19: Hospitals nationwide running out of ICU beds, says Health DG

PETALING JAYA: Government hospitals are running out of beds at designated Covid-19 intensive care units (ICU) nationwide, says Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

The health director-general said ICUs were at 89% capacity in the Klang Valley and 74% nationwide as of Tuesday (May 18).

He said in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Kedah, Sarawak, and Negri Sembilan ICU capacity had exceeded 80%.

"Covid-19 hospitals have increased the number of ICU beds allocated for Covid-19 patients through the repurposing of ordinary wards," he said.

However, this came at the expense of non-Covid-19 patients from receiving proper care," he said in a statement on Wednesday (May 19).

Dr Noor Hisham said the dramatic increase has put tremendous pressure on the national healthcare system and it is the shared responsibility of all to break the chain of Covid-19 infection.

"Now more than ever, the rakyat are important frontliners and must continue staying at home if there are no urgent matters outside.

"We have no choice; kita mesti jaga kita (we must take care of ourselves)!"

On Wednesday, Malaysia recorded an all-time high of 6,075 Covid-19 cases recorded in a single day since the pandemic began.

The country is under the third MCO, where movement is restricted and sectors such as sports, education and social are closed.

The economic sector, however, remains open.

Recently, the Health Ministry said it was mulling stricter SOPs or even a full-scale MCO.