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KUALA LUMPUR: The Covid-19 test on all foreign workers may not be a practical approach at this time and may become a logistical nightmare as companies begin to resume operations, the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) said.
Its president, Dr. N Ganabaskaran, said that the education and application of the new rules and standard operating procedures (SOP) are most urgently needed as a long-term solution.
“MMA believes that laboratories in the country may not be able to cope with the large volume of samples taken from workers to analyze Covid-19 in a short period of time.
“It may also not be affordable for many companies; many of whom have suffered losses due to the temporary interruption of operations under the Movement Control Order (MCO), “it said in a statement today.
He said the MMA urges related ministries to prioritize monitoring of sectors that depend on foreign labor as companies are now starting to resume operations.
“Efforts must also be made to communicate and educate the new standard and SOPs in the language of these foreign workers to ensure that they fully understand and fully adhere to the practices of the new standard,” he said.
He said the MMA also urged the authorities to work closely with relevant non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to help reach out to them, as some may fear the authorities and flee to other places; making contact tracing more difficult in case of Covid-19 infection.
“While this group of workers may remain in the country illegally, one must remember that they also have the universal right to medical care,” he said.
He said MMA feels that the specific focus on testing, as adopted by the Ministry of Health (MOH) for critical points, perhaps could be taken for now.
“It should also be noted that a person may still be at risk of infection after the test if they do not observe the appropriate preventive measures.
“We are more deeply concerned that foreign workers in the country may be at high risk of becoming infected with Covid-19 due to their work environment and living conditions,” he said. – Bernama
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