Speech of Dato' Chua Jui Meng, Minister of Health, Malaysia
Opening ceremony speech
Selamat datang, welcome to all delegates from the 4 corners of the world to Malaysia. The last of the 5 imported cases of SARS in this country was 55 days ago. There has never been any case of local transmission of the disease. Malaysia was and is SARS free!! We intend to keep it that way! You have arrived safely and we will send you home safe from SARS.
On behalf of my country may I say that we are deeply honoured that WHO has selected Malaysia as the venue for this unprecedented global conference – on SARS. The Heads of Governments of Asean + 3 at their special Meeting on SARS at Bangkok on the 29th April this year acknowledged with gratitude the leadership role of the WHO in its global campaign to control and contain the spread of the disease. Thank you and well done, WHO and may the knowledge, strategies and model you have created in this SARS saga be further refined and adapted to help mankind combat all new emerging and reemerging diseases that will undoubtedly confront us in this new Century.
Malaysia would like here to thank the WHO also for responding positively to our call for reclassification and refinement of the List of Affected Countries and of travel advisories issued against any of them. On behalf of Asean we would also wish to place on record that WHO has also responded affirmatively to the Asean Heads of Government’s request to address the issue of SARS at the World Health Assembly last May and further in going beyond that request in covering today’s Conference at Kuala Lumpur.
GOD bless WHO! You have proven that you are contributory, caring and committed to the wellbeing of humanity. You continue to be a relevant central and important organization within the UN!!
To give distinguished delegates a perspective of how Malaysia handled the outbreak, permit me to mention briefly the strategies undertaken by my country.
After the WHO issued a Global Alert on SARS on 12.3.2003, Malaysia acted swiftly and expeditiously. The Ministry of Health stepped up public health surveillance and instituted barrier nursing and enhanced hospital infection control measures in all clinics and hospitals in the country the very next day. The universal protection system was fully implemented, our SARS National Operations Centre began functioning on 16.3.2003. Soon after that the Malaysian Cabinet established the National Committee for SARS Control comprising of representatives from 16 Ministries, agencies and organisations, to set policies and directions to ensure a co-ordinated and consistent approach in our fight against SARS. 21 designated hospitals were identified to manage suspected and probable SARS cases. Many of these hospitals have special negative pressure isolation rooms, all have highly trained personnel and a high level of hospital infection control practices. Suspected cases were separated from probable cases, placed in different wards and no visitors were allowed. To protect laboratory personnel handling specimens taken from suspected SARS cases and to contain the danger of possible transmission in the laboratory setting, all relevant specimens were sent to the Institute for Medical Research (IMR) which has a high level enhanced P3 Biosafety laboratory facility to handle exotic agents that can cause serious and potentially deadly infection.
The Cabinet made the strongest possible commitment to combat SARS and a number of bold decisions were made. Our strict visa and immigration polices raised some concerns amongst some affected countries but the Government considered this necessary. To allay fears and explain decisions made by the Malaysian government as well as invite further discussions from those affected, we provided briefings on the preventive and control measures taken by Malaysia to combat SARS to the Diplomatic Corp, Private Colleges and Foreign Investors, the chief editors of the local press and foreign press, to the community and to Members of Parliament. Daily detailed press briefings were given to the local and foreign mass media.
Other measures taken by us included the screening of air passengers from SARS-affected countries, screening at all international entry points, SARS epidemic control measures in schools, 17 sets of guidelines were issued, inter alia, on prevention and control of SARS in hospitals and clinics, for employers and employees, advisory on masks and respirators and health advisories for prevention of SARS for hotels and service apartments, public transport operators, schools and institutions of higher learning and airlines and shipping lines. Thermal monitors have been installed at various entry points into Malaysia to identify anyone from affected countries with fever for further physical screening. Health Declaration Cards were made mandatory for incoming travellers.
Our strategies to contain the outbreak were clear and decisively implemented and these included early case detection, screening activities, strict isolation of cases in designated hospitals, proper surveillance and management and quarantine of contacts, enhanced infection control practices in our hospital and healthcare facilities and general preventive measures.
Because of our multi-pronged and pro-active approach, we have had only 5 probable cases and 2 deaths to date, all imported. This respectively represents 0.06 % and 0.3 % of all cases and deaths reported globally. To date, we have had no local transmission of SARS. None of our healthcare providers was sickened by the disease. This was heartening for us given the fact that the majority of SARS cases reported worldwide were amongst healthcare providers and their contacts, and that Singapore, a SARS affected country until 11.5.03, was only ¾ km away from us separated by, a narrow straits and linked by a causeway and a Second Link. Because Malaysia’s 5 cases were all imported, Malaysia has always been and remains a SARS free nation. Malaysia is a safe country.
All these set the stage for the entire Asean region including our dialogue partners, the People’s Republic of China, Japan and the People’s Republic of Korea to work collectively on one common strategy to roll back SARS.
Realizing the need to co-operate with countries in this region, Malaysia took the initiative to host the ASEAN plus 3 Ministers of Health Meeting on SARS on 25-26 April 2003 in Malaysia. Subsequently on the 29th April the Asean Heads of Government convened a Special SARS meeting at Bangkok. These 2 meetings, we are told were the 1st regional meeting on SARS of Ministers of Health and Heads of Government in the world and set the stage for greater regional and global collaboration to stop SARS. A joint statement containing action plans and resolutions issued at the end of the Ministers of Health Meeting was adopted in full during the ASEAN Heads of Government Special Meeting on SARS. Dr. Shigeru Umi described these events as the turning point in our fight against SARS.
Over the last 1½ months after the 1st Asean meetings, there has been a flurry of activities and high level meetings across the region on labour, transport, tourism, information and health addressing the issue of SARS. In the days ahead further meetings and work have been scheduled to strengthen the region’s capacity to prevent and control SARS and more importantly other new and emerging infectious diseases. They are:
1) Thailand will host a consultative meeting to strengthen the capacity of Asean + 3 countries in epidemiological surveillance and training from 24 to 26 June 2003 in Bangkok;
2) Malaysia will conduct a meeting of Asean + 3 countries at Kuala Lumpur on 7 to 8 July 2003 to strengthen capacity and quality assurance of diagnostic laboratories to support infectious disease control and surveillance within the region;
3) Indonesia’s initiative to improve the Asean disease – surveillance.net website and to set up an Asean + 3 SARS homepage to disseminate information on SARS epidemiology, prevention and control, with links to the SARS websites of Asean + 3 countries, the Asean Secretariat and the WHO. The work plan for strengthening the SARS website will be prepared by Indonesia and circulated to member countries for review by 30th June; and
4) A project to prepare a longer term Asean + 3 work plan over and above the present Asean + 3 Action Plan on Prevention and Control of SARS and other infectious diseases for further strengthening surveillance of new and emerging diseases. The Asean secretariat will prepare the project’s terms of reference and circulate it to Member Countries for review by 30.6.03.
The work plan for Asean is massive. But we must remember that in this region we are more likely to be invaded by new microbes rather than by a foreign army. Asean must bolster its defences and this Asean has shown it has the highest political will to do so.
The mission and endeavours and efforts we undertook in Asean has now borne fruits. The 3 affected countries in the region have exited the WHO Affected Countries’ List, Vietnam on 28.4.03, Phillippines on 20.5.03 and Singapore on 30.5.03. The remaining 7 Asean countries, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia and Brunei either had no cases or very few imported ones. None of the 7 had any cases of local infection. The last case isolated of local infection of SARS in the region took place on 11th of May in Singapore. That was 36 days ago! Asean is a SARS FREE REGION!! We have announced this at the recent Asean + 3 Ministers of Health Meeting on SARS at Siem Reap, Cambodia on the 11th of June. This statement was endorsed by the WHO regional representative for the Western Pacific, Dr. Shigeru Umi. But we also resolved at Siem Reap that we would not LET UP in implementing preventive and control measures that we have collectively agreed upon against SARS. The price for being SARS free here in this region and elsewhere in the world is CONTINUED VIGILANCE & ACTION.
But dear delegates, spread this message “Asean is a SARS FREE REGION” along all the air routes of the world, at least the same routes that brought SARS to 32 countries and areas.
Individually nations have executed action plans and is working out their own salvation, regions have moved collectively to combat SARS, globally WHO is the flag bearer for humanity. Health or the lack of it has become CENTRAL to Human Development. There can be no lingering doubt that Health is vitally linked also to economic development.
There is a word in the Chinese dictionary for CRISIS. It is WEI JI i.e. the combination of 2 words, danger and opportunity. Inherent in a crisis and depending upon how we respond to it can be found the mother lode of OPPORTUNITY. All that has been done across the globe against SARS by humanity collectively must become the MODEL for man’s response to new microbes that will surely threaten HUMANITY in the FUTURE. Therein lies the OPPORTUNITY for all of us.