Cambodia to have its first dedicated C-19 centre

People being checked bya health official

Cambodia will soon have its first dedicated COVID-19 centre next to Chroy Changvar Health Centre as a pandemic preparedness plan.

Prime Minister Hun Sen has directed the Ministry of Health to initiate the construction of the two-storey building to prepare for a worse scenario large-scale outbreak.

Disclosing this to the media, Minister of Health Mam Bun Heng said at present they have three treatment facilities for COVID-19 cases, namely, Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital, Chak Angre Health Center and the National Center for Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control.

He said the construction of the new centre will have a network of well equipped and fully staff medical personnel to handle and manage COVID-19 patients.

Bun Heng, who spoke to reporters during his visit to Chaktomuk Referral Hospital and Chroy Changvar Health Center, said the Ministry had discussed with the Phnom Penh Municipal officials on the location site near the centre for the construction of the building.

“If there are no major outbreaks or if the situation does not arise, then the centre will be used for general treatment of patients,” he said, adding that they would identify more locations in the provinces to have COVID-19 treatment centres.

While these measures are being put in place, Bun Heng reminded Cambodians to strictly adhere to the Standard Operating Procedures to prevent getting infected and to stop the spread of the fatal disease.

“Please wear your mask, wash your hands frequently and maintain social distancing. Avoid going to crowded places,” he advised.

Bun Heng warned that the “November 28 community incident” is not over as they are still closely monitoring the situation and the process would only be completed on January 28.

In a televised speech on Tuesday, Mr Hun Sen had given a 14-point recommendation to prepare for possible large-scale community transmission of COVID-19 in 2021 which included enhancing local health services, strengthening contact tracing, training more medical practitioners, expanding the capacity of laboratories in Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Preah Sihanouk and Battambang provinces. Supplying enough medical materials and equipment to hospitals and reinforcing referral systems to prevent transmission are the key points of the recomendation.

He said that although they were making the necessary preparedness plans, it is just to be well prepared for any eventuality.

The Premier urged the expansion of the rapid response, on-site treatment and mobile teams, strengthening of quarantine centres and their management, promotion of community participation, especially that of women in preventing the transmission, continued dissemination of health preventive measures at the local level, enhancement of contact monitoring and reporting systems and honesty in self-reporting.

The Prime Minister also instructed the Ministries of Economy, Finance, Civil Service, and Health to discuss the recruitment of more medical practitioners.

As to the special warehouse to store the COVID-19 vaccines, Health Ministry spokeswoman Or Vandine told Khmer Times yesterday that the ministry is preparing to build the warehouse that will be located at the Ministry’s warehouse for medicines and vaccines in Phnom Penh’s Por Senchey district.

“We are building the warehouse as a two-storeyed facility with 54 metres by 15 metres. But we do not know yet when it will be completed and how much it will cost,” she said.

Vandine said while the vaccine warehouse is under construction, the health officials were also discussing techniques to maintain the quality of the vaccine.

“We need to discuss further and make proper plans to store, distribute and deliver the vaccine to the people, which need more time to do so,” she added.

In another development, seven out of 50 COVID-19 patients have recovered, with no new imported cases nor new ones linked to the “November 28 community incident”.

In its statement issued yesterday, the ministry said that of the recoveries, five were involved in the “November 28 community incident” and two others were from overseas.

They include a 12-year-old boy, the grandson of the director-general of the General Department of Prisons Lieutenant General Chhem Savuth, a 36-year old driver for Lt Gen Savuth, a 30-year-old assistant to Lt Gen Savuth, a 36-year old wife of a deputy director of the Interior Ministry’s General Department of Prisons, a 22-year-old employee of Pedro shop on Sihanouk boulevard, a 62-year-old Cambodian-American woman living in Phnom Penh and 42-year-old American man living in Phnom Penh. He arrived in Cambodia from China on November 20.

To date, Cambodia has recorded a total of 362 people infected with COVID-19, of whom 319 have recovered, with 43 being hospitalised.

In related news, the Ministry of Health yesterday appealed to people who entered Hidden Coffee at Street 2002, Toek Thla commune, Sen Sok district, on December 4, between 3.30pm to 4pm to test for COVID-19 at the National Institute of Public Health, and self-quarantine themselves in their homes for 14 days as per the guidelines of the ministry.This is following a victim having been to the outlet before being tested positive.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Interior on Tuesday informed officials who have ended their quarantine and have tested negative for the virus three times, can return to work in the ministry.

Most officials at the Interior Ministry returned to work yesterday after completing their 14-day quarantine and being cleared of COVID-19. Mass samples were taken for testing the past few weeks.

Earlier this month, Interior Minister Sar Kheng ordered all civil servants, national police and officials at the General Department of Prisons and all departments inside the ministry not to come to work to prevent the COVID-19 community outbreak.

He also ordered mass testing at the ministry after officials were found to have come in direct and indirect contact with “November 28 community incident”.

However, in his notice on Tuesday, Kheng said senior ministry officials, civil servants, national police and officials from the General Department of Prisons completed their quarantine period, adding that three rounds of testing showed negative for the virus.

Kheng also asked all officials to practice COVID-19 preventive measures as some officials who remain in quarantine are banned from entering the ministry’s compound. Khmer Times