KOTA KINABALU: No new cases of tuberculosis (TB) have been detected at 1Borneo mall where several workers had tested positive for the disease recently.
Medisinar Klinik & Surgeri Sdn Bhd managing director Dr Anil Kumar told reporters after conducting a health briefing with staff from Grand Borneo Hotel near here yesterday, that he garnered the information from the State Health Department.
However, generally, the number of TB sufferers in Sabah had been rising annually, said Dr Anil, who was previously in charge of looking after TB control in Sabah.
“TB continues to be prevalent in Sabah when compared to other states in the country – about 30 per cent of TB cases in the country are in Sabah,” he said.
He alleged that there were several reasons for this — better awareness leading to more people seeking treatment for TB, and immigrants coming from neighbouring countries.
“Malaysians are vaccinated against TB when they are born, and receive a second booster when they are six years old.
“However, it is not known if migrant workers from Indonesia and the Philippines underwent similar health procedures,” he said.
He also said children of migrant workers born here would of course be vaccinated against TB.
Dr Anil also mentioned that poor compliance with medicine taking by TB patients was also among the reasons why it was difficult to treat the disease.
“For two months, they have to consume the medication on a daily basis and the side effects are not pleasant. But after two months, they start feeling better and think they don’t need it anymore and they stop. That is when the bacteria becomes stronger and resistant to the treatment,” he said.
“The total treatment period that a TB patient has to undergo diligently is six months,” he said.
Meanwhile, Grand Borneo Hotel general manager Jef Kong said all 180 of its staff members would be undergoing medical health checks to ensure they were clear of TB.
He also said the hotel had experienced a drop in government bookings since December.
About seven to eight groups had cancelled their bookings with us, he said.
Seven workers at 1Borneo had tested positive for TB recently and they had been sent to Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment. They were believed to have contracted the virus at the housing colonies outside the mall.