Dengue: Private doctors must protect themselves
By Deborah Loh (The Nut Graph)
PETALING JAYA, 17 June 2009: The Federation of Private Medical Practitioners' Association of Malaysia (FPMPAM) is urging all private clinics to report even suspected cases of dengue to the nearest District Health Office.
"This is best so that doctors will not be exposed to the very severe consequences in the form of a fine, jail term and/or the possibility of law suits," FPMPAM president Dr Steven Chow said in a statement today.
Dr Chow (Courtesy of FPMPAM)
He was responding to the Health Ministry's warning that doctors who failed to report dengue cases to the ministry would be fined RM10,000 or jailed for two years.
Dr Chow said doctors should send all patients with fever to the nearest government hospital or healthcare facility for further tests, even when the clinical diagnoses was uncertain, or when doctors were unable to exclude dengue as the cause of fever.
It is sometimes not possible to diagnose dengue immediately, especially in its early stages, since the symptoms are similar to that of other viral infections.
"Specific blood tests do not become positive until after the second or third day of the illness in the majority of cases," Dr Chow said.
FPMPAM's advisory to private clinics follows its earlier statement that questioned whether the public health system could cope if all cases of viral fever were reported to it.
Read more at: http://www.thenutgraph.com/dengue-private-doctors-must-protect-themselves
