11th COVID-19 death in Malaysia
COVID-19 death update
Image adapted from: Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
Earlier today at 11.54AM, 23rd March 2020, the Ministry of Health (MoH) announced that there has been another COVID-19 death in the country, bringing the death toll to 11. The statement was released on MoH’s official Twitter page where it has been providing Malaysians with daily updates on the latest news and announcements regarding the COVID-19 outbreak.
Image adapted from: @KKMPutrajaya
Malaysian man with a history of chronic illnesses
The deceased was identified to be a 70-year-old Malaysian man who also suffered from underlying chronic illnesses. It is believed that he contracted the virus when he travelled to Indonesia back in February 2020, and had shown symptoms a week before he was admitted to the hospital on 18th March 2020.
He was declared positive for COVID-19 a day after on 19th March 2020, and was provided with respiratory assistance in the ICU. However, his health rapidly declined as the days went by until he passed away on 22nd March 2020.
MoH has also revealed that he was a chairman of the local surau in his neighbourhood.
The deceased was a religious leader at his neighbourhood surau
Image credit: Vymaps
More patients admitted to the ICU as confirmed cases increase
According to an infographic provided by The Star, there are now 45 COVID-19 patients who have wound up in the ICU. To put things in perspective, intensive care units (ICU) are highly specialised facilities to cater to patients in critical conditions as they require intensive monitoring, nursing care, and advanced respiratory support.
Image credit: New Straits Times
While we can take some time to rejoice that 139 patients have been successfully treated and are cleared of COVID-19, the statistics also remind us about the pressing situation at hand and that we should not take the COVID-19 outbreak lightly.
Image adapted from: Flourish
As of today, the number of COVID-19 cases is at 1,306. Health Director-General Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah has also said that the government is expecting an increase of COVID-19 cases in the upcoming week.
According to Free Malaysia Today, Abdullah said that this is because more than 60% of the confirmed COVID-19 cases are tabligh participants who attended the religious event in Sri Petaling.
A number of them have yet to be tested, so they could unknowingly spread the virus to other members of their community. Abdullah also added that the new cases could be from clusters who had indirect contact with tabligh attendees, which is why it’s crucial for those who haven’t gone in for testing to do so immediately.
COVID-19 deaths in Malaysia
At the beginning of the outbreak, Malaysia saw a comparatively low number of confirmed cases and zero deaths. When the first COVID-19 death was reported on 17th March 2020, Malaysians began to realise the severity of this growing pandemic. The rising numbers are a harrowing reminder to be more vigilant during this period of Movement Control Order. By simply staying at home, we’re one step closer to eradicating COVID-19 off our streets.
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