CORONAVIRUS | The Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) has raised concerns over what it says are discriminatory practices against healthcare workers due to Covid-19.
The MMA said it was informed that a condominium in Petaling Jaya had segregated the use of its lifts to "protect other residents from getting infected with Covid-19".
"These discriminatory practices began when the condominium management got to know that a healthcare worker tenant was diagnosed with Covid-19.
"The healthcare worker who serves at a public healthcare facility was admitted to the hospital after being diagnosed with Covid-19 at the end of March.
"However, the condominium's management had only been made aware of this in mid-April when another tenant had informed them," MMA president Dr N Ganabaskaran said in a statement.
He said such discriminatory practice highlights a serious problem of misinformation.
"While we welcome the regular cleaning of common areas and temperatures of residents being taken upon entry as precautionary steps, the segregation of residents for shared facilities such as lifts is unnecessary and smacks of discrimination against our healthcare workers.
"There is a sense that some people are going beyond what is actually needed in precautionary measures out of intense fear and this is one particular example," he said.
Ganabaskaran said it was best to follow the Health Ministry's advice.
"Avoid crowds, wash your hands frequently with soap, regularly sanitise your hands, regularly disinfect frequently touched surfaces, keep a social distance of one to two metres away from others when in public during the movement control order (MCO), avoid non-essential trips outdoors and stay at home.
"If all these preventive measures are taken, there should be no reason for fear," he said.
He also urged the authorities to investigate discriminatory practices.
"We also urge the relevant ministries to step up its efforts to address these issues of fear and misinformation among the public to avoid similar type incidents," he said.
Malaysia has been under a partial lockdown since March 18 to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Under the MCO, all non-essential businesses and services must close and people may only leave home for approved reasons.
The MCO is expected to end on May 12, after three extensions.
As of noon, Malaysia recorded 5,742 Covid-19 cases with 98 deaths.
However, 3,762 people have recovered while another 1,882 are in treatment.
Globally, the virus has infected 2.84 million people and claimed 197,846 lives. - Mkini
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