compiled by Ma Sining

1. Report on the current situation of COVID-19 in Malaysia.
Student name: MA SINING GS54284
Course: ESC 5113
Lecture: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tengku Hanidza Tengku Ismail

2. • COVID-19 is a newly emerging viral respiratory disease. The disease is caused by the
coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which is similar to the viruses that cause SARS and MERS.
Introduction of Covid-19
• The first cases of COVID-19 became known in
mid to late December when a clustering of patients
with unusually severe respiratory disease was
noticed in Wuhan, the capital of China’s Hubei
province, a city with roughly 11 million
inhabitants.
• On December 31, 2019, China informed the World
Health Organization (WHO), and the world took
notice for the first time (Schröder, 2020).

3. • 2-14 days represents the current official estimated range for the novel
coronavirus COVID-19
(“Coronavirus Incubation Period (COVID-19) - Worldometer,” 2020).
• However, a case with an incubation period of 27 days has been reported by Hubei Province local
government on Feb. 22 (“Coronavirus incubation could be as long as 27 days, Chinese provincial
government says - Reuters,” 2020)
• In addition, a case with an incubation period of 19 days was observed in a JAMA study of 5 cases
published on Feb. 21. (Bai et al., 2020)
• An outlier of a 24 days incubation period had been for the first time observed in a Feb. 9 study
(Guan et al., 2020). WHO said at the time that this could actually reflect a second exposure rather
than a long incubation period, and that it wasn't going to change its recommendations.
incubation period

4. • Period can vary greatly among patients.
• Mean incubation period observed:
3.0 days (0 - 24 days range, study based on 1,324 cases)
5.2 days (4.1 - 7.0 days range, based on 425 cases).
• Mean incubation period observed in travelers from Wuhan:
6.4 days (range from 2.1 to 11.1 days) (“Coronavirus Incubation
Period (COVID-19) - Worldometer,” 2020).

5. Transmission route and
symptoms
• The transmission of SARS-CoV-2 can occur easily through respiratory droplets and direct
or indirect contact with the mucous membranes of the eyes, mouth, and nose.
• People with a compromised immune system, such as the elderly and infants, as well as
people with a background history of other diseases, are more likely to be severely affected
after being diagnosed with COVID-19 (Lu, Liu, & Jia, 2020; Guan et al., 2020; (Xia, Tong,
Liu, Shen, & Guo, 2020)
• The symptoms of COVID-19 include a fever, dry cough, fatigue, nasal congestion,
headache, diarrhoea, sore throat, and vomiting (Wang et al., 2020)

6. Malaysia Covid-19 Background
• Malaysia the first wave of infection started on 24 January 2020, with the identification of
22 cases, of which 12 had a travel history to affected countries and regions.
• Eight cases were close contacts and two were from a humanitarian mission. There were
11 days with no cases, from 16 to 26 February 2020.
• The second wave began on 27 February 2020 and is still ongoing ( Situation Report
Malaysia 29 April 2020, 2020).

7. • According to Noor Hisham “A serious concern for a more
massive COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia was when we
received notification on 9 March 2020 from our counterpart
in Brunei Darussalam about a positive COVID-19 case
detected in their country.
• The case was epidemiologically linked to an annual mass
religious assembly at Seri Petaling Mosque, Kuala Lumpur
held between 27 February to 1 March 2020 involving more
than 14,500 local and 1,500 international attendees” (DG of
health, 2020).

9. Distribution of Covid-19 active cases in Peninsula Malaysia
The map shows active cases by district. Active cases means total confirmed cases minus deaths and
recoveries.

10. Covid-19 Active Cases in Sabah and Sarawak districts
The map shows active cases by district. Active cases means total confirmed cases minus deaths
and recoveries.

11. Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia
Source: Department of Statistics Malaysia

12. Flattening the Covid-19 infection curve

13. Actions taken by the Government of Malaysia
and Ministry of Health to overcome COVID-19
• Malaysian citizens did not initially realize how deadly the virus is. On January 25, 2020,
Malaysia showed no intention of banning travellers from China, although China had lready
quarantined the entire population of 11 million in Wuhan due to the deadly virus (“Wuhan
coronavirus: No plans to stop Chinese tourists for now, says Dr M | TheStarTV.com,” 2020)
• Malaysians were also not well prepared to fight the pandemic, mainly because of the political
crisis that was happening at the same time and also because they were assured that the virus
would not spread easily in Malaysia(Shah et al., 2020) .

14. • However, with the number of positive COVID-19 cases in Malaysia increasing in less than a
week from 99 on March 8 to 200, with the first two deaths reported in mid-March,
Malaysians began to panic (Majid, 2020).
• Consequently, the government took many steps to alleviate the mass panic and protect the
health of Malaysian citizens (Shah et al., 2020).

15. • According to the Director-General of the MoH
Datuk Dr. Noor Hisham Abdullah, one of the
strategies was the placement of thermal scanners
(Bernama, 2020)
• Enhance the detection of fever amongst tourists
and/or locals returning from abroad.
• Malaysians who returned from Wuhan were
screened, identified, and isolated in special
quarantine areas for COVID-19.
• This measure also involved airline crews as well
as the staff of the MoH (Kaos, 2020).

16. • Increase the number of hospitals that could treat COVID-19 cases.
• To enhance the MoH efforts in keeping the spread and mortality under control, a
Movement Control Order (MCO) was implemented on March 18, 2020.
• An alliance involving 38 professional medical societies was established on March
1, 2020 to support the MoH in the area of healthcare (Malaysia Health Coalition,
2020).

17. • MoH urged the remaining participants who attended the tabligh
gathering at Seri Petaling mosque to come forward for tests and/or
screening.
• MoH has been taking aggressive measures by closely working with
the police to locate possible carriers of the virus, identifying them,
carrying out testing, and imposing a 14-day self-quarantine (Bernama,
2020).

18. • The Ministry has provided awareness programmes on basic protective and hygiene
measures to minimize transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in simple diagram form to reach the
public easily.
• Hand-washing techniques and the use of hand sanitizers and face masks.
• Various infographics associated with COVID-19 have frequently been prepared and
uploaded onto the website.
• The MoH has also conducted daily press
briefings, conference recordings, and has
published relevant news on COVID-19
• To increase public engagement and ensure
public awareness and access to accurate
information (Shah et al., 2020) .

19. Actions taken by the media, NGOs, and public institutions
Mainstream and social media
• COVID-19 has caused fear, anxiety, and confusion. The media, celebrities, and other
influencers have appealed to the public to stay at home and avoid mass gatherings. The
media has started to use the hashtag #stayhome.
• This hashtag has been used widely in the media, and it is hoped that important
messages to stop the spread of COVID-19 can reach all levels of society (Shah et al.,
2020).

20. NGOs
• The MCO has affected Malaysia's economy. Most companies have their
employees working from home, and some workers have had to stop
working.
• NGOs have been actively helping those who are affected by this pandemic.
• They have been providing food, shelter for the homeless, and have even
given out money to help those in need (“BERNAMA - COVID-19: NGO
launches mobile disinfection chamber in Penang,” 2020.).

21. Public institutions
• Educational institutions, schools, and higher education institutions have had to close due to
COVID-19. However, this has not stopped researchers from various universities from helping
citizens in fighting COVID-19.
• Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) for example has produced an instant hand sanitizer and face
shields (Penyelidik UPM hasikan 700 produk sanitasi tangani Covid-19, 2020)
• Universities and colleges have also raised funds in order to help students affected by the virus;
for example, UPM, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) (Rohizai, 2020), and Universiti
Malaysia Kelantan (UMK) (Oleh Nor Fazlina Abdul Rahim, 2020).

22. UPM distributes food to students during MCO

23. Individual self-precautions
• Malaysians have even stated a preference to stay at home for future protection from germs
and viruses, due to fear and anxiety when going to the supermarket, on public transport,
or traveling.
• They have also practiced wearing protective masks when out in public, frequent hand-
washing, and avoiding mass gatherings(Shah et al., 2020) .

24. Reference
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