KUALA LUMPUR, April 17 — The Covid-19 cluster involving health workers in Sabah’s Likas hospital was likely caused by them gathering in common areas and not from wards, said Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.
He said the 14 frontliners infected include doctors and nurses working in the Melur ward in the Likas Women and Children’s hospital were also traced back to a wedding ceremony in Ipoh.
“It was first reported on 27 March, and our investigation shows that the source is from the community. A wedding event in Ipoh. So maybe someone came back to Likas and brought the infection back,” he said when speaking at his daily press conference today.
“It is also likely that the spread of the virus was not from any wards, but from confined spaces like the pantry. Sometimes doctors and nurses gather in the pantry to eat, so maybe from there,” he said.
Dr Noor Hisham said active case detection was underway and action has been taken to isolate and quarantine those involved, including those who have come into contact with the 14 positive cases.
It was reported that the Sabah Health Department identified two clusters in its jurisdiction: one involving staff of the Sabah Women’s and Children’s Hospital in Likas, Kota Kinabalu and Keningau hospital.
At the time, state Health director Dr Christina Rundi said there were 11 cases in the cluster in Kota Kinabalu.