Covid-19 child patients on the rise, says private hospitals’ association

PETALING JAYA: The Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia has found an increasing trend of child Covid-19 patients in private hospital wards.

The trend was found through a survey conducted among the association’s members.

“A quick survey among the member hospitals found that there is an increasing trend of pediatric Covid-19 patients in their wards in the past one to two weeks,” its president, Dr Kuljit Singh, said in a statement today.

However, he noted that there remained some private hospitals that reported no pediatric Covid-19 admissions but high positive cases with mild symptoms.

Kuljit said pediatricians in private hospitals have been updated on the management of complications related to child Covid-19 patients in the event there is a further increase in admissions.

He said the vaccination programme for children aged between five and 11 have begun in some private hospitals, and strongly urged parents to get their children vaccinated.

“It’s very important to protect children from getting Covid-19 as the complications can be a challenge to manage and treat,” he said.

As of Feb 20, a total 454,194 children or 12.8% of those aged five to 11 have received the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine under the national immunisation programme for children.

The programme began on Feb 3 in the Klang Valley. — Free Malaysia Today