ISKANDAR PUTERI: Carrying out mass unsystematic Covid-19 testing in Johor may lead to a “negative impact”, says state health and environment committee chairman R. Vidyananthan.

       He said the Johor Health Department has been implementing the early detention and containment approach through the FTTIS (Find, Trace, Test, Isolate and Support) activity.

       “The department has been carrying out mass testing since the second wave of Covid-19 in Johor, but in an organised and targeted manner.

       “Conducting mass testing without any planning would only bring a negative impact to Covid-19 management here and also cause confusion among the public, possibly leading to a communication risk in the future.

       “It is also not practical and requires huge funding, but has no big impact on controlling the spread,” he said.

       Vidyananthan was speaking during his winding-up address at the state assembly here yesterday.

       He listed several negative effects of mass testing, which include delayed results due to the high number of tests.

       “There is also the possibility of getting a lot of false negative cases due to the long incubation period, which could give a false sense of security.

       “On top of that, the gathering of people at test locations could also cause a further spread of the disease,” Vidyananthan added.

       The exco member said that as at Sept 5, a total of 2.2 million Johoreans or 84.3% of the adult population had received one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, while 1.44 million or 53.5% were fully vaccinated.

       “The close to 50% of the adult population who have yet to be fully vaccinated are exposed to the disease.

       “The other half have started to forget their responsibility of protecting those who have yet to be vaccinated.

       “As such, the state government will be implementing the Leaders Advocacy Initiative Programme that is based on risk communication to mobilise community leaders to play a bigger role in protecting their communities.

       “The leaders will help carry out activities conducted by the department to curb the spread of Covid-19 in Johor,” he added.

       Vidyananthan said the active participation of these leaders would contribute to a greater change in attitude towards the pandemic among the public.

       He added that a total of 149,358 cumulative Covid-19 cases had been reported in Johor as of Sunday, including 2,165 new cases that day.

       “Health facilities in Johor have been facing big challenges not only in managing the pandemic, but also in giving the best medical care to Johoreans.

       “The digitalisation of health services is among initiatives that have been undertaken by the health department.

       “This includes online appointment booking and virtual consultations,” he added.