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Hospital under fungus attack again |
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Posted by admin
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Tuesday, 11 November 2008 08:57 |
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Sim Bak Heng, NST Sultan Ismail Hospital, infamous for the fact that its opening was delayed by a fungus attack, appears to have been infected again.
A source has revealed that the fungus, said to be of the aspergillus variety, had been spreading over the past few months.
It said the most obvious sign of the fungus was in the hospital's canteen on the lower ground floor.
"Just look at the wall and you will know what I mean. I am worried the spores of the fungus will be carried to the wards or operation theatres by either visitors or medical staff."
To check the authenticity of the claim, the NST visited the hospital recently and found the canteen walls infected with what looked like fungus.
Further checks at the visitor centres for both men and women, also at the same level, showed large patches of the fungus scattered in the rooms.
At the women's visitor centre, some of the ceiling panels were missing while others had the greyish-coloured fungus, while at the men's visitor centre, all ceiling panels were missing, with only the aluminium frame left.
here were also signs of water leakage there; and the lights in the centre were also not functioning, nor were those in the toilets and prayer room.
When informed about the infection, state Women and Family Development, Welfare and Health Committee chairman Dr Robia Kosai said she would check on the matter.
According to a website on aspergillus, the spores of the fungus are present in the air, but do not normally cause illness. However, a person with a weakened immune system may be susceptible to aspergillus infection.
Sources of increased risk of fungus attack include dirty air-conditioning units, compost heaps and damp or flood-damaged premises, all of which can yield higher numbers of aspergillus spores.
The hospital that cost RM557.8 million initially started operating in July 2004, with the opening of the outpatient department and its haemodialysis centre.
Two months later, it was ordered closed as the infection of the aspergillus and penicillium fungi had spread throughout the hospital, contaminating the equipment within.
It only reopened 17 months later in February 2006.
Among the factors that may cause the infection were faulty air-conditioning system and the existence of an open-air garden.
The hospital, the second largest in Johor after Sultanah Aminah Hospital, has been plagued with problems since construction began in 1999.
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