THE MARTYR

Al-Fatihah to Bro Obaida Al-Qudsy (died last 13/09/09) during his 'last' visit to Palestine his homeland.

May you rest in peace. Aameen

APOLOGY

Assalamualaikum everyone.

We are very sorry for not being able to update this blog for a while. Everyone is busy! SRC was and still occupied with administrative and ad-hoc work everyday. Insyallah we will make up for the programs and events that some of us might have missed.

Till then.

p/s: Hope its not to late to wish Eid Mubarak. Wonder if we have the chance to meet the next Ramadhan. We missed you already O Ramadhan.

Interview with Deputy Rector (Students' Affairs), Prof. Dr. Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmod



Check out our first release of SRC.TV

Special thanks to Prof. Dr. Nik Ahmad Kamal Nik Mahmod and Bro Faisal

EMERGENCY or CURFEW

> What does a national health emergency mean?

The Government has declared the Influenza A (H1N1) virus situation a health emergency because of persistent community-level transmission of the virus where there are between 200 and 400 new confirmed cases daily.

During this situation, individuals with influenza-like illnesses such as flu, fever and cough must wear a mask and practice self-quarantine by staying home and avoiding contact with family members until the symptoms subside.

> How long would the emergency last?

The emergency will last until local transmissions can be reduced to below 200 confirmed cases per day and when no related deaths have occurred for a period of time.

> What is a national curfew?

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the Government will only

consider declaring a national curfew if A (H1N1)-related deaths exceed 0.4% of the number of confirmed cases multiplied by 20.

This is to take into consideration that for every one case reported, there could be 20 which are not.

> What will happen during a curfew?

A temporary closure of public places such as shops, schools, universities, libraries, shopping complexes and public events during a specified period of the day will be ordered during a curfew.

> Who has the authority to declare a national curfew?

The National Security Council chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin will declare a national curfew based on input and recommendations from the Health Ministry.

* Source: The Star

Guidelines on Closure Being Drafted

Guidelines on closure being drafted in wake of H1N1 outbreak, says Liow

SERDANG: New guidelines are being drawn up for the closure of schools and universities in the wake of the Influenza A (H1N1) outbreak.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the ministry’s technical committee was drawing up the guidelines.

“Now that the situation has changed to the mitigation stage, new guidelines are needed to ensure that schools and universities follow the same guidelines on school closures,” he told reporters yesterday after visiting the Serdang Hospital service centre for patients with flu-like symptoms.

He was asked to comment on the closure of schools.

He also told suppliers of the rapid test kits and face masks not to raise their prices unnecessarily or they would have to answer to the Domestic Trade, Cooperative and Consumerism Ministry.

Liow ruled out a need to call for a state of emergency with the current A (H1N1) situation, saying that social distancing programmes and measures sufficed for now.

He added that the public could now check at private clinics and hospitals for suspected Influenza A (H1N1).

In Putrajaya, health director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said the absence of soap at public toilets in certain airports and rest areas along highways was not helping efforts to promote better hygiene in the wake of the flu outbreak.

“But the public would not be able to observe them if there was no soap to even wash their hands,” he told reporters yesterday after launching the fourth edition of the Clinical Practice Guidelines: Management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

He added that those managing public toilets needed to cooperate with the ministry’s efforts to curb the spread of the flu, especially because of the large numbers of people using the rest areas and airports.

The number of new A (H1N1) cases in a single day hit the highest number yesterday with 270 cases reported, bringing the total number to 2,253. All the new cases were locally transmitted.

Six more A (H1N1)-related deaths were also reported in the last 24 hours, bringing the number of fatalities to 38.

He said of the six deaths reported yesterday, four involved high-risk patients who suffered from hypertension, diabetes and asthma.

*Source: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/8/12/nation/4502199&sec=nation