PETALING JAYA: Hospital Selayang has responded to a viral video showing people queueing outside its specialist clinic, in a long line that stretches to the main road.
In a statement, the hospital’s director Dr Sakinah Alwi explained that it was due to the large number of patients redirected to Hospital Selayang from other hospitals during the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the SOPs, such as physical distancing.
“With Hospital Sungai Buloh being the main Covid-19 hospital and Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL) converted into a hybrid hospital to treat Covid-19 patients, Hospital Selayang has been helping to ensure that the treatment of (non-Covid-19) patients in these hospitals are unaffected.
“At the same time, Hospital Selayang continues to treat our current patients. Hence, the increase in the number of patients seeking treatment here is unavoidable at this time,” she said.
Sakinah added that there is also a limit to the number of patients that were allowed at a time in the hospital’s specialist clinic, leading to the long lines outside.
“We have implemented certain measures to mitigate these problems, including setting up tents at the parking lot in front of the specialist clinic lobby as a makeshift visitor’s waiting area.
“It is a temporary measure until the clinic’s visitor’s foyer is built,” she said.
The hospital is also improving its patient appointment system to prevent congestion in the waiting area, establishing a referral letter system to reduce the number of patients queueing.
“In executing all these initiatives, Hospital Selayang always ensures that SOPs are complied with,” Sakinah said.
A video clip that had gone viral on social media since last week showed long lines of people outside the Hospital Selayang’s specialist clinic, with the queue stretching all the way to the main road.
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