Page 2 - NIH Bulletin Vol. 16 December 2020

Bulletin National Institutes of Health, Malaysia Vol 16 • 2020

FROM THE DESK
OF CHIEF EDITOR

HOPE IN Advisor
• YBrs. Dr Hishamshah Mohd Ibrahim

Chief Editor
THE TIME OF CHAOS • Dr Sunita Shanmugam

NIH Bulletin Secretariat
• Mohd Idris Omar
• Fasehah Ali
“Never let a good crisis go to waste” • Fazieyana Azizi
Editors
~Winston Churchill~
• Dr Sujatha Suthandiram
Two decades into the 21 century, we find ourselves in a global public health • Norzawati Yoep
st
crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused chaos across nations, socially and • Dr Tania Gayle Robert
• Yip Yan Yee
economically. As the number of positive cases across the world rise every day, • Dr Nur Balqis Zahirah Ali
it becomes more and more apparent that we are only as strong as our weakest • Matron Kong Yuke Lin
health system. • Norbaidurah Ithnain
• Khairulnissa Abdul Kadir
Healthcare industry has witnessed a sudden surge in research and technology
innovation with an emphasis on public health. The COVID-19 crisis has become Contributors
a catalyst for healthcare transformation. Malaysia has risen to the occasion by • Dr Nur Balqis Zahirah Ali
containing the disease outbreak with collaborative effort between relevant • Dr Awatef Amer Nordin
ministries and the rakyat. • Terence Tan Yew Chin
• Dr Ravindran Thayan @ Sukumaran
This special edition of the NIH bulletin focuses on the many roles NIH had and • Dr Shubash Shander Ganapathy
continues to have in fighting against COVID-19 pandemic. It also features free • Yip Yan Yee
papers by officers on their individual experience with COVID-19. • Dr Ng Rui Jie
• Ku Anis Shazura Indera Putera
We have come a long way, but the fight is not over. As we continue to innovate, • Matron Nur Khairah Badaruddin
work together and learn from each other, let us continue to embrace the new • Dr Sujatha Suthandiram
norm of physical distancing, wearing masks and hand hygiene.
Unit Keselamatan & Kesihatan
#WearAMask Pekerjaan (UKKP)
#KitaTeguhKitaMenang
Dr Sunita Shanmugam
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Message from DDG ........................................03
IMR ...............................................................................04
IKU .................................................................................10
ICR .................................................................................14
IHSR ............................................................................ 26
IPTK .............................................................................30
IHM ..............................................................................34
UKKP ..........................................................................38
Abstracts .................................................................47
Covid-19 Reflections ........................................52
Event updates .....................................................60
Preventive measures for COVID-19 .....68

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