1. Tuan Haji Samad, Kuala Muda District Head of Environmental Health Division briefed us, or rather gave an elaborative speech on the portfolios under his division. He spoke for 2 hours. (-.-") Center of Disease Control, Law and Enforcement, KPAS, KMAM, Food Quality and Control, Control of Vector Borne Disease. Punctuating his speech with tiny diagrams and flow charts on our little 5 ft white board, he spoke also about the importance of each unit within his division.
Preventive aspect of maintaining health being the center of his focus. the hype was all about how Public Health was just way different and (indirectly) way better than the Therapeutic aspect.
KMAM- daily duties of water sampling deflect a possible outbreak of dysentry. E.Coli commonly used as an indicator in these sites.
Disease Surveillance - enables us to fortell or predict occurence of outbreaks, as in the case of dengue, an Aedes Index is used: no of vector breeding sites/no of houses surveyed in given area in percentage enables us to determine density of vector. With adequate information, the government is better able to take certain measures.
Food Quality and Control - prohibiting entry of imported products that do not comply to safety standards outlined by the Food Act. and Collaborative Operations carried out regularly by Health Inspectors and Law Enforcement Officers ensures that consumer rights are preserved.
Health Education Unit - speech, exhibits in schools and competitions held regularly to promote awareness.
etc.
2. Mr. David who gave us a talk on perundangan and penguatkuasaan, not to be outdone by his HOD, gave another incredible 2 hour speech. He spoke on Law and Enforcement and also on Laws pertaining to Tobacco handling, sales, possession, and prohibited areas. He spoke also on food items. even, surprisingly on the milk man,
have you ever heard of a flour water mixture or rice water mixture passed off as milk?
or hampers, sales of which hit the roof pre-festival time, are commonly full of expired or close to expiring products?
or edited expiry date labels?
or rotten vegetables passed off as wholesome by pre-dicing them? you throw away all the rotten bits, but the rest, sold as a rojak dish?
We learnt of 'blown cans'. a common occurence due to microbiological activity.
apply pressure on the base of the can and if you detect a bulging at the lid, you've got yourself a family of organisms.
The field trip which was supposed to be in the afternoon was postponed to Sat at 2.30pm at HSAH. Tobacco Enforcement, fuyoh!!! Looking forward to our 1st field expose.... :)
Some Questions for you all.
ReplyDeleteDisease surveillance
How does disease surveillance help predict disease occurrence or outbreaks? Are the strategies different for each disease or disease group? Since prevention is better than cure (sic) what is the role of curative personnel (you all) in the surveillance process?
Health Eduction
How do they select a particular topic to focus on? Who decides? What is the budget for a given activity? Are there different approaches to ongoing HE activities and one time activity?
Food Quality
What is the most dangerous organism in the "blow cans"? What is the frequency with which such cans have been identified (quantify common occurrence)? What organisms were found? Was the "dangerous organism" ever identified?
General
Get the qualifications and training of the personnel involved.
Try and convert the "lectures" to Q & A sessions. That's what I have been trying in class, but with little success !! :Q
will kindly take into consideration your questions. as this was just an overview of the activities in store for us this and the coming week, we will continue to keep you updated.
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