FOLLOWING the unexpected rise of Covid-19 cases recently, it is crucial to bear in mind that Malaysians should remain vigilant and not take contact tracing lightly as it is a vital way to curb the spread of Covid-19.
This is because contact tracing, which is defined as the process of identifying people who may have come into contact with someone who is infected and subsequently collecting further information about these contacts, is essential for us, particularly during this new wave of infections.
They are likely to be at greater risk of infection, and can potentially infect others. Besides, contact tracing can determine the high-risk places for individuals to take action such as disinfection and remind others to avoid such areas. It is now more useful as many have used the MySejahtera mobile application well.
Contact tracing has been made simple compared with the start of the pandemic with 17 million Malaysians now using the app. With more than 60 per cent of rakyat using the app, it will significantly help the Health Ministry conduct contact tracing.
To ensure this, it is best that individuals who have yet to download the application to do so, register and use it daily.
Of course, contact tracing is not the only priority. Please follow the standard operating procedures (SOP) and avoid the 3Cs as stated by the Health Ministry — crowded, confined spaces and close conversation to curb the spread of Covid-19.
It is also the responsibility of the person-in-charge to take people's information and check their temperature to ensure that they obey the SOP.
This involves people's compliance with QR code scanning or manually writing their information, maintaining physical distancing and wearing face masks when entering premises.
According to Crystal Watson, a senior scholar with the Johns Hopkins Centre for Health Security, contact tracing is the best method for handling Covid-19.
We should be extra careful because we are experiencing the third wave of Covid-19 infections. Another crucial thing is people should never neglect the process of providing personal information so that it does not interfere with all the Health Ministry's activities to detect individuals who might have been infected.
Additionally, the ministry is using these categories of close contacts to determine the risks of the groups:
A refers to individuals infected with Covid-19, B refers to individuals who have been in contact with individuals from Category A and are required to do swab tests, C refers to individuals who have been in contact with individuals from Category B and need to stay at home (home self-surveillance), D refers to individuals who have been in contact with individuals from Category C but can go out for work or other business, and E refers to individuals who are not related to any categories.
It implies that the categories C and D should wait for the test results of B, so if B is tested positive, C will become B, and D will become C. And if B is tested negative, B has to do the 14-day home self-surveillance, while C and D are free to resume their activities as usual.
According to Health Ministry, close contact means — family members (sleeping/eating together) of the same household or the same small group, face-to-face interactions for more than 15 minutes in an enclosed space at a distance of less than one metre, no face-to-face interactions but staying together in an air-conditioned closed room for more than two hours, and riding the same vehicle for more than hours.
People's awareness about this crucial information will undoubtedly ease the process of contact tracing by the Health Ministry as some individuals are still not aware of this.
But this kind of information does not mean keeping people in a state of panic, it is just to show how public awareness of contact tracing is vital to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Indeed, people need to know at this juncture we are far from winning the war against Covid-19. So, stay safe, follow the SOP and let's work together against this pandemic for our country's public health safety.
The writer is a Research Assistant at EMIR Research, an independent think tank focused on strategic policy recommendations based on rigorous research