A (H1N1) scare in Subang Jaya school
STILL SAFE: A parent reading the notice put up at about 1pm saying that school is on as usual
This followed the sudden death of science and maths teacher Chai Mee Feng, 39, at the Intensive Care Unit of Kuala Lumpur Hospital at 7.46am yesterday.
News of the death spread quickly among teachers and parents who immediately rushed to school to pick up their children.
Malay Mail visited the school yesterday and observed that though most of the morning session pupils had returned home earlier or after classes at 1.10pm, students in the afternoon session were unsure whether to stay or return home.
It was learnt that most parents had chosen to take their children home and only a handful of the 500 or so students chose to attend the afternoon session.
It was later learnt that the cause of Chai's death was severe pneumonia and multiple organ failure, symptoms that were very similar to H1N1 infection.
Parents, livid that the school was slow in giving a clear picture of the situation, are questioning both the Health Ministry and the Education Ministry over its efficiency in handling such situations.
H1N1 SCARE: Students walking out of Sek Men Keb USJ12 where a H1N1 scare resulted in most students from the afternoon classes going home
At 1.15pm, a notice was put on the front gate saying the classes would operate as normal.
Another parent who gave his name as Ng, said when he contacted the school he was simply told that it was up to parents to decide whether to take their children home or not.
Parent Azmah Othman said: "My son called me and said ma, please take me home now. My mathematics
teacher has passed away and they say it's H1N1."
Dr A. Shanmuganathan, who has two teenage children at the school, said: "We are worried. It should not take the Education Ministry or Health Ministry so long to respond to such situations. Schools should be given the power to issue statements and at least tell parents what's happening and what's their decision."
Health Ministry's principal assistant director Cyril Singham said: "At the moment, without positive confirmation of the death, the Health Ministry has not instructed that the school to closed." Singham said the current practice to close a school was when there was a community of people with flu-like symptoms.
"So far, the Health Ministry has not closed any school based on the number of deaths. That would be too late.
But we are monitoring the attendance of students closely as well as clusters or communities of students who have flu-like symptoms. That's the criteria. I believe the Ministry would know when to instruct a school to close," he said.
Singham said it was still safe to attend classes at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan USJ12 and there was
no cause for panic.
Chai's family still shocked, confused
FAMILY members of science and mathematics teacher Chai Mee Feng, 39, who died yesterday, are still reeling in shock and disbelief over her sudden passing. Despite all the talk of Influenza A (H1N1), confused family members are still wondering what caused her death.
"She got a fever after eating some durian last week and it got worse," said older sister Chai Mee Yoke. She said Mee Feng went to a clinic in USJ last Thursday and the doctor told her a test indicated it was positive for H1N1.
"She was told to take some medication and that she would recover," said Mee Yoke, adding that the medication did not include Tamiflu.
"What we don't understand is why didn't the clinic that she visited three times refer her to the General Hospital or anything," she said.
She added that on Tuesday Mee Feng complained that she was having difficulty breathing and was rushed to the Subang Jaya Medical Centre and later to HKL, where she was warded at the Intensive Care Unit.
"This is really too sudden for us.
She was healthy and participated in sports," said Mee Yoke, adding that her sister was a dedicated teacher
who stayed back regularly for her students.
Yesterday, the family was told by a HKL doctor that tests showed she tested negative for H1N1.
"But the doctor did say that symptoms were almost 90 per cent like that caused by the virus," said Mee Yoke, adding that the family was still waiting for another report that was promised to them in about five or six days.
"Then we'll know for sure," she said.
Mee Feng leaves an older brother, 45, two elder sisters, aged 44 and 41, and a twin sister. She lived in USJ2 with her 71-year-old mother. Her funeral is expected to be held at the Xiao En Memorial in Cheras in a few days.
