The Dengue 1 Stop Centre, which functions as an operation center for the ‘War On Dengue’ operation, was officially launched on the 8th November 2014 by the Deputy Director General of Health, Datuk Dr Lokman Hakim Sulaiman at the Taman Pantai Dalam, Kuala Lumpur. The Dengue Coalition Council was formed by the collaboration of MIMPA with 1M4U, Islamic Medical Association Malaysia (IMAM), Alumni of Medical Doctors International Islamic University Malaysia (MEDIIUM), Fakulti Sains Perubatan dan Sains Kesihatan Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (FPSK, USIM), Fakulti Alam Bina Universiti Malaya, and Pertubuhan IKRAM Malaysia (IKRAM).This first ever NGO driven dengue center will be responsible forl local community education, awareness programs, research and field work.
The D1SC is equipped with 2 mobile units (1 car and 1 bus), provided by 1M4U to mobilize volunteers and Dengue Coalition Council members to any dengue hotspots area. Recognising the need for local communities to become more proactive in dengue prevention, the centre acts as a centralised location for surrounding communities to get involved. The centre aims to create more awareness on the rising cases of dengue fever in the country as well as to educate and encourage local communities to learn first-hand from dengue experts how to curb the rise of the disease in their local neighborhoods.
There will be two permanent volunteers stationed at the centre to report on the status of the dengue hotspots once a week. Using the COMBItoolkit, D1SC volunteers can also be trained to combat dengue by learning how to“search and destroy” dengue hotspots.The centre allows for everybody to become volunteers, learning first-hand the various activities that can be conducted in their local neighborhood.
“In line with one of the pillars of the organization, which is community well being, we want to encourage people to seek critical knowledge including learning sustainable preventative measures which is the first step to finding a solution to the dengue fever issue in our country,” said Azlan Rudy Malik, Chief Operating Officer of iM4U.
Dr. Mohd Dzulkhairi Mohd Rani, MIMPA’s Director of Public Health Program said, “With a simple and direct approach specifically tailored to attracting local members of the community to visit the centre, the D1SC in Pantai Ria hopes to be the first in the next twelve centres to be launched across Malaysia. We hope to inspire and encourage the youth in particular to stand up and join the organisation in helping curb the rising cases of dengue in Malaysia.”
Datuk Dr Lokman, in his speech also added “I am impressed with this unique approach, I believe this is a sustainable program that will benefit the community. Well done”.
MIMPA is hopeful that with the launch of the D1SC, strong collaboration from all the parties involved and active public participation will result in a significant reduction and control of dengue.