The food preparation area of Sekolah Menengah Sains Tuanku Aishah Rohani in Seremban has been ordered to close after 152 students suffered from food poisoning on 22 November.
As reported by Utusan Malaysia, Chairman of the Negeri Sembilan Health, Environment, Cooperatives and Consumerism Action Committee, S. Veerapan, said the Negeri Sembilan Health Department through the Seremban District Health Office (PKD) had received a report on a food poisoning incident yesterday involving students from the school.
According to him, the investigation conducted by PKD Seremban found that 152 students suffered from food poisoning symptoms out of the 597 people who were exposed, with an attack rate of 25.5 per cent.
Of the total, all students (152) experienced the main symptoms of stomach pain, nausea (148), headache (134), vomiting (119) people, diarrhoea (94), fever (32) and abdominal cramps (30). All cases were treated as outpatients and all were in stable condition.
“Outbreak control measures were taken on the same day. Premises inspections and sampling activities have also been carried out,” he said, adding that clinical samples from cases, food samples and environmental samples were taken and sent to the laboratory for analysis.
According to him, further investigations will be continued to identify the real cause of this food poisoning incident.
“The action to close the food preparation area has been made under Section 18 (1) (f) of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 to prevent the addition of new cases from the same premises,” he said.
Veerapan added that health education has also been given to all students involved, entrepreneurs and all food handlers in the dormitory kitchen.
“The epidemic is under control. Investigation and monitoring of the epidemic will be done until the epidemic ends,” he said.
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