Lack of info on meningitis deaths causes anxiety among UPM students
The recent death of two Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) students has struck fear among undergraduates in the agriculture and computer science faculties, who learnt about the tragedy via the campus grapevine.
Chang Lih Kang, a student leader with Gerakan Mahasiswa Maju, lamented the lack of urgent information from the university's administration which he believed would help alleviate the anxiety among students.
He said some of the students were trying to find out by themselves what had happened prior to the two deaths.
"We want the university to issue a statement to explain the two incidents since the situation still remains unclear," he said, adding that notices posted by the two affected faculties early last week only urged students to go for medical screening, but offered no explanation.
"An explanation is necessary for we have a right to know what is happening around us so that we are aware of the urgency of the matter, especially when it involves an airborne bacteria such as meningitis."
Third-year computer science student Loy Cheah Kee, 23, and third-year diploma in agriculture student D Thiyagarajan, 23, had died of meningitis on June 27 and 29 respectively.
Meningitis is listed as an extremely dangerous and contagious bacterial infection which causes inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord.
The deaths occurred in the students' rented homes in Taman Bukit Serdang and Taman Balakong Jaya, about 15 minutes' drive from the UPM campus, located off the Seremban-Kuala Lumpur Highway near Serdang.
Severe headaches
Only a week earlier, Loy had complained of severe headaches and fever, but his five housemates did not suspect anything was amiss.
One of them, Ooi Chee Sin, told malaysiakini that Loy had complained of uneasiness the whole week and later decided to go for a check-up at the campus health centre.
"A day before he died, he had gone to see the doctor in the morning. He told me that the doctor didn't think too much of his uneasiness and had given him some vitamin tablets.
"When we tried to wake him up the next morning at about 7.30, we found him looking pale and stiff. Only then we realised that he was already dead, so we called the emergency number for help."
Ooi said several health officers visited their rented house the following Monday to ask them whether they were feeling feverish, had coughs or the flu, saying that these were symptoms of meningitis.
"They told us to get screened at the Kajang Hospital since we were in close contact with Loy. They also told us that there had been a similar death in Balakong."
Two of Loy's housemates were warded for several days, but were released after testing negative for meningitis.
Loy Lee Shia, when contacted by malaysiakini , said her family has not received her brother's postmortem report from Kajang Hospital, but managed to collect the death certificate at the Serdang police station yesterday.
She said the cause of death as stated in the certificate was "acute pulmonary oedema", and not meningitis as Loy's housemates had told her earlier with reference to the information given by the health officers.
"I will find a way of getting to the truth about my brother's death," said Lee Shia, who is studying engineering in Universiti Malaya.
Meanwhile, a visit to the UPM campus last weekend showed that a majority of the students seemed unconcerned. However, there was some anxiety among the victims' friends and among students in the computer science and agricultural faculties.
Lack of urgency
A student who had gone for screening at the campus health centre lamented the seeming lack of urgency by the medical personnel.
"The doctor checked my blood pressure, pulse and temperature. Then I was asked whether I had been in contact with Loy or Thiyagarajan. When I said yes, the doctor gave me some multi-vitamins and antibiotics to last several days.
"The doctor gave me the okay but told me to return to the health centre immediately if I felt ill."
Third-year agriculture student Chin Wai Hoe and third-year computer science undergraduate Er Chong Yee had also gone for screening at the campus health centre a few days after the two fatalities.
"We were asked by the doctor whether we had fever or felt ill. No blood tests or any other tests were done. We were given some multi-vitamin tablets and antibiotics."
They described how students from the computer science and agriculture faculties, as well as several from other faculties, had rushed to the health centre as rumours of the two deaths spread around the campus.
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