PENANG LAUNCHES EPINTAS-SEHAP APP TO BOOST DENGUE SURVEILLANCE

GEORGE TOWN, Nov 18 (Bernama) -- Penang has introduced the Penang Information and Complaints System (ePINTAS) - State Environmental Health Action Plan (SEHAP) online application to monitor dengue cases in the state.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said ePINTAS-SEHAP is an integrated platform that combines the state government’s ePINTAS system with a dengue case management and monitoring module developed by the Penang State Health Department.

“The integration not only streamlines inter-agency workflows but also creates a more efficient and responsive monitoring system. It enables faster case detection as data is updated in real time at the state, district and local authority levels.

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“The review and verification process is also more structured, allowing follow-up action to be taken more accurately, while the application’s capability to display information on locations, case status and field actions digitally further strengthens enforcement,” he told reporters after launching ePINTAS-SEHAP at the State Legislative Assembly building here today.

Also present were state secretary Datuk Zulkifli Long, state Youth, Sports and Health Committee chairman Daniel Gooi Zi Sen and state Health director Datuk Dr Fazilah Shaik Allaudin.

Chow said the initiative is expected to save the government RM170,000 a year by utilising an existing application integrated with a new module, thereby avoiding the cost of developing a completely new system.

He said it is also the first initiative of its kind in Malaysia, bringing together the federal government, state government and local authorities on a single integrated platform that supports holistic environmental health management.

On the current dengue situation in Penang, he said that as of the 46th Epidemiological Week (ME) from Nov 9 to 15, a total of 58 cases were recorded compared with 45 cases in the previous week, an increase of 29 per cent.

“Overall, the cumulative number of cases stands at 1,687, a drop of 59 per cent compared with 4,069 cases in the corresponding period last year, while dengue fatalities have also shown encouraging improvement, with only four deaths reported compared with eight cases in 2024.

“This reflects the effectiveness of early detection and faster response, although there are still 12 active outbreaks in the state, namely eight in the Timur Laut district, three in the Barat Daya district and one in Seberang Perai Tengah,” he added.

-- BERNAMA