Wednesday, 13/02/2008

Spot Light: Malaysia's rural health service second to none
By ANNIE FREEDA CRUEZ, JASWINDER KAUR and ALINA SIMON

Malaysia has one of the best rural health services in the world, according to the International Health Organisation. The services being offered, including through embracing such new technologies as telemedicine, have helped rural folk enjoy the latest treatments, writes ANNIE FREEDA CRUEZ, JASWINDER KAUR and ALINA SIMON IT may come as a surprise to Malaysians to learn that there is a health clinic every five kilometres of the country. And that more than 95 per cent of the rural population have access to a doctor.

It can be said that every Malaysian has access to good primary healthcare. In many countries, rural areas are often neglected but not so in Malaysia.

There are 2,965 clinics and 151 mobile clinics in rural areas in the country, which is why Malaysia has won kudos for its rural health programmes from international agencies such as the International Health Organisation.

In the provision of primary healthcare, the Health Ministry has in fact achieved its target ratio of clinics to population: there is one health clinic or centre for every 20,000 people while there is one community or rural clinic for every 4,000 people.

Services at the clinics include curative, family health, dental, nutrition and dietetics, health education and promotion, home nursing, care of the elderly, rehabilitative services, environmental sanitation, adolescent health and community mental services.

Director-General of Health Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said primary healthcare was the thrust of the Malaysian health care system.

It is supported by effective secondary and tertiary healthcare.

Since specialists are not available at community and rural clinics, the ministry has come up with a system to ensure rural folk are not deprived of specialist services.

Embracing modern technology, the ministry has begun to introduce telemedicine into rural areas.

The ministry, over the last two years, has aggressively embarked on such areas as teleconsultation, health online and keeping of a lifetime health record.

Those with Internet access or an ipod can plug into the ministry's website to learn about diseases and try out simple home treatments for some common ailments that do not require a doctor's presence.

"Patients in rural areas can now have access to health information so that they can treat instead of coming to hospital for minor ailments," Dr Ismail said.

A one-year pilot project on teleconsultation in Klang, parts of Sarawak, Johor and Kepala Batas has proven successful and is now being introduced to the rest of the nation.

Dr Ismail said the introduction of teleconsultation on June 6, 2006 in 37 locations had shown the effectiveness of the system.

With this system in place, he said, a patient in a rural area need no longer go to a city to get specialised treatment as he could receive the service through teleconsultation.

Doctors and specialists get online access to the diagnosis and medical history of patients whom they may never see in person.

Using radiographs, ECGs, laboratory results, echocardiograms and coronary arteriograms, they are able to determine the health of patients hundreds of kilometres away.

The system also allows for second opinions, an exchange of views between doctors treating a patient and referrals to be made from several locations.