Handling medical emergencies the Perhentian way

By Mohamad Harith Mohamad Nizar

BESUT, Dec 30 -- Hasrul Yadidi Ab Hamid had a situation in hand. 

The assistant medical officer would have handled it easily if it had not happened in October. But then, it was October and the monsoon season had set in on Perhentian Island, 21 km offshore, making the seas too rough for even some of the bigger boats.

He had no choice but to send a 16-month-old baby girl suffering from bronchopneumonia to the mainland. Using the ambulance boat to make the trip was out of the question.

“Here (on Perhentian Island), it is unlike being on the mainland. There you have roads. The condition of the sea depends on the weather. When the sea is rough, we cannot get across,” he told this reporter who had come to the island in December to experience how the 2,100 inhabitants manage during the monsoon season.

Recalling the incident, Hasrul Yadidi, 32, said he summoned a helicopter from the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) to fly the baby girl to Kuala Terengganu.

“Alhamdulillah (praise be to God), we sent the baby girl to the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital. She has recovered and has returned to the island in good health,” he said.

For the only health clinic on Perhentian Island, the case was an emergency.

It had taken four hours to get the baby girl across from the island to the mainland as there were several procedures to be adhered to for the helicopter ride, said Hasrul Yadidi who runs the clinic with another assistant medical officer. They are assisted by two nurses and two boatmen.

“Usually, the ambulance boat transports patients to the mainland. When the boats cannot be used, due to the sea conditions, we have to seek help from the police and maritime authorities.

“The helicopter is the last resort if no boats can make it across the rough sea,” said Hasrul Yadidi who lives in Kuala Besut and regards as a huge challenge the journey to and from the island during the monsoon season which lasts from November to March.

He said a boat usually takes about 30 minutes for the ride from the Kuala Besut jetty to the Perhentian Island jetty but during the monsoon season a boat journey can take up to 90 minutes.

The Perhentian Island Health Clinic is the only health facility available for the islanders.

Housed in a semi-concrete building like many of the village houses on the island, the clinic attends to the villagers in many ways, from treating a fever to delivery of babies.

There is no doctor in the house. A doctor from the Besut District Health Office makes a monthly visit to the island according to a schedule.

At other times, patients who need to be treated by a doctor or specialist will be taken to the mainland in an ambulance boat. Some pregnant mothers will be sent to the hospital in Besut just before their expected date of delivery.

Although Perhentian has only one health clinic, the immunisation of the children on the island is at a satisfactory level.

Nurse Nor Azlina Nawang, 36, said all the children on the island are given their immunisation shots on schedule.

Villager Mohd Zawawi Che Yaakob, 60, expressed satisfaction with the service provided by the clinic but said some improvements could be made.

“Right now, we get treatment for fever and colds. The clinic can be expanded. A bigger space is necessary to accommodate patients when many people are waiting for treatment,” he said.

-- BERNAMA