Two
UTAR departments; the Department of Soft Skills Competency (DSSC) and the
Department of Chinese Medicine (DCM) under the UTAR Faculty of Medicine and
Health Sciences (FMHS) joined hands to organise a community service in the
form of health screening at SJK(C) Kampung Baru Pajam in Seremban on 22 May
2014. Joining them were three staff from the Centre for Extension Education
(CEE) to provide the valued-added service on the availability of short
courses in languages, motivation and personal development at the UTAR
campuses.
Supported by nine DCM students and staff from CEE and DSSC, three
traditional Chinese physicians; Associate Professor Dr Wu Nanmin, Lecturer
Chong Kuen Yen and Specialist I Ng Foong Leng set-up two health screen
service stations at the first floor of the school; one in the library and
the other in the adjacent classroom.
The
trio medical team provided health services that included checking blood
pressure, monitoring the pulse rate, general consultation on healthy
well-being and even traditional Chinese medicine prescription. The villagers
who came for the free health screening comprised teachers, parents and
students.
The
trio: Ng (from left), Dr Wu and Chong
Dr Wu
who has been involved in several community services was very enthusiastic
about the health screening service project and said, “We come here to help
the villagers and raise their awareness about health and to introduce the
benefit of traditional Chinese medicine to them. On the other hand, our
students can learn much more outside the classroom when they examine the
villagers and be aware of their social responsibility towards the
community.” He also added that Chinese medicine is a natural way to maintain
a healthy life.
SJK(C)
Kampung Baru Pajam Headmistress Teo Bee Yong was very grateful to UTAR for
the initiating the health screening community project. Teo added that the
school currently has only 72 students and needs help from the community as
the school has limited resources. “We hope that community can come forward
to help small-sized Chinese primary schools like SJK(C) Kampung Baru Pajam.
UTAR has set a good example and we welcome more community support to hold
activities such as motivation camp, tutorial class or gotong-royong at our
school,” said Teo.
Dr Wu
(right) explaining to Teo (left) about her medical condition with Wong
listening at the side
The
health screening service provided a platform for practical training and
experiential learning for the participating DCM students. They gained
firsthand experiences by observing how their lecturers attended to the
villagers. It was training par excellence as both DCM students Wong Yan Shen
and Chong Sin Lian enthused that they have learnt much especially on the
approaches on note taking, medical prescriptions and the art of asking
questions about the villagers’ health and ailments.
Wong
said, “Doing this community service has motivated me to work harder to
master the skills of a Chinese physician in order to help others towards
building a healthy and harmonious community.” Chong added that the
involvement in the community service has strengthened her determination to
help the poor, sharpened her soft skills especially in showing empathy
towards the sick and elderly.
Chong
(right) checking the blood pressure of a villager
Ng
(left) taking the pulse of a teacher
Chong
(right) examining a villager while her student, Leow Jack Min looks on
A
fruitful day for the Chinese Medicine students
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