Fostering Love, Weaving Hope

The crowd during the talk

An endometriosis awareness campaign, organised by the Tun Tan Cheng Lock Centre for Social and Policy Studies, Kuala Lumpur Endometriosis Association (MyEndosis) and National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN) was held at Dewan Tabung Haji on 8 July 2017.

Themed at ‘Fostering Love, Weaving Hope’, the event aimed to raise the public awareness of endometriosis while establishing a cohesive relationship between affected women and healthcare providers. Apart from that, it also develops a positive reaction towards the healthcare treatment of endometriosis and eliminates the shame of addressing women’s reproductive diseases.

Present at the event were Lembaga Tabung Haji Deputy Chief Executive Officer YBhg Dato’ Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, LPPKN Chairman YBhg Dato’ Hajah Mariam Mas Yacob, MyEndosis Association President Surita Mogan, LPPKN Director General YBhg Dato’ Dr Siti Norlasiah, LPPKN Corporate Planning Sector Director Hairil Fadzly bin Md Akir, LPPKN Strategic Collaboration representative YBhg Dr Wan Nur Ibtisam Wan Ismail, LPPKN staff, UTAR staff and students as well as participants.

Surita welcomed the crowd and said, “MyEndosis has launched five programmes relating to endometriosis since 2014. We want to increase the public awareness of this disease through talks which discusses the ways of overcoming the disease and also how it affects women psychologically, with our theme ‘Fostering Love, Weaving Hope’ that highlights the hurdles of women on menstrual health while fostering the relationship among women and the society as a whole.”

Ybhg Dato’ Hajah Mariam in her speech said, “In Malaysia, the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has dropped from 6.7 in 1957 to 2.0 in 2015 and is expected to be 1.91 by 2020. I hope event as such can encourage couples who are facing fertility problems, such as endometriosis, to seek fertility treatment at LPPKN and other medical centres.

A series of talk was held by three renowned speakers known as Prof Dr Khong Su-Yen from UMMC, Dr Komathy from LPPKN and Prof Dr Rosnah Ismail from Cyberjaya Medical College. Dr Komathy spoke about the overview of LPPKN’s fertility programmes such as subfertility treatment, factor and causes of endometriosis along with the history of endometriosis. Apart from that, she shared her years of experience in managing fertility issues among women who were unable to conceive.

Dr Khong’s talk titled, “Endometriosis Demystified” focused on the overview of endometriosis which included the types of endometriosis and its causes and symptoms, proper diagnosis of endometriosis, treatments and its goal. In her talk, she said, “It is very crucial to get an early proper diagnosis to find the exact problem through a thorough examination and getting an appropriate treatment. I believe that awareness of endometriosis is important to understand the condition.”

Prof Dr Rosnah spoke about depression and the well-being of endometriosis. “Depression and anxiety are the most common disorders associated with endometriosis. Endometriosis inflicts emotional pain and these impact of psychological factors can lead to a low quality of life for the patients. We must realise the importance of multi-disciplinary approach in managing women with endometriosis. Psychological assessment is also recommended to identify women who are at risk of developing symptoms of anxiety and depression while providing adequate support.”

The event was sponsored by LPPKN, Konical Minolta, Abott, Bayer, Women’s Weekly, Kotex, Dynamex, Hutan Ration Powerfood, Adania, California Cookie Company, Posh Nails and Oily Nerdy.

Surita delivering her welcome speech

YBhg Dato’ Hajah Mariam and children during the cake cutting ceremony