UTAR Kampar Campus was graciously visited by Sri Sathya Sai Health & Education Trust Chairman Dr Sreenivas Chodagam and Sri Sathya Sai Health & Education Trust Officer Mr Onkar Joshi, accompanied by M. Kandiah Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (MK FMHS) Deputy Dean for Academic Development and Undergraduate Programmes Prof Dr Ng Teck Han on 8 December 2022. The guests came for the launch of the Miracle Baby Programme at Penang General Hospital on 7 December 2022; a programme organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, Malaysia, Penang General Hospital, UTAR and Sri Sathya Sai Sanjeevani Hospitals.

Upon arrival, the guests were welcomed by MK FMHS Dean Academician Emeritus Prof Dr Cheong Soon Keng; Faculty of Science Dean Assoc Prof Dr Lim Tuck Meng; Faculty of Business and Finance Deputy Dean for Academic Development and Undergraduate Programmes Dr Peter Tan Sin Howe; Division of Community and International Networking Deputy Director Dr Chen, I Chi; Centre for Foundation Studies of Kampar Campus Director Ts Tan Lee Siew; UTAR Hospital CEO and Medical Director Prof Dr Lau Hui-Ping; UTAR Hospital Deputy CEO Maria Khong Poh Fong; UTAR Hospital Project Chief Administrative Officer Chor Choy Yook; and MK FMHS Department of Population Medicine Head Dr Din Xin Jet and Department of Medicine Head Dr Lee Bee Sun.

They proceeded with a brief tea meeting and discussed the potential collaborations for the future. At the tea meeting, Prof Lau mentioned the potential of Ayurvedic and said, “We hope we can work with Sri Sathya Sai Health & Education Trust to bring this expertise and knowledge sharing over to the T&CM Centre, so we can bring more healing and recovery alternatives to the community. As the name of the centre suggests, we do not only focus on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), because on top of western medicine, we also hope to use complementary medicine to benefit patients.”

Dr Sreenivas responded with agreement, and said “Ayurveda has been used for many years in India, and it has brought much wellness and healing to the patients. Previously, there were some comments on obtaining scientific value and data on the effectiveness of Ayurvedic on patients, but the best way to tell a patient is well, is when the patients feel happy and well. So, we are looking forward to sharing our knowledge and expertise on Ayurveda with UTAR Hospital. It will certainly be a delightful collaboration.”

Subsequently, a campus tour was held. It saw the guests visiting places including Dewan Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik, “The Gesture” Bamboo Pavilion, Bird Sanctuary, bronze sculptures of Confucius and Einstein, and the library.

After lunch, the guests were brought to visit the Traditional and Complementary (T&CM) Centre at UTAR Hospital. The visit was led by Prof Lau and Maria Khong. There was also a brief online meeting with UTAR Chancellor Tun Dr Ling Liong Sik and Toh Puan Ena Ling, via Zoom, with both parties expressing their hope to be able to meet and discuss physically on other areas they can collaborate on. Followed after was a tour of the T&CM Centre. A short video recording was also conducted for Dr Sreenivas to say a few words about the success of the Miracle Baby Programme.

Dinner and accommodation for the guests at the Grand Kampar Hotel were sponsored by UTAR Council Member Mr Hew Fen Yee.