MAKNA LAUNCHED HALFWAY HOUSE FOR CANCER PATIENTS

BERTAM, 6 October 2016 – National Cancer Council Malaysia (MAKNA) launched their second MAKNA Halfway House at Bandar Putra Bertam, Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang. The house provides temporary accommodation to patients seeking cancer treatment in Advanced Medical and Dental Institute (AMDI) , Universiti Sains Malaysia and Hospital Seberang Jaya (HSJ).

The Director of IPPT, Dr. Norehan Mokhtar expressed her gratitude to MAKNA for choosing Bertam as a Halfway House location for cancer patients seeking treatment in AMDI and nearby hospitals.

“I am confident that MAKNA Halfway House will ease the burden of patients and their caregivers. Besides providing expertise and the latest treatments to patients, social support is very important to encourage patients and their caregivers to ensure that patients do not give up.. This house will be able to provide comfort to patients while they are getting their treatment ” said the Director of IPPT during the launching of the Halfway House.

The MAKNA Halfway House for Northern Region of Peninsular Malaysia is the second house established. The first Halfway House was set up in March at Mount Austin, Johor Baharu.

MAKNA hopes to launch nine Halfway Houses in Malaysia to provide temporary accommodation to cancer patients seeking treatment. These houses will be located near government hospitals that provide radiotherapy and chemotherapy services, with hopes of providing a more cosy and comfortable atmosphere for patients.

According to MAKNA General Manager, Puan Farahida Mohd Farid, these houses are one of the services offered to cancer patients.

“Through our interactions with cancer patients, most of them face difficulty in commuting when seeking treatment in hospital. Some of them had to travel so far to get treatment which is costly and physically taxing” she said.

“We hope that having such a facility would ease patients’ burden.. We want patients to feel at home. Most importantly, we hope to provide a calm and and supportive environment for patients as they undergo treatment to battle cancer” she added.

The MAKNA Halfway House in Bertam comes with four fully furnished bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen. The house is located 10 minutes away from AMDI and 30 minutes from Hospital Seberang Jaya. MAKNA also provides transport for patients to and from the hospitals for the entire duration of their stay.

Also present at the ceremony were Dr. Imran bin Abd. Khalid, MAKNA Exco member, the Deputy Directors of IPPT and staffs from AMDI and Hospital Seberang Jaya.

Text: Faisal Jamaludin / Translator: Noor Zafirah / Photo: Amir Zaidi Abu Hassan