I have been following the activities of the Health & Community Services Division of the Malaysian Red Crescent here in Johor for the last year, and they are always busy helping those in need. Since the outbreak of COVID-19 they have been busier than ever. Today I travelled with the MRC as they distributed Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to hospitals in Johor. So far they have been able to provide two ventilators, 3-ply surgical masks, N95 masks, face shields, protection gowns, full coveralls as PPE, gloves, head covers, show covers, hand sanitizers, and much more. These items had been purchased through donations from private individuals who are doing their bit to help support the vital work of the healthcare professionals and their support staff. If you would like to help support the work of the Community Services Division of the Malaysian Red Crescent, please call this number 019 755 5600.
We started this morning by delivering PPE to the Hospital Sultan Ismail in Johor Bahru. The hospital was expecting us, and arrangements were in place to make the transfer safe and efficient.
Here is YB Dato Mohd Rashidi bin Hj Mood Noh (Deputy Chairman, National Committee for Community Services & Health) presenting the staff with the much-needed PPE.
Then we returned to base to refill the vehicle before setting off again to another hospital, this time in Pontian on the west coast of southern Johor.
Again, everthing was ready for our arrival at the Pontian District Hospital with this imposing hand-held heart at its entrance.
The PPE was quickly taken in under the guidance of Hj Suleiman bin Kimin (Pontian District Chairman).
In travelling around Johor today we had to pass through several Police-manned road blocks. The requirements of the current Movement Control Order (MCO) are that one can only go out of one's home to get essentials such as food and medicine, or to go to work in an essential occupation. Even then, the MCO states that there can only be one person per private car and that should be the head of the household. So, until today, I had not been out of the flat for five weeks! Although Stay-at Home compliance rates are pretty good (95%), the RM1000 fine for being on the road rather than at home is not sufficient of a deterrent, hence road blocks and armed personnel! I was very impressed that, wherever possible, there were two lanes under control so that essential services could avoid the really long queues of private vehicles. Well done Malaysia and well done the Malaysian Red Crescent!
Click here to see more about the activities of the Malaysian Red Crescent.
Click here to return to Travels in Malaysia 2020.
Click here to return to Helen Gray’s homepage.