Doc tells of rampant disease in Asli areas

Telemedicine is the answer, says a physician who was at a medical camp for villagers in Cameron Highlands.

Many Orang Asli are afflicted by a host of health problems.(Youtube Screengrab)

CAMERON HIGHLANDS: A doctor has urged the health ministry to provide telemedicine to those living in remote places in the country after noting that many Orang Asli here are afflicted by a host of health problems.

Dr G Shanmuganathan of the Federation of Private Medical Practitioners’ Association of Malaysia (FPMPAM), who participated in a medical camp last weekend at Pos Lenjang and Pos Titom, said he was shocked to find that even easily treatable diseases in the two settlements had gone unattended.

He attributed this to the difficulty of physical access to the villages and said telemedicine would be the way to provide residents of such remote areas with emergency advice as well as health assessment and care.

“How healthcare is provided to people on the fringe needs a rethink,” he said, recommending the provision of internet access for such areas as well as trained frontline personnel from among the Orang Asli themselves.

Last weekend’s activity was organised by Cameron Highlands DAP in collaboration with FPMPAM and Impian Malaysia, an NGO that promotes community development.

Shanmuganathan said he found that scabies, impetigo and lice infestation were rampant in the two communities.

He noted that the villagers’ visits to health centres were officially scheduled only once a month and that long-term medicines were often unavailable at such centres. “Hypertensive patients needing continuous medicines are left in limbo and risk complications from diseases,” he added.

He described the camp activity as an “eye opener to how fellow Malaysians from the Asli race have such poor access to healthcare and basic amenities.”

Shanmuganathan also spoke of malnutrition among children in the two settlements.

“Good paediatric nutrition is lacking and many children were stunted in their growth,” he said. “Poor nutrition in the first three years of life will have long-term consequences on the physical and mental development of the children.”

He complained of the difficulty of travelling to the villages and criticised the contractors responsible for constructing the roads.

“Damaged tarred roads leading to the villages stretched for many kilometres,” he said. “The tarring was shoddy and posed serious hazards to vehicles and humans alike.

“I have travelled on dirt roads in Sabah and Sarawak but have never seen such bad road conditions. The contractors responsible for this should be brought to book.”

Last December, DAP’s GE13 candidate for Cameron Highlands, M Manogaran, accused the government of holding the Orang Asli community to ransom by delaying work on the roads to Pos Lenjang and Pos Titom. -FMT