cover story
March-April-may, 2020 | The Health Xtra
07
I would like to
thank all the
doctors who have
been working day
and night tirelessly,
carrying a great
responsibility
and continuing to
serve the nation.
Do realise we are
the last fortress
of defence for our
country. In actual
fact, failure is not
an option.”
– Dr Noor Hisham
to appear on television to provide us with daily updates with full
clarity. He is probably worn out inside. But yet, his face shows no
exhaustion. He continues to deliver as calmly as possible.
The 57-year-old resisted being called Malaysia’s ‘national hero’.
“This is not about me. This is about how we can fight Covid-19
together,” Dr Noor Hisham said with a humble heart.
Dr Noor Hisham, who is also a trained endocrine surgeon, has
long served as a frontliner in managing Covid-19, even in the
absence of a minister and the minister’s deputies.
He shared with the media: “For me, owning a title is not
important. What’s important is what we have to serve.”
Flipping back the pages to when he started his career, he
graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in the surgical field. He has a
Masters in surgery and medical doctorate degree from Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). In August 1988, he started off his
career by joining the civil service as a medical officer and was
also nominated as the Chairman of the Global Surgery Commit-
tee, International Surgical Association.
A sprinter at school
In his younger days, he is remembered as a humble person. Refer-
ring to the webpage of Methodist Boy’s School Kuala Lumpur
(MBSKL) alumni, his name was mentioned in an entry in 2019.
Besides being a humble person, he was also active in sports – a
sprinter in school.
Born on April 21, 1963, the early life for Dr Noor Hisham was
not a walk in the park. He did not live in luxury. He was actually
raised by a single mother in a small unit at Loke Yew Flats in
Kuala Lumpur. His mother worked as a cleaner. As she was the
only breadwinner of the family, she worked very hard to provide
the best for Dr Noor Hisham and his sister. Perhaps the hard
times have taught him to be a brave, strong, humble, yet soft-
spoken man that he is today.
He had to walk to school. His mother even allowed the teach-
ers to punish him if needed.
Malaysians truly admire his calm and composed outlook. The
China Global
TV Network ranks
Dr Noor Hisham
among the
very best
By Camilia Rezali
China Global TV Network (CGTN) named Malaysia’s
Health Director-General, Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, as one of
the world’s ‘top doctors’ dealing with the Covid-19 crisis. The
others they honoured were Anthony Fauci, America’s director
of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID),
and Ashley Bloomfield, New Zealand’s health director-general.
According to CGTN, these three medical professionals have
been calm and clean in disseminating health advice to their
countrymen with zero politics for weeks and managed to gain
heart and eyes for their hard work.
The performance of Dr Noor Hisham, 56, who has been the
director-general of health since 2013 has been staggering.
“Amid an unprecedented global pandemic and as
governments worldwide have sometimes been slow to react,
introducing confusing measures and sending contradictory
messages, Fauci, Bloomfield and Hisham have become voices of
reason and sources of calm and reassurance,” said CGTN.
Dr Noor Hisham received remarks by Malaysians, claiming
him to be the “trusted face” and “a bulwark against confusion”,
same feeling was spoken by the reporters who have seen him
face to face at daily Press conferences. Sinar Harian Putrajaya
news reporter, Tuan Buqhairah Tuan Muhamad Adnan described
Dr Noor Hisham as a leader who speaks softly. Tuan Buqhairah
also revealed he has never once shown disinterest to the ques-
tions from the Press, even if the matter had been answered
earlier.
This is the personality most reporters in Putrajaya appreci-
ated. It makes it easier for the reporters to gain facts and then
wording them on paper for the readers.
“For me, he is very soft-spoken. He answered with vibrant
words leaving the reporters as well as viewers of the live Press
conference of Malaysia’s Health Ministry with a clear-cut
message.
“Every question that was brought forward, he replied with
a structured answer. If possible, he will try to entertain every
single question. He is an easy-going person,” shared Tuan
Buqhairah, who has been doing media coverage on Dr Noor
Hisham almost every day.
Sinar Harian also reported he held a few critical positions in
the Ministry of Health before he was assigned to be the Health
Director-General. He was previously the head of the breast and
endocrine surgical department in Putrajaya Hospital.
In 2007, he became the senior surgical consultant. Prior to that
he was medical officer for general surgery in 2004 and a general
surgeon in 1994. He always acknowledges team members and
other staff who work tirelessly in this war against Covid-19 while
distancing himself from being called a ‘National Hero’. He will
not go a day without thanking every staff member.
He said: “I would like to thank all the doctors who have been
working day and night tirelessly, carrying a great responsibility
and continuing to serve the nation.
“Do realise we are the last fortress of defence for our country.
In actual fact, failure is not an option.”
With that being said, we know he is definitely a real fighter.
— The Health Xtra
thanks to his consistency in providing updates about the virus
onto his social media platforms. He has been updating facts and
figures onto his Facebook page, and Twitter accounts daily in
the morning and sometimes during late in the day. As a result,
Dr Noor Hisham became the go-to person for reliable facts and
information.
Besides being the trusted person for information, CGTN said
Dr Noor Hisham’s “usual suit and tie for a blouson jacket with the
health ministry’s logo at his Press briefings” complements his
humble and toned-down appeal.
While Bloomfield was described as “an unlikely heartthrob”
and Fauci was dubbed as “America’s Coronavirus Crush”, Dr
Noor Hisham, on the other hand, is labelled as “A National Hero”.
CGTN stated fans of Dr Fauci and Bloomfield have even gone
to the extent of setting up fan accounts on social media.
Dr Noor Hisham’s admirers aren’t as goodly-eyed but “thank
you” notes, complementing words of encouragement, have
never escaped from his social media’s comment section. He has
definitely won the hearts of many Malaysians and thus having
CGTN name him as one of the best doctors leading the fight
against Covid-19. — The Health Xtra