local heroes
march-April-may, 2020 | The Health Xtra
09
Playing his
part for our
frontliners
“Some of the volunteers can only come on weekends as they
need to work on weekdays, but I try my best to be here as much
as I can,” said Sharifah.
The 44-year-old, who heads the fashion design department at
Saito University College, said the fabric used to sew the garments
is supplied by Adopt a Healthcare Worker Malaysia and Bill, who
is sourcing from China.
“I have been sewing and cutting. The cutting work is tiring
as we are using our hands and not machines.
“We are supposed to deliver 1,000 suits in the next few days,
but we can only do it fast if we have more hands,” she said, adding
they had only completed 50 suits as of yesterday evening.
Bill said sewing PPE suits is not as easy as it seems.
“We don’t have a laser cutter and my thumb is sore,” he
admitted.
“We were also told that each time we took a break, we need to
wash our hands before starting work again. So I try not to stop
too often,” said Bill who has been in the industry for over three
decades.
He said the team from Adopt a Healthcare Worker Malaysia
had also sent his team sanitisers, face masks and some food.
Bill said Malaysians need to play their part for our frontliners.
“They have sacrificed a lot and we must not take them for
granted. They are tired but they continue to do their best and we
should not demand and complain.
“We need people who can sew but it is okay if you can’t. We
will welcome you at our workshop as there will always be some-
thing you can help with,” added Bill. — The Health Xtra
Namewee’s donation efforts were acknowledged by Malay-
sians with comments like, “Thank you for your generous
contribution”, “My kind of idol”, “You will be blessed with eternal
peace for your good deed”.
He decided to chip in after he saw pictures of healthcare
workers resort to wearing flimsy plastic bags and garbage bin
liners to protect themselves.
He said that if kindhearted souls were willing to donate, he
suggested they help hospitals in rural areas as they have limited
access to ample medical resources and suggested the goods
directly to the hospitals if possible.
Namewee persuades Malaysians to get on one’s feet and help
the battle against Covid-19 together as he wishes to see Malaysia
rise again.
“I would also like to thank every hero who fought for us! Doc-
tors, nurses, police officers, military personnel, and everyone
involved! Malaysia will definitely win!”
He sealed his message by stating, “Malaysia Boleh!”
The 10 hospitals which received medical supplies are:
1. Hospital PakarSultanah Fatimah, Muar, Johor
2. Hospital Enche’ Besar Hajjah Khalsom, Kluang, Johor
3. Hospital Umum Sarawak, Kuching, Sarawak
4. Hospital Lahad Datu, Tawau, Sabah
5. Hospital Raja Permaisuri Bainun, Ipoh, Perak
6. Hospital Tuanku Ja’afar Seremban, Negeri Sembilan
7. Hospital Sungai Buloh, Selangor
8. Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan, Kuantan, Pahang
9. Hospital Sultanah Bahiyah, Alor Setar, Kedah
10. Hospital Raja Perempuan Zainab II, Bandar
Kota Baru,Kelantan. — The Health Xtra
A Road Transport Department (JPJ)
officer has put his sewing skills together to
make PPEs for medical personnel.
When a friend posted on Facebook look-
ing for volunteers to sew personal protective
equipment (PPE) suits for our frontliners
battling Covid-19, Shaiful Nizam Abu Bakar,
40, did not hesitate to help out.
“My friend said he found it difficult to
find volunteers because many tailors are
now busy finishing orders for Hari Raya. So
I decided to help my friend in sewing the
suits as well,” said the assistant enforcement
officer from the JPJ community service unit
in Penang.
Shaiful was approached by a for help to
sew the PPEs after receiving materials from
a non-governmental organization (NGO). To
find more volunteers, Shaiful shared a post
on his Facebook, and fortunately, some tailors
came forward to help.
He is working together with 10 other
tailors, and they have sewed up to 1,000 PPE
suits in the first phase. The suits were deliv-
ered to hospitals in Penang and Kulim, Kedah.
According to Harian Metro, the NGO
received 6,000 metres of PPE material from
a supplier. The material was cut according
to specifications before being sent to tailors.
“At the moment, we are waiting for more
material to move to the second phase of the
PPE production,” he shared.
Shaiful, who is putting to use his seven
years of tailoring experience into this vol-
untary project, said he sewed 100 PPE suits
within two days. Tailors were picked from dif-
ferent districts in Penang to ensure strategic
production and distribution of PPE suits.
“So far, everything is running smoothly,
and we will try our best to make sure there
is a continuous supply for our healthcare
providers,” he said.
He feels gratified to be able to carry out the
good deed after seeing how our frontliners
are working with their blood, sweat and tears
against Covid-19 for the nation.
Shaiful Nizam’s efforts received an
acknowledgement by the JPJ after his post
was shared on the department’s Facebook
page. JPJ congratulated him for a job well
done for sewing PPE suits for the frontliners
managing the deadly pandemic. — The Health
Xtra
RPWP
adheres
to syariah
guidelines
to make PPE
As the number of Covid-19 cases rose, so did
the need for personal protective equipment
(PPE) for medical frontlines. The residents of
Rumah Pengasih Warga Prihatin (RPWP) in
Kajang, Selangor is making good use of the
Movement Control Order (MCO) to make PPE.
Saiful Nang, the co-founder of RPWP,
reports they have manufactured and dis-
tributed 17, 000 face shields and is working
on PPE, such as isolation gowns and hoods,
from 52km long non-woven fabric.
They also took note to make the hoods,
adhering to the Syariah guidelines, to cater
to Muslim frontliners. Social distancing and
sanitisation guidelines are strictly followed
by all members while making the equipment.
The PPE Pelangi Project initiative was
a result of the residents of RPWP viewing
videos of medical staff sewing their PPE as
well as going to the extent of using plastic
sheaths as alternative PPE. He shared that
the orphans were sacrificing their sleep to
meet the high demands of PPE for the medi-
cal frontliners.
They receive requests from all over the
country, with Sungai Buloh Hospital itself
needing up to 7,000 sets a day.
“We only have to sacrifice rest and sleep,
but our frontliners sacrifice their lives. It is
exhausting, but its nothing compared to the
frontliners who had to use plastic sheaths as
PPE... we were sad,” he posted on Facebook
on April 7, 2020.
The initiative is funded via donations, and
the public is urged to support their crowd-
funding campaign at www.projekpelangi.
com.
RPWP is a big family of Asnaf, and
privately-funded and managed by 20 co-
founders. It also serves as a research centre
of the fundamental science of Quran and
Sunnah in daily lives. — The Health Xtra