Materia Medica Malaysiana

Flying doc service covers 13 Penan settlements

KUCHING: Thirteen Penan settlements in the Belaga district are being served by the flying doctor service operated by the Sarawak Health Department.
The settlements include Long Urun, where a recent measles outbreak killed 14 Penans, and Long Ketuat.
The department said its clinic in Long Urun serves six longhouses with 241 residents while the one in Long Ketuat caters for 203 villagers.
“Although the flying doctor service visits both settlements every month, there are occasions when visits had to be cancelled due to bad weather, mechanical problems and diversion of the helicopter for emergency evacuation of seriously ill patients,” it said in a statement.
The statement was in response to a comment by Ulu Rejang MP Billy Abit Joo, who urged the department to be more proactive in treating the Penans.
He said medical teams should make more visits to the interior settlements.
The department said the flying doctors visited Long Urun nine times and Long Ketuat five times last year to provide treatment, immunisation, child health and maternal care.
An average of 84 patients in Long Urun and 75 in Long Ketuat were treated during each visit.
“It is possible that the semi-nomadic Penans may not have come to the flying doctor service clinics as scheduled,” said the department.
It said a “mopping-up” exercise was organised from time to time to seek out the absentees.