Materia Medica Malaysiana

Hospital closure upsets folk around Kinrara

PUCHONG: Residents in Kinrara and the vicinity are upset that the Armed Forces hospital has ceased operations.
Nurhaliza Abdullah, 28, said she was disappointed when she saw the closure notice on the hospital’s front gate on Wednesday.
“I am also at a loss because it was the nearest hospital in the area,” said the mother of three, adding that she had always taken her children there for treatment.
Nurhaliza, a hawker whose house is opposite the hospital, said it would be hard for her as she would have to go to other hospitals.
Pharmacist Jaime Lim, 34, said she was surprised when she was told that the hospital had been closed.
She said the hospital had served residents in Kinrara and the surrounding areas and also patients from as far as Shah Alam.
“Why did they have to close it?” she asked.
Another resident, Asri Hussain, 44, said the authorities should provide a replacement for the residents.
“The nearest public hospitals now are in Selayang and Serdang,” said the Government servant.
He said those suffering from kidney problems in the area would no longer get free treatment nearby.
“They would have to seek treatment elsewhere and probably have to pay more,” he said, adding that old folk in the area also would suffer because of the closure.
Hamidatul Azhar, 42, said following the hospital’s closure, she has been referred to the clinic at the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Subang.
Hamidatul, who suffers from diabetes, had been getting her medications and treatment at the Kinrara hospital for several years.
“Now I have to travel for my medicine and check-up,” she said.
The hospital, built by the British Army in 1948, ceased operations on Wednesday.
It was reported that the closure is to facilitate the sale of the prime land in Puchong to a private developer for about RM200 million.
The hospital was initially supposed to stop operations last Aug 1