Next focus is men’s wellness

Wellness clinics for men will be set up in major government hospitals nationwide next year, to focus on better sexual and reproductive health, weight control, hypertension, diabetes, diet and exercise.
Two pilot primary care clinics for men have started in Seberang Jaya and Kota Baru.
“Our main concern is for men to maintain good health and to motivate them to stay healthy,” said Health Ministry deputy director-general (Public Health) Datuk Dr Shafie Ooyub.
In the past, priority had been accorded to women's and children’s health.
Dr Shafie said the time has come to take stock of the situation and correct the neglect in men’s health.
The objectives of primary care or wellness clinics for men will help to reduce premature death and make them more responsible for their health as well as correct any sexual dysfunction among them, said Dr Shafie.
He said there was a need to advise men on how to remain healthy throughout life, adding that the life expectancy of Malaysian men is 70, compared with 75 for women.
Under the Ninth Malaysia Plan, the ministry’s family health development division would focus on men’s health service at the primary care level, he said.
“When they go to general hospital clinics they will be treated and later referred to the wellness clinic so that we can track the progress of their health.”
Datuk Dr Tan Hui Meng, president of the Malaysian Society of Andrology and the Study of the Aging Male, welcomed the move to formulate a men’s health policy as a component of the national health policy.
“Through the Government’s action we hope all Malaysian men will achieve optimal health and quality of life to enable them to contribute to the family, society and nation.”

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