By Datuk Amir Firdaus Abdullah
This year was deemed as a year of recovery after the series of global lockdowns that we faced in 2020. However, 2021 remained a challenging year for us Malaysians as we continued facing the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as post-flood recovery for some parts of the country.
For those in the healthcare industry, this was a year that tested the limits. Numerous frontliners and hospitals were forced into overdrive as the number of positive cases spiked, with daily cases peaking at more than 24,000 at one point.
The rallied efforts from the Government, private sector and the people helped us rise through these challenges, as the spirit of Keluarga Malaysia (Malaysian Family) continued to inspire us to take the necessary precautions and keep each other safe. It is also pleasing to know that currently, more than 97 per cent of the Malaysian adult population are vaccinated and most restrictions such as dining, and travel bans have been lifted.
We must commend the Government for their continuous commitment to the people’s health, as the swift vaccination rollouts helped us gain back some sense of normalcy, although standard operating procedures (SOPs) still need to be enforced and followed. Furthermore, with the RM32.4 billion allocated for the healthcare industry in the National Budget 2022, we believe that this will bring about a positive impact not only on the overall industry but also the people’s health.
At Aurelius Healthcare, we believe that 2022 will continue to be a recovery period for the nation. We are aligned with the Government’s efforts to enhance the nation’s healthcare industry as we are committed to improving the overall healthcare standards for Malaysians with our hospitals.
Currently, with Aurelius Hospital Nilai (formerly known as Nilai Medical Centre), we aim to bolster our services, technology, and treatment offerings to better serve our patients not only locally but from overseas as well.
With travel restrictions slowly being lifted, we are hopeful of inviting our international patients back to Malaysia to receive the world-class treatment that we provide and have peace of mind when recovering with our enhanced facilities.
Furthermore, we are also making steady progress in the construction of our newest hospital, Aurelius Hospital Alor Setar. This new hospital will be fitted with the latest state of the art technologies available and quality services to serve the community and its surrounding vicinity. The hospital is expected to be completed in Q4/2022-Q1/2023. The cooperation between private and public healthcare providers during the height of the pandemic showcased that there are ample opportunities for both parties to work together.
We at Aurelius Healthcare are prepared to work with our stakeholders to help enhance the overall healthcare industry in Malaysia. We hope that our commitment to the local healthcare landscape will have a significant impact as we look towards giving all Malaysians better access to quality healthcare.
About the author: Datuk Amir Firdaus Abdullah (pictured above) is the Group Managing Director of Aurelius Healthcare. This is an opinion column. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of this publication.
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