WE NEED MORE MALE VOLUNTEERS : PCA or Palliative Care Association of KK

21st Feb 2019
by Oswald Sugat

 Jefrey and Michael from PAKA presenting a gift to a patient from Penampang while President of PCA Rokiah looked on

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PENAMPANG.  The Palliative Care Association (PCA) of Kota Kinabalu President Rokiah Yaacob and Deputy Liza Yong said male volunteers are most needed to provide palliative/hospice care to patients with incurable cancer in and around Kota Kinabalu.

They said this during a Charity Campaign visit by kindness NGO, PAKA led by Jefrey Leiking, thursday and to deliver gifts to all patient visiting the day care centre at Taman Rose, Jalan Penampang.

 

At present the President and committee members are mostly women with medical background who have retired, however there are a few lay volunteers. More males would be much welcome as their strength would be needed sometimes to help patients, however she stress that caring is not just on health but on the well being of the patients. She said their volunteers are from all walks of life such as lawyers, cooks, pilots, barbers amongst others because the activities at the day care centre include handicraft, gardening, haircare, karaoke but the most popular is massage and bingo. Sometimes we even arrange a visit such as chocolate factory and to the beach for them and some patients even tell that they have not seen the beach for years, she added.

 

At present the day care center only accepts the patients who are mobile, once a week on Thursday where they could be served home made breakfast. Whoever they are, we care for their quality of life until the last moments, she said in reference to the aims of the association.

Regarding the brief background of the association, Rokiah said it was founded by Datuk Dr Ranjit and registered in 1998. Fundraising are carried out every year and some grants are given by the government as well as Corporate sectors. All donors are welcomed which are tax exempted. The service of PCA are free of charge around 10 km while visits to homes are extended to 30 km and they have extended the service to Tuaran area. The cases are now not limited to cancer but also on other terminal diseases while their is no age limit, she said. Welcoming the visit by PAKA, Rokiah hope they can also be the ambassador of the PCA and tell the public what palliative care is all about.  In response Jefrey said the gifts delivered are from private individual donor such as C.C.Vun apart from the MP office.