As part of a community service project in line with IMU Cares’ mission to promote good health and well-being, a group of IMU’s Semester 1 Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) (cohort ME122) students successfully carried out a visit to Rumah Charis – Home for the Aged in Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam on 8 October 2022.
Prior to the actual visit, the students conducted a pre-visit on 2 July 2022 to get to know more about Rumah Charis as well as to collect background information about the residents’ living conditions and medications that they are currently taking. The pre-visit helped the students to understand their needs and prepare the necessary for the subsequent visit.
Furthermore, as the helpers at Rumah Charis were having difficulties cleaning especially on tall furniture and appliance such as ceiling fans, the students planned to conduct a spring-cleaning activity. Additionally, it was found that the residents have a lack of knowledge on the supplements that they are consuming. The students also decided to prepare a talk on supplements, including vitamins and minerals, as well as information on how to take care of their personal hygiene. On the other hand, the students searched for some of the necessary supplements and medical devices that the old folks’ home lacked, such as vitamin C and glucose strips.
The students took COVID-19 self-test as a precaution before the actual visit, and both the residents and the students were asked to wear face masks throughout the entire visit because two of the residents had TB infection.
| During the event day, the students conducted a variety of educational and interactive activities with the residents: | |
|---|---|
| Conducting a talk on supplements and introducing some measures to take care of their personal hygiene through practical demonstration. | |
| Conducting a simple spring cleaning to provide a safer environment for the residents. | |
| Dr Jestin Chellian conducted a one-on-one medication counselling with the residents. The session helped the residents in understanding their medication better. | |
| Lee Shu Ning from Master of Science in Molecular Medicine Programme, who is the pharmacist also joined and shared some feedback in the healthcare talk that helped the students to learn and understand better. | |
In short, the visit had given the students the opportunity to apply their knowledge that they had gained through the MBBS programme and helped to further enhance their communication skills through interaction with the elderly.
Through this meaningful project, we believe that the residents understood the importance of personal hygiene and gained more knowledge on supplements and the usage of glucose strips. Thankfully, based on the feedback provided by the participants at the end of the session, the students notified that the residents absorbed the taught information well and were able to demonstrate correct ways of hand washing on their own.
We would like to express our sincere gratitude to Rumah Charis, and we wish the elderly great health and happiness and in the future. Also, we would like to thank Dr Louis Liew Yun Khoon, our supervisor for giving us advice and guidance throughout the execution of project. Together, thank you to Dr Mayuren, Dr Jestin and Lee Shu Ning for their participation and support.
Written by See Lip Xuin (IMU Medical Student Cohort ME122)
