| Azlan Othman |
TOTAL E&P Borneo BV (TEPB), under its ‘Give a Book’ campaign, handed over books to the Children’s Cancer Foundation (YASKA) at the Children Oncology Ward of the Women and Children’s Centre of Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleh (RIPAS) Hospital yesterday.
The contributions were handed over by Ben Kampala, TEPB’s HSE Manager, and Harina binti Ramlee, TEPB’s Corporate Services Manager.
The book donation was part of TEPB’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative and employee volunteer programme.
The ‘Give a Book’ campaign – where new and used books were contributed by Total’s employees and family members – was coordinated by TEPB’s Corporate Communications and CSR departments.
The highlight of the event was a story-sharing session by Khairi, a cancer survivor. Another one of TEPB’s CSR projects, called ‘Hari Raya Treasure Hunt’, will be held early next month.
YASKA is a non-governmental organisation which aims to provide information and support for children diagnosed with cancer and their families.
Total E&P Borneo BV members in a group photo with YASKA children. – AZLAN OTHMAN
This is done through fostering understanding of childhood cancer issues, creating supportive communities for families dealing with childhood cancer, and providing funding for childhood cancer advocacy and outreach programmes.
RIPAS Hospital has provided treatment for children with cancer since the 1980s. A dedicated Children’s Oncology Team was first established in 2004 under the guidance of DP Dr Lim MK, comprising a medical officer and three nurses. Since then, the number of nurses at the section has increased.
The Paediatric Oncology Ward has since moved into the Women and Children’s Centre of RIPAS Hospital.
The ward, dedicated solely to the care of children with blood and cancer diseases, houses 10 single rooms, one multisensory room, a four-bedded bay area, one outpatient clinic, a toy library, a classroom, and a resource centre for the children and parents.
The Occupational Therapy Unit conducts play therapy sessions for the children to aid their recovery, while an onsite teacher from the Special Education Unit, Ministry of Education, helps the children keep up with their school work.
In the past 10 years, 134 of child cancer patients have been reported in Brunei Darussalam, of which leukemia accounts for more than half of the cases.
The remaining cancers include brain tumours, bone tumours, lymphoma, soft tissue sarcoma, and Wilm’s Tumours, among others.
Children afflicted with cancers – and their parents – can often feel very alone in their fight against the disease. They usually feel lost when faced with the enormous weight and task of treatment and therapy.
The opening of the Children Oncology Ward is therefore a particularly important and a beneficial step forward in helping the children and their parents.
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