| James Kon |
MINISTER of Finance II Dato Seri Paduka Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah in his capacity as the Chairman of Pantai Jerudong Specialist Centre (PJSC), yesterday launched the centre’s ‘We Care’ official video advertisement that highlights the meaningful difference of providing healthcare through efficient and people-centred services, during a hi-tea event attended by members of the Diplomatic Corps based in Brunei Darussalam.
In his opening remarks at the event entitled ‘We Care’, Executive Director of PJSC Dr Mazrul Adimin bin Haji Besar said, “With the vision of becoming an innovative and specialised medical centre, we hope to capture the essence of ‘We Care’ while continuously striving to improve patient care at our state-of-the-art facility.”
PJSC houses three centres of excellence, namely, The Brunei Cancer Centre (TBCC), the Brunei Neuroscience, Stroke and Rehabilitation Centre (BNSRC) and the Maxillofacial, Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Centre (MFPRSC) that focus on neurology, neurosurgery, rehabilitation, cancer treatment and head and neck surgery.
Dr Mazrul noted that in the multiple platforms that the Government of His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Sa’adul Khairi Waddien, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam has established with all Diplomatic Missions and Corps, healthcare is one of the pillars of bilateral cooperation which continues to prosper over the years. He also thanked the distinguished guests for joining the event which sought to establish fresh ties and future strategic partnerships in the healthcare sector.
Meanwhile in a presentation, Director of BNSRC Dr Dayangku Hajah Siti Nur’Ashikin binti Pengiran Dato Paduka Haji Tengah said, “Neurological diseases contribute to a major part of global diseases. But what is more important is the days, months or years that are lost to the individual, their family and their community through disability. It is a significant milestone in Brunei’s healthcare history that we can now offer a world-class health centre to provide neurological, neurosurgery and rehabilitative care to the people of this country.”
Recalling the history of the establishment of the centre, she said, “Established in 2010 as a highly specialised stroke facility by the Jerudong Park Medical Centre (JPMC) in partnership with Krankenhaus Nordwest Hospital, BNSRC possesses a comprehensive array of infrastructure and expertise to take care of stroke patients. The centre has state-of-the-art facilities since 2016. It has now become a one-stop neurosurgery and rehabilitation centre of excellence after its integration with the Ministry of Health this year.”
The director mentioned some of the diseases that the centre treat, namely, disorder of the nervous system (brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerve and muscle), stroke, spinal cord injury, epilepsy, migraine, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, motor neurone disease, muscular, dystrophy and brain tumour. In addition, the centre has extended its services to cancer rehabilitation, amputee rehabilitation, musculoskeletal and sport rehabilitation as well as women healthcare.
Medical Oncolgy Consultant at TBCC Dr Lu Shir Kiong, highlighted, “Oncology services started in 1977 in the medical ward of Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha (RIPAS) Hospital. Later the Oncology Unit was set up in the specialist building of the hospital in 1999. The unit was relocated to JPMC in 2009 and was known as the National Cancer Centre. It was renamed TBCC in 2012 and relocated to a new building in 2016. Currently TBCC is under the management of PJSC.
“TBCC aims to deliver the highest standard of treatment and care. We adopt a personalised treatment approach according to the patients’ tumour characteristics and status and offer modern drugs, equipment and facilities to our patients. We work together as a multi-disciplinary team, deliver professional holistic services and promote cancer awareness.”
He revealed that an increasing number of new cases have been referred to the TBCC from year to year. According to statistics, there were 471 cases in 2017 compared to 386 cases in 2016. One of the reasons for this is the increasing public awareness on cancer. Another reason is the establishment of the Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine Department, he noted.
For inpatients, there are 26 beds with deluxe private rooms on the eighth floor equipped with modern facilities and entertainment system. On the seventh floor is the Daycare Unit where there are 32 therapeutic chairs and eight beds.
The Radiotherapy Department employs highly advanced, cutting-edge technology and houses the state-of-the-art Variant Ture Beam and Edge.
Brunei is one of the few countries to own both the machines that are capable of delivering high-precision radiotherapy treatment within a short period of time and minimum toxicity.
The final presentation on MFPRSC was delivered by its Head and Director Dato Seri Laila Jasa Dr Ravindranathan who highlighted the areas the centre cover such as face, mouth, jaw, neck, scalp, skin of the head and neck. He explained the various treatments provided at the centre which include aesthetic surgery of the face, enhancing facial appearance, ageing face/neck rejuvenation through non surgical-botox or fillers, surgical lower eyebags removal, recreating upper eyelid creases, ageing face rejuvenation, sharpening of nose, redefining the chin and so on.