Childhood cancer patients at HCTM-UKM can now enjoy more comfortable facilities at Ronald McDonald House
Ronald McDonald House Charities Malaysia (RMHC Malaysia) and Lions Clubs International signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Childhood Cancer Awareness today. The strategic partnership enables both organisations to work together to meet the needs of childhood cancer patients in Malaysia. This initiative between the two giant non-governmental bodies (NGOs) will directly benefit families of pediatric patients seeking treatment at Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (HCTM-UKM), Kuala Lumpur.
Through this partnership, Lions Clubs International will contribute more than RM150,000 to refurbish the Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM. The funds were raised since October last year, specifically for this initiative. This will enable families of pediatric patients seeking treatment at HCTM-UKM, including childhood cancer patients, to enjoy more comfortable facilities while staying at the Ronald McDonald House, which is located on hospital grounds. Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM is one of the core programmes of RMHC Malaysia in making available temporary accommodation for families of the hospital’s pediatric patients.
Dato’ Javern Lim Chong Hee, District Governor, Lions Clubs International District 308B1 Malaysia presenting a token of apprecitation to Prof. Datuk Dr. A Rahman A Jamal, Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Kuala Lumpur Campus, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, representing Vice-Chancellor UKM in conjunction with strategic cooperation agreement to upgrade Ronald McDonald House in Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz UKM (HCTM-UKM), Kuala Lumpur
This strategic partnership will take place over the next three years, and starting today, Lions Clubs International will maintain the children’s playground at the home. The children’s playground will officially be adopted by Lions Clubs International, and will be known as Lions Wonderland.
According to Dato’ Javern Lim Chong Hee, District Governor of District 308B1, Lions Clubs International Malaysia, “Lions Clubs International is always looking for opportunities to collaborate with the right partners in order to improve the lives of childhood cancer patients and their families. We are aware of the difficulties faced and it is our hope that our partnership with RMHC Malaysia will be able to raise awareness among the public about childhood cancer.”
As a teaching hospital with one of its expertise being pediatric medicine, HCTM-UKM receives over 20,000 pediatric cases each year, which include inpatient and outpatient cases. For 2019 alone, HCTM-UKM received more than 900 cases involving childhood cancer. Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM was established in 1999, and since then, it has benefitted over 1,500 families, especially underprivileged families who need long-term care for their children.
Yang Berhormat Puan Hannah Yeoh, Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development draws a mural on the wall of Ronald McDonald HCTM-UKM and signs the Lions Wonderland sign as a symbolic officiating of taman angkat Lions Club International
According to Azmir Jaafar, President of RMHC Malaysia, “RMHC Malaysia is committed to making a positive impact on children in need through various core programmes. The strategic partnership with Lions Clubs International would be able to provide a higher level of comfort to families staying at Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM. We hope that this collaboration will also motivate Malaysians to continue to support the efforts of non-governmental organisations like us.”
Some of the upgrading works that have been carried out at the Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM over the past two months include repairing and replacing some parts of the roofing and gutters of the building, as well as upgrading of the outdoor activity area. The upgrading of the outdoor activity area saw the beautification of the landscape in the children’s playground, as well as the refurbishment and increase in the number of playground equipment.
YB Hannah Yeoh, Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development, who was the guest-of-honour at the event, commended the initiative by RMHC and Lions Clubs International. She also encouraged more people to come forward to implement initiatives that benefit the community.
The Ronald McDonald House at HCTM-UKM celebrated its 20th anniversary last year and was the first of its kind in the ASEAN region when it opened its doors to the public in 1999.
Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Javern Lim Chong Hee, District Governor, Lions Clubs International District 308B1 Malaysia; Yang Berhormat Puan Hannah Yeoh, Deputy Minister of Women, Family and Community Development and Azmir Jaafar, President Ronald McDonald House Charities encompassing Director & Local Operations Partner, McDonald’s Malaysia at the awarding of Medal Hero to Cancer Children at the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Ronald McDonald Houser Charities (RMHC Malaysia) and Lions Club International Area 308B1 Malaysia
To date, there are two Ronald McDonald Houses in Malaysia. The other home is located at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (Hospital USM) in Kubang Kerian, Kelantan. The third Ronald McDonald House is expected for completion later this year at Hospital Wanita dan Kanak-kanak Kuala Lumpur.
About Lions Clubs International
Lions Clubs International is the largest service club organization in the world with more than 1.4 million members in more than 46,000 clubs from more than 200 countries and geographic areas worldwide. With a motto “We Serve”, Lions Clubs International has come out with global services around five areas of need. These Global Causes such as Diabetes, Environment, Hunger, Vision and Childhood Cancer present significant challenges to humanity, and we believe it’s our turn to meet them.
This year, Lions Clubs International District 308 B1 Malaysia has embarked on a district project for those affected by Childhood Cancer. Childhood Cancer is one of our 5 major global causes. Each year, more than 300,000 children are diagnosed with cancer globally. Improving childhood cancer survival requires supporting children and their families while they experience the unimaginable social, economic and emotional burdens of having a child with cancer. For more information on Lions Clubs International District 308 B1 Malaysia, please visit http://lions308b1.org/
About Ronald McDonald House Charities Malaysia (RMHC Malaysia)
RMHC Malaysia was established in February 1990 as a non-profit organisation with the mission to create, find and support programmes that directly improve the health and well-being of under-privileged children in Malaysia. RMHC Malaysia operates four main programmes in supporting their core pillars of Health, Education and Welfare. These programmes are the Ronald McDonald House, Ronald McDonald Sensory Room, Gift of Smile and the ‘Back-to-School’ program. In the last 30 years, RMHC has positively impacted more than 60,000 children’s lives in the areas of health, education and welfare with funding of more than RM30 million. Funds for programmes are collected through the generosity of individual donors through coin-boxes located at McDonald’s Restaurants and from corporate sponsorships and donations. For more information on RMHC, please visit https://rmhc-malaysia.my/.
About Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (HCTM-UKM)
HCTM is one of the teaching hospitals under the Malaysian Ministry of Education, which has various specialties, including pediatrics. On average, HCTM receives 20,000 pediatric cases per annum, which includes both in-patients and out-patients in HCTM.
For further enquiries, please contact:
Nasri Nordin | Idayu Mukti, Ronald McDonald House Charities Malaysia
+603-7843.3388
Nasri. [email protected] | [email protected]
Stella Foo, Lions Clubs International District 308B1
+6012 648 7675
Afni Adnan, McDonald’s Malaysia
+603 7843 3234
Azwa Rahmat | Kirtana Dharmananda, Lumos Hill+Knowlton Strategies
011-1131 3106 | 011-2320 7847