A NATIONAL institute for pre-hospital treatment and disaster Medicine will be set up by the Health Ministry (MOH) to ensure delivery of the best services in times of disaster. 

Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said apart from that, hotspot collaboration between the ministry and St. John Ambulance Malaysia, as well as the Malaysian Red Crescent, would also be streamlined for the purpose. 

“The sharing of expertise between the frontlines of the ministry and the EMRS (Emergency Medical Rescue Services) of the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM), such as fire safety training and disaster management, should also be continued to ensure that their duties can be carried out efficiently and safely,” she said in a Facebook post. 

Earlier, Zaliha witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on strategic cooperation between MOH and the Fire and Rescue Department to strengthen pre-hospital and ambulance treatment in the country. 

She said the collaboration between MOH and JBPM in improving the capacity of pre-hospital services has been established with the launch of the Emergency Air Ambulance Rescue Service. 

The collaboration between MOH and JBPM was done through the sharing of EMRS vehicle resources and “online medical direction” from the Medical Emergency Coordination Centre, in addition to on-the-job training for the EMRS team at Emergency and Trauma Departments. – Bernama, August 23, 2023.