Page 14 - Berita Sunway - Issue 76

SUST AINABLE P AR TNERSHIPS

BRINGING

LEAVING NO
ONE BEHIND

In line with the United Nations Sustainable Development
Goal 3 of ensuring healthy lives and promoting wellbeing for
all at all ages, Sunway recently partnered with the Malaysian
AIDS Foundation (MAF) to launch the MAF-Sunway HOPE
Borneo Project.
TO MARGINALISED MALAYSIANS e project addresses the socio-economic barriers to HIV
treatment, prevention and care services in Sarawak and Sabah.
REACHING THE LAST MILE IN EAST
British rock star Freddie Mercury, American basketball star Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson and MALAYSIA Under the initiative, Sunway will allocate RM1 million per
Hollywood actor Charlie Sheen – these are some of the world’s famous personalities to be year over a span of ve years, covering the cost of running three
diagnosed with HIV, or the Human Immuno-De ciency Virus, a virus that damages cells of the e good news for PLHIV in Malaysia is that the country has MAF agship programmes – Teratak Kasih Tok Nan and the
Sarawak Health Access Programme in Sarawak, as well as the
carrier’s immune system and weakens their ability to ght everyday infections and diseases. achieved great strides in many areas in the ght against HIV SAGA Health Access Programme for Sabah.
and AIDS.
According to the World Health Organization, 40.1 million lives have been claimed by HIV,
while an estimated 38.4 million people currently live with HIV, as of late 2021. Every year, Teratak Kasih Tok Nan – a halfway home and one-stop
more than 1.7 million people contract HIV and 13,000 people die of AIDS-related illnesses As the rst country in the Western Paci c region to eliminate support centre for PLHIV in Kuching, provides B40 patients
every week. mother-to-child HIV transmission, Malaysia provides free with free accommodation when they travel from rural Sarawak
antiretroviral treatment for Malaysians in government to get HIV treatment at Sarawak General Hospital.
hospitals and health clinics, and has successfully reduced new
Without a cure and with HIV infection being a lifelong one, there is still much fear and stigma
surrounding the virus, with many perceiving it as a death sentence. HIV transmission by 39% from 2006 to 2013 using harm Meanwhile, the SAGA Health Access Programmes in Sarawak
reduction programmes. and Sabah awards cash incentives and travel subsidies to rural
While the virus can be deadly, there is hope for people living with HIV (PLHIV), thanks B40 patients diagnosed with chronic diseases to help cover the
to medical advancement. With early diagnosis and sustained antiretroviral treatment, the Unfortunately, medical treatment to e ectively treat HIV high cost of travelling and other logistic expenses related to
viral load can be suppressed to an undetectable level. continues to elude many PLHIV in Malaysia for a number of their hospital appointments in town.
reasons – poverty, stigma and geographical barriers, to name
a few.
Durable viral suppression improves immune function, lowers the risk of AIDS-de ning
complications, and allows persons with HIV to live a lifespan approaching that
of persons without HIV. Antiretroviral also eliminate the risk of
HIV transmission to sexual partners and to infants born to persons
with HIV.
Magic Johnson, who was diagnosed with HIV
more than 30 years ago, went on to live
an active and healthy life as a
successful businessman, and
continues to advocate e Ministry of Health’s Global AIDS Monitoring 2021 “Our belief that no one should be left behind is one of the
for HIV today. progress report highlighted that while 87% of an estimated fundamental reasons why Sunway is deeply committed
92,063 PLHIV in Malaysia were aware of their HIV status, towards advancing the sustainable development agenda. We
only 58% of reported PLHIV were receiving antiretroviral have fully embraced the 17 Sustainable Development Goals,
therapy, with 85% of those under antiretroviral treatment which include an aspiration to eradicate the AIDS epidemic by
considered virally suppressed. 2030,” said Sunway Group founder and chairman, Tan Sri
Dato’ Seri Dr. Je rey Cheah.
According to the chairman of Malaysian AIDS Foundation,
Professor Dato’ Dr. Adeeba Kamarulzaman, the “HIV appears to greatly impact those in marginalised
disproportionate distribution of health services in Malaysia communities. Apart from the disease itself, the social stigma
limits East Malaysians’ access to HIV medication, which is associated with HIV/AIDS adds to the physical and mental
further impeded by poverty and geographical vulnerability. stress of a community already living in fear, which was
PROFESSOR DATO’ worsened by the pandemic. We realised that we cannot just
DR. ADEEBA PLHIV in Sabah and Sarawak face challenges such as long stand by and watch while this deadly disease is out there. At
KAMARULZAMAN distances to clinics, travelling barriers, and the lack of Sunway, we believe no corporation can live apart from the
Chairman of Malaysian integrated care that forces them to seek treatment for community it serves,” said Cheah.
AIDS Foundation comorbidities from di erent health facilities, Dr. Adeeba said.
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