Sarawak dialysis patient’s rescue shows why the Flying Doctor Service matters

Following a tragic helicopter crash in Long Lellang, which resulted in the deaths of four medical personnel and a pilot, dialysis patient Renai Iwat faced urgent medical needs due to the closure of the local airstrip.

Authorities, including Deputy Minister Datuk Gerawat Gala, facilitated her airlift to Miri Hospital via a Bomba helicopter to continue her essential treatment.

Her family expressed profound gratitude to the officials involved and underscored the critical role of air medical services in providing healthcare support to remote communities in Sarawak.

Amid their ordeal, they extended condolences to the families of those who perished in the crash.

KUCHING, Sept 12 — When a helicopter crashed just 200 metres from her home in Long Lellang, Renai Iwat was not only confronted with the trauma of losing a vital link to medical care, but also another race against time.

The dialysis patient, who requires treatment three times a week, needed to return to Miri after the Long Lellang STOLport was closed following Tuesday’s tragic helicopter crash that claimed the lives of four medical personnel and a pilot.

Amid the grief and uncertainty, her family turned to the authorities for help.

Renai was eventually airlifted from Long Lellang to Miri Hospital on Thursday (Sept 10) by a Bomba helicopter, allowing her to resume the treatment on which she depends.

A family member who wished to remain anonymous said the family would remain deeply grateful to Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Labour, Immigration and Project Monitoring) Datuk Gerawat Gala, Miri Division Resident Tuan Galong Luang and Bomba for making the evacuation possible.

She said Gerawat had personally raised the urgency of bringing Renai back to Miri because of her dialysis schedule and had insisted that arrangements be made for her evacuation.

“Although we are deeply saddened by the loss of the four medical personnel and pilot in the tragic helicopter incident, Renai’s case shows how important the Flying Doctor Service is to our rural communities,” she told The Borneo Post when contacted.

She said the family’s concern was heightened by the fact that Renai had been at home when the helicopter crashed nearby.

“It was an extremely difficult situation for her and for all of us,” she said.

She also thanked Miri Health Department head Dr P Raviwharmman Packierisamy for supporting the request for Renai’s medical evacuation.

According to her, Galong then made the formal request to Bomba for the evacuation from Long Lellang to Miri, while the Bomba director approved the use of its helicopter.

She expressed particular appreciation to the helicopter captain and crew who flew back to Long Lellang to bring Renai safely to Miri.

For Renai, the evacuation was more than simply getting home.

It meant returning to hospital for treatment she needs three times a week and being reunited with her family after an ordeal that unfolded dangerously close to home.

Renai is the widow of the late Pemanca Freddy Abun, who served the Kelabit community for more than five years.

For the family, Renai’s experience underscored the importance of air medical services to communities in Sarawak’s remote interior, where access to healthcare can depend on the ability to travel by air.

The family also extended their condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the crash.

They said Renai’s safe evacuation was a powerful reminder that for people living in remote communities, air medical services are not a luxury but a lifeline.

And for one family, that lifeline brought a mother, wife and grandmother safely home. — The Borneo Post

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在龙莱朗发生的一起悲惨的直升机坠毁事故中，四名医务人员和一名飞行员丧生，由于当地简易机场关闭，透析患者雷奈·伊瓦特面临着紧急医疗需求。

包括副部长拿督格拉瓦特·加拉在内的有关部门安排消防直升机将她空运至美里医院，以便继续进行必要的治疗。

她的家人对相关官员表示深切的感谢，并强调了航空医疗服务在为砂拉越偏远社区提供医疗保健支持方面发挥的关键作用。

在经历磨难的同时，他们向在坠机事故中遇难者的家属表示慰问。

古晋，9月12日讯——当一架直升机在距离她位于龙勒朗的家仅200米的地方坠毁时，雷奈·伊瓦特不仅面临着失去与医疗护理的重要联系的创伤，还面临着另一场与时间赛跑的挑战。

这位需要每周接受三次透析治疗的病人，在周二发生造成四名医务人员和一名飞行员丧生的悲惨直升机坠毁事故后，龙乐浪短距起降机场关闭，他不得不返回美里。

在悲痛和迷茫之中，她的家人向有关部门寻求帮助。

周四（9月10日），雷奈最终被一架消防直升机从龙乐浪空运至美里医院，得以继续接受她赖以生存的治疗。

一位不愿透露姓名的家庭成员表示，家人将永远感激首相署（劳工、移民和项目监督）副部长拿督格拉瓦特·加拉、美里省长端加隆·銮以及消防部门，感谢他们使撤离成为可能。

她说，由于蕾娜的透析安排，格拉瓦特亲自提出了将她带回美里的紧迫性，并坚持要求安排她的撤离事宜。

“虽然我们对这起悲惨的直升机事故中四名医务人员和飞行员的遇难深感悲痛，但雷奈的案例表明，飞行医生服务对我们的农村社区有多么重要，”她在接受《婆罗洲邮报》采访时表示。

她说，由于雷奈当时在家，直升机就在附近坠毁，这更加剧了家人的担忧。

“这对她和我们所有人来说都是极其艰难的处境，”她说。

她还感谢美里卫生局局长 P Raviwharmman Packierisamy 医生支持 Renai 的医疗转运请求。

据她所述，加隆随后正式向消防局提出从龙勒朗撤离到美里的请求，而消防局局长批准使用其直升机。

她对飞回龙乐浪将蕾娜安全送回美里的直升机机长和机组人员表示特别感谢。

对蕾娜来说，撤离不仅仅是回家那么简单。

这意味着她需要每周三次返回医院接受治疗，并在经历了一场发生在离家很近的危险磨难后与家人团聚。

Renai是已故Pemanca Freddy Abun的遗孀，Pemanca Freddy Abun曾为Kelabit社区服务五年多。

对于这个家庭来说，蕾娜的经历凸显了航空医疗服务对砂拉越偏远内陆社区的重要性，在这些社区，获得医疗保健可能取决于能否乘坐飞机出行。

该家族也向在事故中丧生者的家属表示慰问。

他们表示，雷奈的安全撤离有力地提醒人们，对于居住在偏远地区的人们来说，空中医疗服务不是一种奢侈品，而是一条生命线。

对于一个家庭来说，这条生命线让一位母亲、妻子和祖母安全回家。——《婆罗洲邮报》

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