KUCHING: A total of 13 nurses graduated from the Malaysian Wound Ostomy and Continence Care programme which was held from 25 June until 14 September 2018 here yesterday.
Director of State Health Department, Dr Jamilah Hashim said that so far, a total of 64 Enterostomal Therapy (ET) nurses from the Malaysian Wound Ostomy and Continence Education Programme (MyWOCEP) have been trained, out of which 27 came from Sarawak.
“To date, Malaysia is very proud to have trained three Vietnamese and two Filipino ET nurses.
“Hopefully, this will further enhance the development of wound, ostomy and continence nursing care in their countries,” she said speech during the MyWOCEP seminar 2018 at Bangunan Sultan Iskandar here yesterday.
She added that over time, more patients with such conditions will benefit and have a better quality of life.
“With the increasing trend in Colorectal Cancer, the demand for this nursing speciality is of utmost importance for patients undergoing ostomy surgeries.
“As mentioned by the Director of Sarawak General Hospital Dr Chin Zin Hing, the stoma cases in SGH has been increasing whereby 87 stoma cases were recorded in 2015, 157 stoma cases in 2016 and 170 stoma cases in 2017,” said Jamilah.
She added that for wound care in Malaysia, the number of cases for diabetic foot ulcers, venous and arterial ulcers, pressure injury eases have also been increasing.
“These patients with debilitating diseases and chronic wounds need specialised care from these ET nurses to ensure optimal quality of life.
“In SGH, the number of wound cases has also increased from 1,678 wound cases in 2015 to 1,662 cases in 2016 and to 2,285 wound cases in 2017,” she pointed out.
Meanwhile, Jamilah said that MyWOCEP has received an official recognition from the World Council of Enterostomal Therapy (WCET) for 2016 to 2018.
“The Malaysian programme is one of the few programmes recognised by the world council in this region, besides Hong Kong, Australia, China and lndonesia,” she added.
