5,000 Nangka residents to undergo health screening

SIBU: A total of 5,000 individuals in Nangka constituency will undergo health screening under Basic Kidney Screening Programme, a pioneering project to detect chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients using technology.

According to Deputy Minister of Education, Innovation, and Talent Development Datuk Dr Annuar Rapaee, the programme is being organised by Malaysian Research Accelerator for Technology and Innovation (MRANTI), Austral Group, AstraZeneca, and Data 8, in cooperation with the Nangka Service Centre.

“The programme aims to identify approximately 1,000 individuals with chronic kidney disease. In the first phase, 5,000 respondents, including those in longhouse areas, will undergo interviews using an application. Their eligibility will then be determined by the application.

“If they qualify, they will undergo physical screening, where blood and urine samples will be taken for examination. After obtaining the results, a doctor will contact the patient virtually to explain the findings, if further treatment is needed.

“The patient will then be referred to the hospital for follow-up. This phase is crucial because it’s simple and, secondly, it’s fast,” he said when met by reporters at the programme at Dewan Lakis here today.

The Nangka assemblyman also emphasised the importance of the programme’s concept, highlighting the involvement of technology in early and efficient detection of individuals at risk of kidney disease.

Meanwhile, when asked about the blood and urine examination process, Dr Annuar said that the team will conduct the assessment in various locations as they will have 1,000 respondents who will undergo blood and urine tests.

“We will gather them based on their residential locations. We will also visit longhouses to detect early kidney disease patients there. So, it’s not just in one place, but in several locations that we will determine based on locality or their residential address,” he said.