UOB Malaysia donates RM100,000 via MERCY Malaysia to help ease hospitals’ burden in the ongoing fight against COVID-19
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 7 September 2021 – UOB Malaysia has donated RM100,000 to three hospitals in need of vital resources to help them fight the ongoing pandemic that has left the nation’s medical infrastructure under severe pressure. The donation will provide for critical medical equipment to ease the burden of hospitals and healthcare workers as they grapple with the spike in COVID-19 cases and deaths related to the highly transmissible Delta variant.
The donation, distributed through MERCY Malaysia1, will go towards Sungai Buloh Hospital and Selayang Hospital, the two out of the three designated COVID-19 hospitals in the Klang Valley, as well as the Malacca General Hospital, the only major government hospital in the state handling COVID-19 cases. The money will be used to supply powered air-purifying respirators, oxygen concentrators, vital sign monitors, enteral feeding pumps, medical syringe pumps and other essential equipment to support the increasing number of patients admitted into the intensive care unit (ICU).
Mr Wong Kim Choong, Chief Executive Officer, UOB Malaysia, said, “Our public healthcare system continues to be under immense pressure due to the resurgence in COVID-19 cases. Hospitals are suffering from a shortage of resources and supplies as they care for the increasing number of patients admitted into the ICU with severe respiratory symptoms. We hope that through our donation, we can help meet the demand for critical medical equipment and ease some of the challenges faced by the hospitals so that they can better help patients in critical condition. We are grateful to MERCY Malaysia for facilitating the donation and their continued support of hospitals that have been working tirelessly since the beginning of the pandemic.”
Ms Zuraidah Mian, Acting Executive Director of MERCY Malaysia, said, “Malaysia’s healthcare system is stretched thin and UOB Malaysia’s contribution will enable us to secure the necessary medical and logistics support and alleviate the burden of the selected COVID-19 hospitals. We are grateful for the assistance UOB Malaysia has shown in support of the MERCY Malaysia COVID-19 Full Movement Control Order Preparedness and Response Plan. By working together, we hope that we are able to support the frontliners and strengthen the primary health system, which is the final defence against the pandemic.”
UOB Malaysia’s donation of medical equipment is the latest in its series of relief initiatives under UOB’s global #UnitedForYou COVID-19 Relief Programme. Throughout the pandemic, the Bank has offered various relief measures, including the six-month opt-in repayment moratorium which took effect in July 2021, as part of its continuous effort to support customers who are financially impacted by the ongoing movement restrictions.
UOB Malaysia also contributed RM500,000 last year through The Association of Banks in Malaysia to MERCY Malaysia’s COVID-19 Pandemic Fund. The fund was set up to provide healthcare workers in the country with adequate critical medical equipment needed to take care of patients and to protect frontliners. The Bank also donated more than RM350,000 to four charities to help more than 25,000 children in need, particularly children from vulnerable families in urban and rural areas, single-parent households and socio-economically challenged communities.
1 A non-profit organisation focusing on providing medical relief, sustainable health related development and risk reduction activities for vulnerable communities in both crisis and non-crisis situations.