KUCHING: Malaysia is on track to achieve the international targets for improving maternal and child health by 2015 which is set by the United Nations General Assembly’s Millennium Development Goals.

Assistant Minister of Public Health Dr Jerip Susil said this in his welcome address yesterday at the Joint Scientific Meeting for the 9th Asian Society for Pediatric Research (ASPR) Congress and 20th Perinatal Society Malaysia (PSM) Annual Congress held at the Borneo Convention Centre Kuching here.

The four-day Joint Scientific Meeting themed ‘Inflammatory Basis of Perinatal and Childhood Diseases’ saw the participation of more than 600 delegates from Malaysia and around the world who gathered to network and share their knowledge, expertise and experiences.

The participants have come from 19 countries including Singapore, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Indonesia, China, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Thailand, India and Sweden.

“The two key goals are reducing child mortality rate by two-thirds or under five (deaths) of that in 1990 and improve etiquette in working to deliver quality health care services to the people,” he elaborated.

Dr Jerip also highlighted that building mental health in children is an important early intervention to promote optimal mental health and well-being of children and the family as a whole.

“The journey towards achieving the targets has been challenging but the good news is Malaysia will achieve these targets by 2015,” he said.

“This is possible because of the combination of good government policies that have been improved to support a range of medical services as well as the tireless contribution of the medical fraternity in delivering quality care to the people on the ground,” he added.

Noting the theme of the congress, Dr Jerip recognised the fact that many of the diseases in early life resulted not only from congenital but also increasingly in inflammatory basis.

“As such, learning to recognise this underlying causes and managing them appropriately can help to reduce the diseases whether in the community or as a whole,” he added.

With the combined strength of the various medical and health care societies as well as renowned experts present at the conference, Dr Jerip hoped they would increase the depth of the conference.

“Improvement in medical care can only be achieved by the doctors and nurses themselves striving always to develop skills in all areas,” he said.

Dr Jerip also recognised that PSM has grown from strength to strength since its formation in its responsibility in creating clinical practice guidelines for practitioners.

Among PSM’s objectives are promoting maternal, fetal and neonatal well-being, providing expert advice to government and other bodies on matters pertaining to Perinatology as well as to advance the theory and practice of Perinatology in Malaysia.

“Through its many courses and trainings, it has led to the continuation of medical education of young doctors, nurses and many others working in perinatal health,” he said.

But a more significant development, Dr Jerip added, was perhaps the establishment of Malaysian National Neonatal Registry in 2004, which has helped shape the growth of perinatal services in our country.

Also present at the opening event were PSM president Datuk Dr Soo Thian Lian, president of College of Paediatrics, Academy of Medicine Malaysia Prof Dr Thong Meow Keong, Asian Society for Pediatric Research president Prof Dr Lee Sung Joon, PSM patron Datuk Seri Eleena Sultan Mazlan Muhibbuddin Shah and ASPR-PSM 2013 organising co-chairperson Prof Dr Lee Way Seah.

The joint congress will hear the oral presentation of some 61 papers covering topics on immunology, fetal inflammation and preterm birth, perinatal infection, neonatal, cardiology, genetics, neurology, gastroenterology and metabolic.

A total of 88 research presentations are being exhibited alongside a mini trade fair for medical, surgical and hospital equipment and products.

Also present at the opening event were PSM president Datuk Dr Soo Thian Lian, President of College of Paediatrics, Academy of Medicine Malaysia Prof Dr Thong Meow Keong, Asian Society for Pediatric Research president Prof Dr Lee Sung Joon, PSM patron Datuk Seri Eleena Sultan Mazlan Muhibbuddin Shah and ASPR-PSM 2013 organising co-chairperson Prof Dr Lee Way Seah.

(Source : Borneo Post Online , 11 May 2013)