PENANG will host the inaugural Malaysia Community First Responder Conference on Dec 13 and 14, bringing together resuscitation experts and leaders from across the Asia Pacific to share their insights and experiences.
Daniel Gooi Zi Sen, the state executive councillor for Youth, Sports, and Health, announced that the first part of the conference on Dec 13 will feature a First Responder Competition at the Youth Park from 8am to noon. The second part, on Dec 14, will consist of a full-day seminar for participants at the Penang Marriott Hotel in Gurney Drive.
“The competition aims to showcase CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) and emergency protocol expertise, while the conference honours first responders and advances their lifesaving skills. Continuous learning, training, and community awareness in responding to life-threatening incidents are essential,” Gooi stated during a press conference at Komtar today.
Among those present were Prof Dr Sabariah Faizah Jamaluddin, chair of the organising committee and immediate past president of Malaysian Resuscitation Association; Dr Leong Yuen Chin, emergency physician of Penang Hospital; Christopher Barnabas, vice-president of JAPC, ZOLL Medical Corporation; Shenny Tan, director of operations, APAC, ZOLL Medical Corporation; Lim Thiam Chong, chairman of CERT Georgetown; and Mandy Khoo, marketing manager, APAC, ZOLL Medical Corporation.
Tan revealed that due to overwhelming interest, the invitation-only competition is also open to responders from other states, limited to 16 teams. Two ZOLL AED Plus devices, valued at RM9,000 each, will be awarded to the winners.
The conference will feature distinguished speakers, including Dr Darin Wong, Dr Khairul Nizam Hassan, Dr Mohd Fazrul Mukhtar, and other Malaysian experts, as well as Dr Satta Riyapan from Thailand, Dr Ng YY from Singapore, and Matt Didcoe from Australia.
Gooi highlighted that ischemic heart disease remains Malaysia’s leading cause of death, with survival rates for sudden cardiac arrest tragically below 1%.
“This is an unacceptable statistic, especially when immediate action can mean survival for individuals experiencing cardiac arrest,” he said, stressing the critical role of community first responders as the initial line of defence.
“Every second counts when a person suffers a sudden cardiac arrest. With each passing minute without intervention, survival chances drop significantly.
“By training community members and installing Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) in public spaces, we can create a robust network of first responders ready to deliver high-quality CPR and significantly increase survival outcomes.”
The conference is a collaborative initiative involving the Health Ministry, the Penang government, Penang Hospital, the Malaysian Resuscitation Association, and ZOLL Medical Corporation, and is endorsed by the Asian Association of Emergency Medical Services.
Prof Dr Sabariah expressed her gratitude to the Penang government for hosting the event, noting it provides responders from other states an invaluable opportunity to learn from their Penang counterparts. She recounted a recent incident in which a student at a local campus suffered a fatal heart attack without anyone performing CPR, despite the hospital being only 2km away.
Barnabas explained that the conference was conceived following the sudden death of a Chinese player in the Asian Junior Championships in Yogyakarta, where footage of the player’s collapse due to a cardiac arrest, with no immediate response, went viral.
He thanked the Penang government for both hosting the conference and leading the country in the availability of AEDs and trained responders.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Ahmad Adil Muhamad