What an interesting month it has been. 8th November marked the first day of Raziq and I's volunteering journey at the Medical Reception Station (MRS), Berakas, and I have had the best time ever since.
Our first day happened to be one of the busiest days in the Vaccination centre. It was 8th November, the first day of the nationwide Pfizer vaccine administration for young children. The Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Col. Dr Awg Mohd Hafizul called us over first thing in the morning to join his morning briefing to the whole MRS staff. When he walked into the room, everyone made way and not a single voice interrupted. The CMO is highly respected and I immediately understood why. That morning, every word he chose, every look he gave, he wanted to make sure everything goes absolutely perfect, and not only for MRS, but for the children as well as their families. He emphasized that each staff, which were made up mostly of military personnel, treat every kid that walks into the building feels comfortable and cared for. It is safe to say that they did not disappoint.
In the first hour of vaccination that day, the atmosphere was filled with laughter, cheer and smiles from the brightest young faces. At one point, the staff even applauded the children after getting their vaccinations. It was extremely a heartwarming sight, especially to view military men who have spent a majority of their lives displaying a character of boldness, strength and firmness drop that very front to make the patients feel welcomed instead of intimidated. Of course there were still a couple cries here and there, an unavoidable event when children are involved. But it would be an understatement to say the personnel handled them well.
By the next day, every cubicle was stocked with candy and barely a single cry was heard. The staff learnt from the first experience and with no hesitation adapted to it. This was a learning experience I am genuinely sure I would not have been able to learn had I volunteered any other place. Along with the flaming sense of unity the military nurtures, army men have adaptability like no other.
In my first week, I was posted at the 'pharmacy' where we packed and distributed Paracetamol, whilst Raziq was outside ushering patients. This was the first time I had met the group and they were amazing. They did not think twice about teaching me the necessary procedures and even showed me how they did other things, such as withdrawing the vaccines and even the vaccinations themselves, which I tremendously enjoyed as I know myself to have always been curious.
After a couple days packing tablets, I got assigned to now distribute the medicine which now is at the observation area where it is more efficient. Again, adaptability. Here I was reunited with Raziq. We distributed the tasks amongst ourselves and decided that I would do the distributing whilst Raziq did the logging/paperwork. This was an amazing opportunity for me to practice my communication skills, as we dealt with patients of all ages and ethnicities, different needs and different personalities. Some of them were friendly and cracked a few jokes, some a lot more shy and reserved to the point where being asked the simplest questions caused them anxiety. I learnt to approach their parents, siblings and so on. Today, I can proudly say that I can tell you to take your medicine in 4 different sentences, even gesture it out if you need!
That week was so hectic that most days, we simply did not realize whenever it was time for our lunchbreaks as the train of patients just never seemed to stop. Yet, the staff never failed to ask us every few hours if we were doing okay and if we needed anything. They always insisted that they could cover for us anytime we needed to take a break. However Raziq and I were determined to give our full commitment hence we only sat down early in the mornings and at the very end of the day when we got to all sit together to eat, which were always a wholesome experience.
The food is another whole topic. Aside from the daily rations provided that we are all so grateful for, not a single day goes by without an anonymous donation being sent in as an appreciation to frontliners. These donations do not stop at food either, every other day people walk in handing little gifts like facemasks. Even the staff themselves would offer Raziq and I lunches and snacks. Every single day I spend in there I am surrounded by love, generosity and kindness. Being able to give back to the country, helping out with the pandemic are all so important but on a full, chaotic day I get to share the lunch table with respectable military men, regardless of rank, exchanging stories, experiences and laughter. These are the moments I will remember the most. I know, especially in the future when I am training in the military, I will be looking back on these moments, recalling back the lessons they have taught me. The same lessons that got them through their lives in the military.
Speaking of lessons, during my time volunteering, I have been blessed enough to cross paths with some remarkable military officers, one of them being Tn. Wata, the Director of Personnel, and one of our board interviewers during the scholarship selection process. We got to catch up and it was nice seeing his face light up knowing that we have made it this far since the time we last spoke. In fact, I got to once again meet the Commanders, this time with their families, who were just as wonderful and kind as they were. They greeted me with the same warm smiles they greeted me with the last time I saw them in the Award Ceremony. Earlier this week, I actually witnessed the CMO himself get his vaccination, which for some reason had me starstruck.
Apart from picking up new skills and meeting new people, this experience has given me the chance to look behind the curtains of what goes on during a highly publicized event like the COVID-19 vaccination. For example, when I was an usher outside, I got to listen to people complain about how slow the vaccines are being withdrawn. Little did they know that the vaccines each have a specific duration they can remain usable in once the vials are opened. In other words, it is always best to prepare the vaccines as close to the vaccination times as possible to keep them 'fresh'. Not to mention the specific temperatures the vaccines demand to be stored in. I realized how much we as the public do not know when we are complaining, especially when it is toward a service that is provided totally free-of-charge by the government.
To conclude, this volunteering has taught me so much, I cannot be more proud to be part of the Ministry of Defence and am even more excited to be part of the army. These men effortlessly showed as much dignity, pride and honor as there can be within an organization. Despite most of them being volunteers and have never been in the health sector previously, they took every small detail of their tasks seriously with no room for errors. At the same time without failure displaying elements of teamwork and leadership.
Dk Fathiyah Amanina binti Pg Roslan @ Dk Hanan Syafiqah
SCRBAF Scholarship recipient 2021
Submitted on: 30th November 2021
Arranged and Formatted by:
Aiman Abdullah Tee
).png)