Off-duty Malaysian healthcare workers save man who collapsed at JB checkpoint 

JOHOR BAHRU - Five Malaysian patient care associates working in Singapore became real-life heroes when they helped to save the life of a man who had collapsed at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar (BSI) Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex in Johor.

The drama unfolded on the afternoon of Aug 9 after the workers’ morning shifts at two hospitals across the border ended.

Ms Shareen Kaur Ranjit Singh, 29, and her colleagues Subhashini Subramaniam, 26, and Veenoshini Sandrasagaran, 36, said they heard a woman shouting for help while waiting for their e-hailing rides at the BSI pickup point near Jalan Jim Quee.

“We thought the man was having a seizure as he was convulsing on the ground. We turned him on his back and found he had a low pulse and was struggling to breathe, so I immediately started performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while Veenoshini monitored his pulse and Subhashini called for an ambulance,” Ms Shareen said.

She added that the man soon lost consciousness, stopped breathing and began foaming at the mouth.

“To complicate matters, the woman with the victim could not speak English or Bahasa Malaysia, so one of us used a translation app to communicate with her.

“The scene was chaotic, despite police and (security) volunteer personnel keeping people back – there were still many travellers passing by, and the area was noisy.

“It was very different from the hospital environment where we are usually assisted by other healthcare workers,” Ms Shareen said, adding that Ms Subashini also checked the man’s bag and found his medication, which served as crucial information when the paramedics arrived.

Ms Veenoshini said: “Despite fearing for his life, we tried our best to keep our cool and never gave up. I felt so relieved when his pulse came back.”

Meanwhile, Ms Nanthiine Gudial Kumaran, 28, and her colleague Hemadewi Balakrishnan, 34, arrived at BSI a few minutes after the incident happened.

“My training took over right away; we just looked at each other and knew what to do.

“Our duty as healthcare workers don’t end when our shift does, no matter where we are,” Ms Nanthiine said, stressing the importance of learning CPR and first aid.

Ms Nanthiine, who has been working in the healthcare sector in Singapore for close to five years, said the five of them did not realise they were working at sister hospitals in the Republic until after the man was taken away by ambulance.

A video of the five of them, wearing the same coloured uniforms, made the rounds on social media, with many calling them “real-life heroes”.

It was learnt that the victim, an Australian in his 50s, had a medical history of high blood pressure and low blood sugar.

The emergency was reported at 4.23pm and first responders arrived about two minutes later, followed by an ambulance at 4.39pm.

Ms Nanthiine said the five of them went their separate ways after the incident, but she was taken aback when she woke up the next day to a deluge of messages from friends, family members, and even strangers online.

“Some called us angels, which was a first for us,” she said, adding that their respective hospitals’ chief executive officers also recognised their efforts.

Ms Nanthiine said they would usually commute across the border using transportation provided by their employer, but on the day of the incident, which was Singapore’s National Day, they decided to take an e-hailing ride.

“We were just at the right place at the right time. More importantly, it showed the importance of being ready to help, regardless of where we are,” she added. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK