A key pillar of Sunway Healthcare Group’s success has been its nurses, and its male nurses are a large contributing factor in this female-dominated field.

According to the director of nursing at Sunway Medical Centre in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur (SCKL), Hwang Ming Lan, male nurses compose 10% of the nursing task force at the medical facility.

A founding member of the hospital and having served as a nurse since its inception in 1999, Hwang observes that men tend to shy away from the profession, as the field is visibly female-dominant.

“At Sunway Medical Centre, our male nurses are important team members who have contributed much to our success. Both our male and female nurses play to their strengths and advantage, thus they can equally contribute to our operational needs,” she says.

Muhammad Alfateh Yusoff, a nurse at Sunway Medical Centre in SCKL, says being a nurse is satisfying regardless of gender and it is how one treats others that matters.

That being said, Alfateh does recall the cold reactions from family members when he declared his desire to be a nurse. They have since grown to understand the merit of his profession and have supported his decision.

He says: “The circle today is vastly different from when I first started. I am glad that the general public is more receptive of us and acknowledges male nurses to be on a par with our female counterparts.”

Alfateh enjoys his job’s stimulating nature, which requires him to be constantly prepared to face challenges in a fast-paced environment.

He points out that there are ups and downs in any career path.

“Each time I’ve had the privilege of alleviating one’s pain or contribute to one’s well-being is momentous to me,” he says.

At the same time, he is grateful to be part of a nurturing environment at Sunway Medical Centre, where nurses are empowered, more so on special occasions such as International Nurses Day.

Alfateh is considering pursuing a specialisation in either stoma care or orthopaedics to hone his skills and better serve the community.

Muhamad Hasri Shafee, another nurse at Sunway Medical Centre, also faced opposition from family members when he decided to be a nurse. He too is unfazed by such opinions, announcing proudly that he is a registered staff nurse and healthcare practitioner, ever eager to impart his knowledge and expertise to friends and relatives when prompted.

Since joining Sunway Medical Centre, he continues to be pleasantly surprised by the positive team dynamics at work, especially when nurses come together to brainstorm solutions for unprecedented circumstances.

“At Sunway Medical Centre, nurses are valued. I feel a natural sense of camaraderie among us. As a result, we are constantly encouraging and supporting each other at work. The ambience is especially heart-warming during days that call for a celebration, such as International Nurses Day, because it essentially feels like one big family reunion,” Hasri says.

The Sunway Bhd-owned medical centre notes that, in this pandemic-stricken world, health professionals have played a monumental role throughout the past year. One such kingpin is nurses, who form the foundation of primary care, symptom management as well as mental support to ailing patients worldwide in hospitals and, now, vaccination centres.

The medical centre celebrates its nurses on May 12 every year without fail. This year, its nurses were presented with a token of appreciation, on top of receiving wishes blasted throughout its buildings via the hospital public address (PA) system.

In the light of the pandemic, the annual Nurses Day fundraiser was withheld for the second year.

It added that the Sunway Healthcare Group offers full scholarships for Diploma and Bachelor Degree students in Nursing, with the opportunity to pursue a nursing career with Sunway Healthcare facilities around the country.

Those who are keen to check their eligibility for such scholarships may visit Sunway Medical Centre’s website or tune in to its ongoing series of career webinars to determine whether nursing is their desired career path.

Sunway Healthcare Group (SHG) is Asia’s multi-award winning integrated private healthcare group with a network of hospitals and health services operating in Malaysia and Singapore, serving patients from more than 135 countries worldwide since establishing its flagship Sunway Medical Centre in Sunway City Kuala Lumpur.

Driven by its mission to shape the future of healthcare with world-class healthcare professionals, SHG seeks to enhance collaboration in the domain of medicine and medical education. Together with Sunway Education Group, the group has established multiple collaborations with world-class institutions such as the University of Cambridge, Royal College of Physicians (London) and Harvard Medical School for the continuous development of its healthcare professionals.

Its Clinical Research Centre, in partnership with the University of Cambridge, is the sole regional site partner for conducting and coordinating research involving human subjects.