KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 — There are many outstanding women in Malaysian medicine, and some of them even have gone the extra mile to serve the community.

An acclaimed humanitarian advocate, Tan Sri Dr Jemilah Mahmood was the driving force behind the establishment of Mercy Malaysia, the most successful home-grown humanitarian organisation that works both at home and internationally since 1999.

Coming from a Johorean family, Dr Jemilah was born in Seremban when her late father was the state development officer.

Over the years, Dr Jemilah has garnered extensive experience in the field of medicine and humanitarian – pilling up an outstanding list of achievements that would fill chapters of a book.

However, the multi-award-winning humanitarian still attributes her success to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), her lecturers and five study mates after about three decades she graduated from the alma mater.

Recalling her early days as a student when she joined UKM in 1980, Dr Jemilah said she had just returned from the UK to pursue medicine, and to be close to her mother who wasn’t well at that time.

"UKM gave me the opportunity to pursue a dream to study medicine.

"I was in a class which was extremely unique and had the crème de la crème of the country from boarding schools and even those who had returned from abroad to study at home,” she said.

Dr Jemilah also recalled that there was a strong competitive spirit in the university and she had to compete with other brilliant students to get to the medical school.

"In the first year we had to go through a competition and only the top students would get into the second year,” she told Malay Mail.

She also paid homage to her then lecturers and professors who helped her excel in her studies and passion.

"We had some fantastic lecturers and professors, some of whom were from other parts of Asia.”

Dr Jemilah, who was recently appointed special advisor to Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on public health, has been vocal about discriminations against foreigners and refugees, especially the Rohingya community in the country.

"I keep talking about not discriminating foreigners, because I had lecturers and professors from Myanmar who had left the country and came to Malaysia to be safe,” she said.

She then paid a special tribute to her former professor of obstetrics and gynaecology, Professor Emeritus Dr Nafisah Adeeb.

"Many will not know that she is one of the first Malay obstetricians and gynaecologists who is highly qualified.

"She pushed us very hard and was part of the inspiration for me to pursue obstetrics and gynaecology.”

University life

Dr Jemilah reminisced about her university life and said she had an amazing group of classmates who pushed each other to their fullest potentials.

"There were six of us who used to study together every day to motivate and challenge each other.

"All five of my study mates are now like a family to me now and we still stay in touch up to today,” she added.

She said the five are electrophysiologist and cardiologist Datuk Dr Razali Omar and consultant anaesthetist Datuk Dr Sharifah Suraya from Cardiac Vascular Sentral Kuala Lumpur hospital, radiologist Dr Fadzil Tahir from Gleneagles Hospital KL, consultant cardiologist Dr Ahmad Nizar Jamaluddin from Subang Jaya Medical Centre and Anesthesiologist Dr Fauziah Yusoff from Hospital Putrajaya.

"It was just so fantastic to have this group of friends, and I have delivered kids for some of them,” she said.

Apart from finding great life-long friends, Dr Jemilah said UKM was also the place she met her husband, Datuk Dr Ashar Abdullah, who is also consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist.

"I met my husband at UKM when I was in my first year and he was in his fifth year.

"He is very unique.

"He entered the medical school at the age of 16 and graduated very young just after his 22^nd birthday, which is a real record,” she said.

They both have been married for 35 years now and are blessed with two sons.

Dr Jemilah obtained her Doctor of Medicine from UKM in 1986 and her Masters in Obstetrics and Gynaecology in 1991.

She then continued to pursue her post-graduate studies both in the UK and in UKM in obstetrics and gynaecology before she became a lecturer at UKM for a few years.

During her teaching tenure, she taught Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, who is now the  Health director-general and leading the fight against the Covid-19 outbreak in the country.

"I helped him to learn how to deliver babies, so we have a very special bond,” she said.   

As UKM celebrated its 50^th anniversary yesterday, Dr Jemilah wished her alma mater the very best.

"I’m grateful to UKM and I want to thank all my lecturers and professors who guided me along the way.

"UKM is unique and it was built with a premise that the national language was of prime importance to prove that we can produce excellent students with the national language, which I think is admirable.

"I want UKM students to strive high as we have the potential to do even better,” she said.

In 2019, Dr Jemilah became the first Malaysian to win Asean Prize, a prestigious regional award recognising the achievements of individuals or organisations in fostering regional identity and spirit towards the development of the Asean Community by 2025.

Prior to that in 2013, she became the inaugural winner of the prestigious Isa Award for Services to Humanity from the Kingdom of Bahrain for her contribution in humanitarian, development, disaster risk reduction, education and poverty alleviation.