A place to go to restore physical ability and self dignity

Kamal Ishak (in wheelchair) said the Tun Razak Rehabilitation Centre has given him a new lease of life. With him for his final treatment was his wife Zuhaina Ahmad Zubel (right).MELAKA: For most people, Social Security Organisation (Perkeso) rehabilitation facilities are just treatment centres for construction workers or factory employees suffering workplace injuries.But at Perkeso’s Tun Razak Rehabilitation Centre in Melaka, this assumption is, quite literally, turned upside down.Here, white-collar workers sit side-by-side with their blue-collar counterparts, getting treatment for stroke and neurological problems rather than workplace mishaps.On the day of FMT’s visit, videographer Kamal Ishak, 56, was just getting his last treatment for a stroke from last year.And in his regular visits, he has seen them all. “Lawyers, businessmen, engineers … even doctors.

There are all kinds of people here,” he told FMT.For Kamal, and fellow patient Yuzaimie Mazelan, the centre is where they have been given a new lease of life.For Yuzaimie, a sales and marketing executive, having to undergo rehabilitation for a slipped disc at 27 came as quite a shock.“I woke up one morning to find that I was unable to move my legs,” he told FMT. The following day, he had trouble emptying his bladder.“I went straight to the emergency department,” he said.Both Kamal and Yuzaimie learned from their respective doctors that treatment for their condition was available at Perkeso, so long as they had been contributing to the social security fund.Therapy and beyondAt the centre, both men were put through a combination of physiotherapy, hydrotherapy, robotic rehabilitation and neuromodulation — a nerve stimulation approach designed to help restore function in patients with mobility issues.For Yuzaimie, hydrotherapy played a crucial role in helping him regain movement. “Anything you cannot do on land, you can do in the water,” he said.He added that the encouragement and support from the centre’s therapists helped him stay motivated throughout his recovery.“That is where I got my strength from,” he said.Physiotherapist Hanissa Mazalan said the centre’s rehabilitation programme is designed not only to improve physical abilities but also to help patients regain independence in their daily routines.“Before treatment, patients need help from a carer, be they the spouse or a child, to do almost anythin…