Nilai: Maaedicare Charitable Foundation has launched its third Klinik Amal Percuma here, marking a strategic expansion of its community-based primary healthcare model for Malaysia's economically disadvantaged households. Its chief executive officer Anne Rajasaikaran said the Nilai community reflects the very populations the foundation was established to serve.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the Nilai clinic, established in partnership with the Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS), represents an evidence-led continuation of Maaedicare's approach to care, anchored in early detection, clinical rigor, and continuity of treatment. "Many of the patients who visit our clinics are living with silent conditions such as hypertension and early diabetes. By the time they reach tertiary care, the disease has often progressed significantly. Our free clinics allow us to intervene earlier by detecting risk, initiating treatment, and reducing the financial toxicity that too often causes families experiencing financial hardship to delay care until it is too late," she said at the clinic's launch yesterday.

The launch was attended by the Tunku Temenggong of Kedah, Tan Sri Tunku Puteri Intan Safinaz Almarhum Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah, who is also the National Chairperson of the Malaysian Red Crescent (MRC); MRC secretary-general Datuk Danial Iskandar Abdul Rahman; members of Maaedicare's board, clinical and leadership teams; corporate partners, and community stakeholders. Anne added that in communities such as Nilai, those most at risk are often the least likely to seek care, not because of reluctance, but because each consultation carries a cost they cannot consistently absorb. She said their clinics remove that barrier by providing not only access but also dignity, continuity, and the confidence for individuals to take control of their health.

Since 2023, the model has already reached more than 8,176 patients through its first two clinics in Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh, many of whom presented with previously undiagnosed or poorly controlled chronic conditions. Meanwhile, Maaedicare Charitable Foundation chairman Tunku Datuk Yaacob Khyra positioned the initiative within the broader national healthcare landscape. "By placing primary care directly within communities like Nilai, we are shifting the paradigm from reactive treatment to proactive health management," he said. He added that this is how the long-term national burden of chronic disease can be reduced, by acting earlier, closer to the patient, and with greater continuity.

Yaacob said the outcomes from their first two clinics demonstrate that community-based models can deliver measurable impact at scale, adding that the clinic is uniquely positioned to complement the public healthcare system by piloting solutions that are agile, preventive, and replicable. Operating from Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm on a walk-in basis, the Nilai free clinic provides free consultations and point-of-care screening, including blood pressure monitoring, blood glucose testing, and kidney function assessment. It also offers structured chronic disease management, with longitudinal follow-up for patients diagnosed with diabetes, hypertension, chronic kidney disease (CKD), and cardiovascular conditions, as well as evidence-based lifestyle counseling, including dietary guidance using the quarter-quarter-half (QQH) method, smoking cessation support, and medication adherence coaching.