Off to school — even at hospitals

KUALA LUMPUR: Sickly students who are long-term hospital patients will be able to catch up on their studies when the School in Hospital programme is introduced in June.

Deputy Prime Minister's wife Puan Sri Noorainee Abdul Rahman, who initiated the programme,said she felt compelled to start it when she saw many young pati-ents being left behind in their studies because they had to be in hospital.

She said children had nothing much to do in hospital wards and might lose the motivation to continue with their studies.

“However, the knowledge that they have not missed out on their studies under this programme will give them hope and perhaps even improve their health,” she said.

The first phase of the programme, added Noorainee, would take place at Hospital Kuala Lumpur Paediatric Institute, Hospital Ampang and Hospital Serdang where there were many long-term young patients.

The programme, an initiative via Projek Hati Nurani under the Nurul Yaqeen Foundation, is managed in collaboration with the Education and Health Ministries.

Noorainee said although the teachers would follow the syllabus set by the Education Ministry, they would also be flexible based on the patients' conditions.

“If the children are well enough, they can go to the classrooms. If not, the teachers will go to them,” she said.

Noorainee added that the les-sons would not be conducted as a typical classroom session as the students would be at different knowledge levels.

The ministry's special education division assistant director Dr Noraini Zainal Abidin said teachers under the programme would likely be selected from schools in the Klang Valley.

“They will need a high level of patience to deal with the students,” she said, adding that each hospital would have 11 teachers.

Hospital Kuala Lumpur director Datuk Dr Zaininah Zain said three rooms would be prepared for the children a playroom and a classroom each for primary and secondary school-goers.