INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
PETALING JAYA — A clerk’s father used to buy traditional and other medicines from unknown sources whenever he felt unwell, until they almost killed him.
Five years ago, Christina Tan’s father, aged 60 then, fainted and doctors found that his heart was swollen. He was admitted into the cardiac intensive care unit (CICU).
“They discovered that he did not have enough blood; his heart was pumping very fast and had become enlarged,” said Tan.
She said her father’s regular hospital check-ups had raised no red flags about him having a heart problem.
Tan said further investigations showed that her father, who could not speak English or Malay well, also had intestinal bleeding.
“The doctor told us the bleeding could be due to the traditional medicine and other unknown medicines he had been taking,” she said, adding that her father was also on medication for high blood pressure and diabetes.
Tan’s father was in CICU for a week and doctors told the family to be prepared for any eventuality.
Fortunately, he survived.
“We have told him never to try to be his own doctor but only take medicine prescribed by doctors.”
MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Seri Michael Chong said he had seen a foreign “herbalist” for his diabetes and hypertension following recommendations from people.
Chong stopped his regular medication and drank the herbs for a month and when he had diarrhea, he said he was told it was just the detoxification process.
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