But that is easier said than done as she is stateless and living in poverty. Driven by desperation, Jumiah did something which she normally would not have done – she stole another woman’s “Buku Pink”.
The “Buku Pink”, or literally translated as the pink book, is a document that records information of a pregnant woman’s maternity care and also her newborn’s medical needs including vaccinations. It is given free at health clinics or government hospitals. However, an identification card is needed to register for it.
Without the “Buku Pink”, Jumiah would not have been able to get free medical check-ups and vaccinations for her newborn.
“I stole it from another woman. I changed the name to mine. Thank God, with the ‘Buku Pink’ I managed to see the nurses. Checked my pregnancy. My first child managed to get vaccination. I was thankful I could see the doctor.
“We are not rich. There was no other way but I could not do the same for my other children because I could not use the same trick,” Jumiah, who is now a mother of five, related her story to a doctor during the Program Kembara Doctoraid and Educaid Sandakan 02.
Her story was narrated in a Facebook post by Dr Muhammad Izzat Abdul Razak, who specialised in women’s health and pregnancy.
Izzat had taken part in the four-day event in Sandakan, which was organised by Kembara Kitchen in collaboration with the Delegation of Nurses, Medical Mythbusters Malaysia, Klinik Mabello Paris and MUST Team.
The post has been shared more than 100 times on Facebook.
Izzat said Jumiah had brought an infant who was about two months old to seek treatment from the doctors at the medical camp.
The infant was slightly smaller than babies that age. The baby also had on a pair of slightly dirty mittens.
The infant was having the flu and had previously developed rashes on its body. Jumiah was worried as the baby had refused to be breastfed for a week.
“I wanted to see a doctor but I have no money. I don’t know what else I could do. I am willing to stand in line under the rain and the sun to see you. Please, doctor. My other child, who is one-year-old, is crying at home but I have no choice but to come here and leave him in his brother’s care,” she pleaded with Izzat.
Jumiah told him the baby was born at home, as were her three other children. Only her eldest was delivered in a clinic, thanks to the stolen “Buku Pink”.
Izzat was touched by the woman’s story and realised the struggles stateless women faced to have access to antenatal care.
He said unlike some local women who would carelessly lose their “Buku Pink”, Jumiah treasured hers and treated it like a sacred document.
“Her face brightened up when I put the stethoscope on her chest because she thought it was enough for me to just to check her baby. She did not expect that I would examine her too.
“Before she left, she asked when I will be coming back because she wanted her baby vaccinated,” he said.
Foreigners are charged up to RM5,000 for maternity care in government hospitals while locals pay as low as RM10 or up to RM1,200 depending on the ward.
Vaccinations for babies range from RM5 to RM90 for locals and RM40 to RM300 for foreigners.
According to the organiser of the event, a total of 517 families were registered under the programme and 1,002 individuals were treated during the four-day programme.
The next programme is expected to take place in February.