Last week, local government development minister Nga Kor Ming announced plans to place vending machines that dispense medicines at PPRs to improve access to medication in lower-income areas.
Residents at two PPRs in Kuala Lumpur that FMT visited said they were happy with the initiative.
Zamri Abu Bakar, 51, a driver staying at PPR Taman Intan Baiduri, said the nearest pharmacy was about 15 minutes away, and it did not operate 24 hours a day.
“The vending machines will be helpful at night in case of emergency,” he said.
Noting that many senior citizens lived in the flats, Zamri said the medicine vending machines would help them to obtain basic medicines without having to travel far.
He said it would be best to have one vending machine at each block, which had about 17 floors, all occupied by families.
However, he also had some reservations regarding the maintenance of the machines and the risk of them being vandalised.
“Perhaps they should install CCTVs where the machines are placed,” he said.
Meor Saiful Meor Rodzi, 20, from PPR Taman Kepong, was happy with the proposal as he said travelling long distances was difficult for the many senior citizens living in the flats.
“It gets worse during Fridays when the roads are congested, so it would be useful for the seniors, most of whom can’t travel much,” he said.
Another PPR Taman Kepong resident, Ravindran Perumal, noted the large number of senior citizens and people with disabilities living in the flats.
“There’s a clinic nearby, but it’s only open during office hours,” said the 57-year-old retiree.
“It’s best to conduct a study on how many machines are needed at each block as there are a lot of people staying here who can benefit from it.”
Hafiz Kamaruddin, 39, a food vendor from PPR Taman Intan Baiduri, said the vending machines would only stock over-the-counter medicines.
Hafiz, whose wife is a nurse, noted that certain medicines could cause severe adverse reactions if administered wrongly.
“It would be better if they sold only non-prescription medicine at the vending machines, like that for stomach cramps or cold. You can’t sell antibiotics or medicines for heart conditions as that would be dangerous,” he said.
Malaysian Pharmaceutical Society (MPS) president Amrahi Buang had expressed a similar sentiment recently after noting that medicines came with potential side effects which the public needed to be aware of.