Name: Dr. N.K. Chew
Home: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Organization: Malaysian Parkinson’s Disease Association
http://www.mpda.org.my

The first annual Malaysian Parkinson’s Disease Association (MPDA) fundraiser was happening at the same time the Drive Around the World team was in Kuala Lumpur May 29, 2004. Three team Members attended the event and had the opportunity to share what Drive Around the World was doing to combat Parkinson’s Disease.

This first-time event was put on with the assistance of the Lions Club of Kuala Lumpur; it was assisting MPDA in its efforts to raise money for a Parkinson’s Care Center.

“The time has come for all the sufferers of Parkinson’s in Malaysia to have a special place or themselves, where they can socially interact, update themselves on the most recent advances in PD, carry out physiotherapy and enjoy themselves,” said one attendee.

A Parkinson’s care center is very important to patients in Malaysia. Dr. N. K. Chew commented to me that although older people are very respected here, it is understood that when the time comes, they should just fade away. This attitude prevents many of the more than 10,000 people in Malaysia who suffer from this disease from raising their voice in opposition to it. I hope events like this will continue until the day this disease is defeated and we can turn our attention to other issues.

To kick off this fundraising, event Dr. N. K. Chew was releasing his new book, Understanding Parkinson’s Disease: The Malaysian. This book aims to be easily understood and present Parkinson’s Disease from a Malaysian point of view. Dr. Chew illustrates his point using a dietary example.

“When patients receive dietary literature on Parkinson’s, the answers are given in hamburgers, macaroni, etc., and not in nasi lemak, koay-tewo, roti anai and capati (common Malaysian food).”

His book also mentions traditional Asian exercise like Tai Chi and traditional Asian medicine such as acupuncture as methods for dealing with Parkinson’s. His book speaks of positive results from the practices, although their benefits are not as easily quantified as in Western Methods. There is a lot of great stuff in his book, and I think such literature is an important step in terms of organizing the global fight against this disease. I think his suggestions, solutions and explanations will present to the reader clear and salient answers to many questions. More importantly, I hope that by getting these answers, people will be empowered to ask more questions, search and create tools for a better quality of life, and hopefully lead us ultimately to a cure.

The whole evening was great. It was great to be at a Malaysian banquet and to see how the MPDA was making a difference. We also had the opportunity to make new friends, such as Ann and Susie Chandy, whom we will hear from soon. The dining was superb, and the entertainment was great. The evening culminated as Dr. Chew took a hammer and freed his book from a large block of ice as the theme song to Star Wars played. That was quite a release!

A point of interest:

This was a 9-course meal, and I wasn’t sure we were ever going to stop eating.

Our Menu for the evening included the following: Four Season Platter
Supreme Seafood Szechuan Soup
Roasted Pei Pa Chicken
Steamed Sea bass Hong Kong Style
Steamed Vegetarian Prawn With Black Mushroom and Seasonal Vegetables
Fried Rice with Silver Back Anchovies
Sweetened Red Bean Mousse With Sago
Deep Fried two Varieties of Shanghai Pancake
Chinese Tea