KUCHING: Rajah Charles Brooke Memorial Hospital has successfully conducted its two-month weight-loss programme for 58 employees.
The ‘Slimster Challenge’, which ran from Aug 8 to Oct 10, saw participants shedding a total of 90kg.
Organising chairman Dr Goh Yi Xiong saw the programme as one aimed at motivating, cultivating and habituating a healthy and active lifestyle among hospital staff.
“We should practise what we preach. As healthcare professionals, we often advise patients to lose weight and eat healthy, but statistically there is a high percentage of obese individuals amongst hospital personnel themselves,” he said during the prize presentation at the hospital recently.
“It was when one of my nurses suffered heart attack that I realised a change was necessary. We assume that we are here to care for everybody else but quite often, we don’t care for ourselves. We usually stay up late, eat unhealthy food and work under a lot of stress – all of which can contribute to massive weight gain.”
Under the challenge, staff members were required to run 3km around the hospital compound, twice weekly as well as to undergo regular weigh-ins, health talks and peer support sessions.
“We want to be the healthiest hospital employees in Kuching” said Dr Goh.
Among the female participants, physiotherapist Corina Asem achieved the most weight loss, shedding more than 10 per cent of her ‘before’ body weight after two months of dieting and regular exercising.
In the men’s category, assistant hospital administrator Hairolmizam Hamidi came out tops, losing almost eight per cent of his ‘before’ body weight.
Overjoyed to see that he had lost that ‘flabby’ tummy, Hairolnizam said he was determined to keep going by jogging every day.
“I’m exercising more now. I am continuing what I have been doing over the past two months. Rather than looking at this as a competition, I’m seeing it as a lifestyle modification,” he said.
Corina and Hairolnizam each bagged prizes worth RM700 comprising cash, health food from Oat BG 22 and beauty products from Wong Yien Beauty Centre, while the runner-up received prizes worth RM400.
In a statement, the hospital said it would be looking forward to its next challenge in January next year.