ULM Educates Children and Parents About Thalassemia in Community Service with the Suaka Ananda Foundation
Banjarmasin – Lambung Mangkurat University (ULM), through the Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FKIK), continues its active role in providing thalassemia education to dozens of pediatric patients and their parents in a community service event held by the Suaka Ananda Foundation.
The event took place on Sunday, July 6, 2025, at the Suaka Ananda Clinic on Jalan Dharma Budi II, Bun Yamin II Complex, East Banjarmasin. This educational event was part of a series of activities to celebrate the 19th anniversary of the Suaka Ananda Foundation, which promotes a multidisciplinary approach to treating thalassemia patients.
A total of 31 children with thalassemia and their parents participated in the education provided by the ULM FKIK medical team. They learned that thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder that cannot be cured, but can be managed to improve the patient’s quality of life.
“Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that causes the blood to break down easily, making children appear pale and weak. Our goal is to educate parents so they can be more alert to the early signs,” explained Dr. Wulandewi Marhaeni, Coordinator of the Pediatrics Study Program at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FKIK) of the University of Muhammadiyah Malang (ULM) and the main speaker at the event.
She added that thalassemia is usually found in children with a family history of severe anemia or frequent blood transfusions.
“Because this disease is genetic, our main focus is long-term management to maintain the patient’s quality of life,” she said.
According to Dr. Wulan, South Kalimantan has more than 100 thalassemia patients, a figure that demonstrates the importance of raising public awareness of this disease.
The Chairperson of the Suaka Ananda Foundation, Aida Muslimah, expressed her appreciation for ULM’s contribution to this social activity.
“We regularly hold activities like this, and Dr. Wulan happens to be part of our board. The synergy with FKIK ULM strengthens our ability to provide better services to patients,” she said.
This social service activity is a continuation of the previous agenda that was held on Saturday, July 5, 2025. With this collaboration, ULM not only demonstrates its academic role, but also real concern for public health issues, especially children with thalassemia in South Kalimantan.
