FIVE-month-old baby girl, Nur Safiya Mohd Faisal is in urgent need of funds for a heart operation at Penang Adventist Hospital.

She is suffering from a congenital heart disease called atrioventricular septal defect – a hole between the top two chambers of the heart and another between the lower two chambers.

This condition causes the oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in the heart to mix, resulting in insufficient oxygenated blood for the body.

In a recent Press Conference, Nur Safiya’s parents, who are from Serdang, Kedah, made a strong appeal for public assistance.

"We can only afford to pay RM 2,000 for the surgery," said her father, Mohd Faisal Sulaiman, 31.

A self-employed computer technician, Mohd Faisal earns about RM 600 a month while Nur Safiya’s mother, Noor Hayati Kassim, 30, a cashier in Project Lebuhraya Utara-Selatan Bhd, earns RM 902 a month.

The couple have another child, a two-year-old boy.

Nur Safiya’s operation is sponsored by the Rotary Club’s Gift of Life programme, under which PAH charges a special rate of RM 17,100, regardless of the actual cost of the surgery.

Rotary International contributed RM 7,600 to the cost of the surgery, while PAH Heart Patients’ Fund and the child’s family would pay the balance.

Public donations received by the Rotary Club of Penang are channelled to the fund.

Donations can be sent to Heart Patients’ Fund, c/o Penang Adventist Hospital, 465 Jalan Burma, 10350 Penang, or the Rotary Club of Penang Gift Of Life 2 Account, c/o 7 Jalan Kelawei, 10250 Penang.

Those who donate RM 100 or more to Gift of Life 2 may request for a receipt to claim tax exemption.

For details, call 04-2266331 or 04-2261133 ext 1259 or 1290.