This Malaysian Doctor was Selected as a United Nation Young Leader

Dr Mohd Lutfi Fadil Lokman founded Hospital Beyond Boundaries (HBB), a non-profit organisation that is dedicated towards improving the health of vulnerable communities through sustainable health care efforts. Part of their efforts are to establish hospitals and clinics that are run by local communities as social health enterprises.

The New Straits Times reports that Dr. Lutfi's HBB was chosen to advocate Sustainable Development Goals for 2016-2017 in the ongoing 71st United Nations General Assembly in Malaysia. According to the UN, HBB was chosen to promote efforts to improve living standards in target communities with the Sustainable Development Goals concept as the core thrust of their activities that promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

HBB was founded in 2012 with fellow student Dr. Wan Abdul Hannan Wan Ibadullah when they were at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia that now runs community-run clinics in Cambodia and Malaysia. Thirteen young professionals from diverse fields make up the team of volunteers for HBB. They are run as social enterprises by the local population, which trains and employs health workers from the community, who then works alongside doctors, nurses, and health professionals.

To date, HBB has trained and served more than 3,000 people. “We believe that empowerment of the community, rather than charity, is the key to sustainability. We work with local NGOs, the Ministry of Health and local leaders to ensure that we make as much impact as possible," says Dr. Lutfi.

“When someone is started on antibiotics for pneumonia, we also start looking for holes on his house roof. We hope that by curing diseases, we can also help alleviate poverty,” Dr Lutfi added.

You can head to their website, http://www.hbb.org.my/index.html, to learn more about them and donate to their cause. Alternatively, you can head to their Facebook page to keep up with their work in communities.