One cannot but be truly saddened to hear the case of one-year-old Mohd Yohitt who desperately needs funds for a liver transplant.

He was diagnosed with biliary atresia when he was six weeks old. He is due for the surgery next month at a private medical centre with a track record of doing liver transplants.

His father, Mohd Farhan Kutty Krishnan, 34, who works as a senior supervisor with a local company, has collected RM40,000 but the transplant will cost about RM245,000.

Like all parents, he and his wife hopes that the transplant can be done before their child starts bleeding internally. Mohd Farhan and his wife cannot donate their respective livers as they are incompatible as donors.

Factory worker, Ahmad Khadiri Al-Hadi, 27, who was to have donated his liver to Nur Atiqah Najwa who succumbed to excessive internal bleeding last July has come forward to donate his liver to Mohd Yohitt and fortunately he is a matching donor.

My question is just simple can't these private medical centres and private practitioners do their bit of 'national service' by undertaking to do at least a few of the major surgery cases that come to them free of charge?

After all, many of the major hospitals and skilled surgeons preach that they really care and they really want to serve. Well, this is an opportunity for them to put their claims and into action life saving action!

The writer is the president of the Consumers Association of Subang and Shah Alam, Selangor (Cassa).