Nurse Jessie Paya Jok’s dream of furthering her studies was cut short when she was killed in a Flying Doctor Service (FDS) helicopter crash in Long Lellang on Tuesday.
Her close friend, Caroline Sawai Joseph Chungat, 43, a nurse at Miri Hospital, said Jessie, 44, had told her that the assignment would be her final FDS mission as she planned to pursue an Advanced Diploma in Midwifery next year.
“That was the last conversation between Paya and me last month. She excitedly told me that this month would be her last assignment with the FDS as she was planning to pursue an Advanced Diploma in Midwifery next year,” she said when contacted by Bernama.
However, Jessie’s plans never came to fruition.
Caroline said she had known Jessie, who was fondly known as Paya, since 2005, when both were community nurse trainees at the Health Ministry Training Institute (ILKKM) in Serian.
Over their 21-year friendship, she remembered Jessie as a soft-spoken woman who rarely spoke much but could brighten any room with her smile and laughter.
“Paya’s gentle nature was remarkable because throughout the more than two decades I knew her, I never once saw her lose her temper or raise her voice at anyone,” Caroline said.
She also recalled Jessie’s dedication to patients during her service at Bario Health Clinic, where her kindness earned her the affection of the remote community.
According to Caroline, Jessie would even use her own money to help cover travel expenses for patients who needed to be referred to Miri Hospital.
“Not many people are capable of showing such compassion towards patients who are not related to them, but Paya demonstrated it through her dedication and her never-complaining attitude, even when faced with a workload that tested her mental and physical endurance,” she said.
Caroline also knew another victim of the crash, nurse Debra Moset, 40, whom she described as friendly, approachable and fond of joking.
The two had worked together at Jambatan Suai Health Clinic for six years before being transferred elsewhere. They later reunited in 2019 while attending the promotion by appointment (PSL) programme.
Caroline described Debra as meticulous and responsible, adding that she was also known as a caring nurse among patients at the clinic.
Her last conversation with Debra was in February and was purely about work.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) said a BO-105 helicopter carrying five people, including the pilot, crashed near the Long Lellang Short Take-off and Landing Airport (STOLport) on Tuesday.
Besides Jessie and Debra, those killed were pilot Captain Zainol Afiq Bee Sham, 30; medical officer Dr Ainul Baraah Kamaruddin, 33; and medical assistant Alexson Adit Henry, 31.
