Learn Hardcore Malay: Kalau berlaku kecemasan di rumah, saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan dulu, kalau tidak saya hubungi hospital. - If an emergency happens at home, I will contact the health center first, otherwise I will call the hospital.

kalau – very common in everyday, informal or neutral speech.
jika – more formal; common in writing, instructions, exams, legal/official contexts.
apabila / bila – more like when (especially for things that are expected or likely), but often overlaps with kalau in casual speech.

You could say:

Jika berlaku kecemasan di rumah… – more formal, but same meaning. The choice is mostly about style and formality, not meaning here.

Why is it berlaku kecemasan and not kecemasan berlaku? Are both correct?

Both are grammatically possible, but they have slightly different focus:

Kalau berlaku kecemasan di rumah…
Literally: If an emergency happens at home…
This is the most natural way to say it. berlaku (to happen/occur) comes first and the type of event (kecemasan) follows.
Kalau kecemasan berlaku di rumah…
Also understandable, but sounds a bit more marked/emphatic, like you’re focusing on the emergency itself.

In everyday speech and writing, berlaku kecemasan is more common and idiomatic.

Could I say kalau ada kecemasan di rumah instead of kalau berlaku kecemasan di rumah?

Yes, you can. Both are natural, with a small nuance difference:

kalau berlaku kecemasan di rumah – more like if an emergency occurs/happens at home (slightly more formal or descriptive).
kalau ada kecemasan di rumah – more like if there is an emergency at home (very common and neutral).

In conversation, kalau ada kecemasan… is extremely common and perfectly natural.

Why is akan used in saya akan hubungi but not repeated in saya hubungi hospital? Is something missing?

Malay doesn’t need to repeat akan every time the meaning is clear.

saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan dulu, kalau tidak saya hubungi hospital.

The second hubungi is still understood as will contact because:

It’s in the same sentence.
The time frame (future/conditional) is already set by kalau and the first akan.

You could say …kalau tidak saya akan hubungi hospital for extra clarity or emphasis, but it isn’t required. Both are correct.

What’s the difference between hubungi and menghubungi? Which is better here?

hubungi and menghubungi come from the same root (hubung, to connect/contact):

hubungi – object-focus form, very common in modern Malay. Shorter, less formal in feeling, but fine even in many written contexts.
- saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan – I will contact the health centre.
menghubungi – full meN- verb form, traditional standard Malay; sounds a bit more formal/complete.
- saya akan menghubungi pusat kesihatan – same meaning, more textbook/formal style.

In speech, hubungi is very common. In formal writing, menghubungi is often preferred.

Could I just say telefon instead of hubungi?

Yes, if you specifically mean call by phone.

hubungi – to contact (by phone, in person, email, etc.). More general.
telefon (verb) – to call on the phone.

So:

saya akan telefon pusat kesihatan dulu – I will call the health centre first (phone specifically).
saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan dulu – I will contact the health centre first (implicitly phone, but more general).

In real life, telefon is very common when you clearly mean a phone call.

What does dulu mean here, and why is it at the end?

In this context, dulu means first / before anything else.

saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan dulu
= I will contact the health centre first (before I contact anyone else).

Placing dulu at the end of the clause is the normal position:

Saya makan dulu. – I’ll eat first.
Kita bincang dulu. – Let’s discuss first.

You generally don’t say dulu saya akan hubungi… in this meaning; the end position is the natural one.

Does kalau tidak here literally mean if not, or does it mean otherwise?

In this sentence, kalau tidak functions like otherwise or if not, then:

…saya akan hubungi pusat kesihatan dulu, kalau tidak saya hubungi hospital.
= “…I’ll contact the health centre first; otherwise, I’ll contact the hospital.”

It can be understood two ways depending on context:

kalau tidak = if not (literally conditional)
kalau tidak = otherwise (discourse connector)

Here, it’s best read as otherwise, linking two alternative actions.

Why is it pusat kesihatan in one part and hospital in the other? Are they different types of places?

Yes, they refer to different kinds of medical facilities:

pusat kesihatan – literally health centre. Often:
- smaller local clinic
- government-run or community health centre
- used for check-ups, minor emergencies, primary care
hospital – full hospital, with:
- emergency department
- inpatient wards
- specialists, surgery, etc.

The sentence implies a logical order: contact the health centre first; if that’s not suitable/available, then contact the hospital.

Why is it di rumah but not di hospital? When do I use di?

di is a preposition meaning at / in / on for locations.

kecemasan di rumah – an emergency at home (location of the emergency)
saya hubungi hospital – hospital is the object of hubungi (who I contact), not the place where I am.

You would use di with hospital when it’s a location, not an object:

Saya di hospital. – I am at the hospital.
Kecemasan di hospital. – An emergency at the hospital.

In this sentence, you’re calling/contacting the hospital, so no di.

Is saya hubungi hospital grammatically complete without akan or any tense marker?

Yes. Malay verbs do not change form for tense, and time is usually understood from context or from words like akan (will), sudah (already), sedang (in the middle of), etc.

In this whole sentence, the conditional kalau and the earlier akan already tell us we are talking about a future/possible action. So:

saya hubungi hospital – here is understood as I will contact the hospital.

You don’t need to add anything else for it to be grammatically correct.