SIBU: Sibu Hospital will have a pathologist in two to three months’ time to take charge of its newly-completed pathology complex, said Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S Subramaniam yesterday.
Dr Subramaniam looks at the meal the staffers prepared at the kitchen. With him are, from left, Wong, Dr Annuar, and Dr Ngian.
Speaking to reporters after making a working visit to the hospital, he said the ministry also planned to send in other specialists when they become available.
But for now the priority is to station a pathologist in Sibu Hospital as there is no pathologist here at the moment.
“We have a new pathologist complex here in Sibu Hospital, and we must have the specialist if we want the complex to function at the optimum level.
“Without a pathologist, many diagnoses can’t be done quickly.”
Apart from pathologists, Dr Subramaniam said Sibu Hospital also needed, among others, neurologists and kidney specialists, but the shortage of medical officers and specialists at government hospitals was a nationwide problem.
“This is not just an issue for Sibu Hospital but in hospitals throughout Malaysia.”
He said about 1,000 doctors were currently undergoing training to tackle the issue.
“Hopefully, through this initiative we can solve the shortage of specialist doctors in the future.”
Dr Subramaniam also announced that his ministry was giving Sibu Hospital an additional RM5 million for the upgrading of facilities.
This, he said, was in addition to the RM10 million given to Sibu Hospital to upgrade facilities, such as the Chemotherapy Drug Reconstitution (CDR) and non-CDR and intensive care units under the 10th Malaysia Plan.
He said the additional allocation would be used to upgrade facilities, such as ventilator machines, X-Ray facilities, nephrology, oncology, and urology machines.
“The hospital administration will give me a list based on priority, and we will we see how we can distribute the allocation.”
With the upgrading, Dr Subramaniam said Sibu Hospital, with its 13 specialty disciplines, could be turned into a tertiary referral hospital in stages.
On dengue, he said the state government and the local authorities needed to work together to protect the public from harm.
On the other hand, members of the public, he said, must understand their responsibility to curb the disease. They could, for example, keep their environment clean and free of breeding grounds for Aedes mosquitoes, which cause dengue fever.
As of Aug 8 this year, 976 dengue cases have been reported in the state, compared to 888 cases reported during the same period last year.
Sibu District topped the list with 366 cases, followed by Miri (112 cases) and Kuching (87 cases).
Accompanying Dr Subramaniam on the visit were Second Finance Minister Dato Sri Wong Soon Koh, Nangka assemblyman Dr Annuar Rapaee, and Sibu Hospital director Dr Ngian Hie Ung.