Govt not prioritising public health: Prof Mola

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Govt not prioritising public health: Prof Mola

PORT MORESBY: The chronic shortage of medical supplies in the country’s biggest hospital and nationwide shows the Government is not prioritising basic health services, Professor Glen Mola says.

Mola is obstetrics and gynaecology head in the University of Papua New Guinea School of Medicine and Health Science and Port Moresby General Hospital.

“Further deterioration of basic health services is expected if the issue of medical supply and procurement is not addressed quickly,” he warned.

The issue was reported by The National:

Govt not prioritising health: Doc

February 9, 2022The NationalMain Stories

By LULU MARK
THE chronic shortage of medical supplies in the country’s biggest hospital and nationwide shows the Government is not prioritising basic health service, Professor Glen Mola says.
Mola is obstetrics and gynaecology head in the University of Papua New Guinea School of Medicine and Health Science and Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH).
He said further deterioration of basic health services was expected if the issue of medical supply and procurement was not addressed quickly.
“PMGH is running out of the basic medical supplies, such as IV fluids, sterilisation solution, laboratory reagents and lifesaving drugs that are needed daily,” Mola said.
“The politicians only seem to be interested in grandiose projects like the cardiac catheterisation laboratory in PMGH and the new referral hospital in Wabag.
“But these high tech and expensive tertiary facilities are not beneficial for 99 per cent of the population who are in need of basic health services daily.”
He said to fix the issue of medical supplies, it must:

• INVOLVE senior clinicians with public health qualifications and health planning experience in decision-making on health policy and strategy and health services;
• NOT permit individual doctors with their own personal agendas to lead planning decisions; and,
• ALWAYS have a review of process for health infrastructure and equipment decision-making.

“It is not reasonable to have the Planning and Monitoring Department (DPM) making decisions (to the tune of millions of kina) about health issues, infrastructure development and major procurement,” Mola lamented.
“DPM has no idea how a particular doctor’s request for a CT scanner (K2 million), a Magnetic resonance imaging machine K4 to K5 million) or a cardiac catheterisation unit (K20 million) or renal dialysis unit (K10 million) can or cannot be integrated into the health system and how effective it will be in saving lives and preventing serious morbidity.
“The Government has wasted hundreds of millions of kina over the past couple of years buying stuff and trying to set up sophisticated facilities that are either lying idle now or are of minimal benefit to the people in the area where the equipment are located.”

More than 50pc of workers infected: Esorom

February 9, 2022The NationalNational

A crowd gathering outside a shop at 6-Mile in Port Moresby recently. Most of the people there were not wearing face masks or exercising social distancing. National Pandemic Response deputy controller Dr Daoni Esorom said people were not following the Covid-19 protocols and control measures. – Nationalfilepic

MORE than 50 per cent of the staff in workplaces are infected with the Coronavirus (Covid-19) and a lot of staff are absent from work, National Pandemic Response deputy controller Dr Daoni Esorom says.
He said this was because of people’s non-adherence to the Covid-19 protocols and control measures in the middle of a surge, which was concerning.
“The non-adherence to these measures are resulting in the increasing number of cases, currently being seen,” he said.
He warned that as a result of non-compliance by people, a lot of people would get infected and it would affect a lot of staff or working people, both in the private and the public sectors. “It will affect government services being delivered by public servants,” Esorom said.
“The current surge is predicted to end next month but will be prolonged if people do not adhere to Covid-19 measures.
“It may even extend into the election period where it is anticipated that there will be a lot of crowding and congregation of people and campaign houses set up.
“The only way to curb the current surge is to fully adhere to the Covid-19 protocols, which include getting tested if anyone presents with symptoms and mostly importantly getting vaccinated.
Esorom has encouraged the vulnerable people, which include frontline workers, people with existing medical conditions and older people to get vaccinated and get the boosters too if they have been vaccinated.
“Getting boosters will improve these people’s immunity and protect them against the current variant of Covid-19,’’ he said.
According to recent statistics from the National Control Centre, 66 new cases were reported on Sunday – bringing the total reported cases to 37,732 of which 1,106 cases were reported in the last 14 days and still active and 36,029 have recovered.
So far the total deaths were 597, Delta cases were 708 cases and one Omicron case.

PM sick but symptoms light because he was vaccinated: Wong

February 9, 2022The NationalNational

HEALTH and HIV/AIDS Minister Jelta Wong says Prime Minister James Marape was tested positive for the Coronavirus (Covid-19) last week but it was not severe because he was vaccinated.
Marape tested positive for Covid-19 after arriving in Beijing, China, on Thursday which resulted in him aborting his trip to France and returning home on Sunday.
He was fully vaccinated with AstraZeneca and received the booster dose on Jan 24.
“Because of the vaccination that PM (Marape) took, the virus is very faint,” Wong said.
“His symptoms are non-existent as well.
“Being a responsible person, he (Marape) has decided to isolate.”
Wong told The National yesterday that only the PM’s doctor can advice on when the isolation period would be over.
In a statement issued by Marape’s media, he said he was well and working from home so that he would not be a spreader to the people he would contact for work.
“By Thursday I will do another test and depending on the test result, I will inform the country on Friday whether I am out for work or still required to be isolated,” he said.
Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Belden Namah questioned why Marape attended an engagement at the Royal Port Moresby Golf Club after returning from China.
Namah said since the PM had tested positive when arriving in China, it begged the question whether the PM and all others with him took the test before departure as was the standard protocol.