Construction of new Papar Hospital to be expedited, says Khairy

 

The construction of a new Papar Hospital which was scheduled to complete last year has been delayed, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said. - NSTP/MOHD ADAM ARININ

KOTA KINABALU: The construction of a new Papar Hospital which was scheduled to complete last year has been delayed, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said.

To date, about 22 per cent of the construction works were done, said Khairy who inspected the progress of the project during his first working visit to Sabah as Health Minister.

"So, after this, I will meet with the federal Works Minister to make a decision. One of the ways forward is to terminate the contract of the contractor, but we will make an assessment to see what caused the delay," he said.

The initial cost of the project was RM86 million and additional allocations would be needed if the contract js terminated, he said.

However, he said an immediate decision would be made to determine the status of the project because Papar needed a hospital with a larger capacity to meet the high number of patients daily.

"So, this hospital's construction needs to be expedited. I had also inspected the newly built operation theatre which, however, cannot be utilised. I have asked the (Health Ministry) secretary-general to look into the matter," he said.

Earlier, Khairy visited the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) here and was given a briefing by its director Dr William Gotulis.

He was informed the number of beds at the intensive care unit in the hospital was adequate to handle Covid-19 patients.

Compared to two weeks ago, the capacity in the hospital had now improved including the facilities at the normal ward and emergency section, he said.

Khairy also inspected the hospital's C complex area where a landslide occurred on Saturday following incessant rain which damaged several building blocks including the tuberculosis (TB) clinic and sleep lab.

"The Works Department is now assessing the damages to estimate the costs. We will apply for an allocation to carry out immediate repairs to make sure the safety of this slope, other than to prevent landslide from recurring," he said.

The department had also cordoned off the TB ward and classified it unsafe, he said. - NST