Tawau MP Christina Liew hopes that insufficient ambulances would soon be a thing of the past for Sabahans, following promises by the Health Ministry that 29 ambulances would soon be granted statewide.
Liew also welcomed the news that the Health Ministry would boost Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds to a capacity of 10 at the Tawau district hospital.
“Responses like ‘sori, tiada ambulan' (sorry, no ambulance) and ‘tunggu lah' (wait lah) would soon be a thing of the past when the public dials 999 (emergency number) for help.
“Hopefully, everything goes well as planned,” she said in a statement today.
On Monday (Sept 6), Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin visited Sabah - one of the states with a critical Covid-19 situation.
After co-chairing the state-level Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) meeting with Chief Minister Hajiji Noor, Khairy said the federal government is committed to sending Sabah 2.89 million Covid-19 vaccine doses this month.
He also announced that his ministry had sent 480 oxygen cylinders, 24 cartons of oxygen regulators and five cartons of Covid-19 medicines yesterday.
His trip included visits to several hospitals like the Queen Elizabeth Hospital 1 (QEH) and Tawau district hospital - even stating that the ministry was considering building a field hospital for the pandemic and post-pandemic to cover Tawau’s health needs.
Liew, who is also the Api-Api assemblyperson, said she hoped the critical situation at the QEH would improve upon the assurance provided by the health minister that the ministry was committed to increasing medical facilities, assets and manpower to combat the pandemic.
She referred to reports that Covid-19 patients aged 60 and above, undocumented migrants and patients with multiple comorbidities that don't have a cure will not be considered for admission into the ICU at the hospital.
Liew said a report also claimed that the hospital initiated a new policy of admitting “do not resuscitate” (DNR) patients into normal wards.
“I don't blame medical frontliners for voicing their concerns. The prolonged pandemic has stretched the hospital healthcare capacity to the maximum.
"However, such revelations have not only saddened but also angered the public at large (as expressed on social media). I call on the state health director to clarify whether there is such a policy as it smacks of inhumane treatment.
"We need to do our best in the interest of the people's welfare," Liew said. - Mkini
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