THE Health Department is deliberating over the possibility of transforming the Jalan Kebajikan Health Clinic into a multi-storey building at some point down the line, with levels set aside for patients to leave their vehicles.Up till the beginning of the year, the medical institution used to be known as the Jalan Kebajikan Maternal and Child Health Clinic. A spokeswoman for the Clinic said the administration was aware that public parking was virtually non-existent and that the provisions for its personnel, including doctors, were woefully insufficient.
Aside from a few spaces meant for the staff, she said there were only two handicapped bays near the building.ADVERTISEMENT
This sign seems to indicate that the public can leave their vehicles on this piece of land.
She said patients generally left their vehicles on the verge on either side of Jalan Family Planning, near the Clinic.
“Our Department director took note of these shortcomings when she visited us recently,” she said.
“According to her, the land constraints – posed by the parcel of land where the Clinic was located – made vertical, rather than horizontal, expansion the most viable means of dealing with the limited parking provisions here.ADVERTISEMENT
“She expressed an intention to have the building upgraded but acknowledged that the budget, needed to make this a reality, inevitably made the plan a long term goal.”
When asked how long the public would have to wait for the building to be torn down and rebuilt, the spokeswoman said it could very well take “more than 10 years” before this happened.
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“In the meantime, those seeking treatment or coming for their appointment may want to reconsider driving to the Clinic.
“It is probably better to be dropped off and picked up afterwards.” She said the staff had taken to advising the public to make use of public transport or e-hailing services to get to the premises.
On feedback from two patients about the poor condition of a supposed parking area – further along the stretch where the Clinic was situated – the spokeswoman said neither the institution, nor the Department, had anything to do with this.
“The land does not belong to us. We do not know who or why a sign with the word ‘parking’ was put up near the section which was reclaimed,” she said. “Our superiors were apprised of what was transpiring after we were contacted by the media.
The mud and huge puddles which form after it rains make it extremely unpleasant for patients to walk from here to the Clinic.
“They managed to identify the land-owner and have been in communication with the relevant party.”
She said the Clinic’s administration was made to understand that an education institution of some sort was coming up on the property.
RUSSLE of Papar bemoaned the uneven surface of the parking area which he thought belonged to the Clinic.
He wondered why the administration had not bothered to grade the section which was cleared or, at least, have gravel poured over the area. “There are huge depressions on the land making it like an obstacle course for drivers,” he said.
“Water ponds in many places, during a downpour, and the red earth becomes muddy.”
On the flip side, he said, clouds of dust were stirred up when the weather got hot. Russle said motorists wound up dirtying their vehicles, not to mention their clothes and shoes, because of the deplorable condition of this parking area.
“Before the land was cleaared, we either parked along the road leading to the clinic or on the grounds for the government quarters nearby.” He said the owner of the latter building eventually put up a sign prohibiting “outsiders” from doing this.
BELLE of Likas decried the difficulty many drivers experienced in walking from the parking area to the Clinic especially when it was wet.
She said expectant women and senior citizens risked slipping and falling because of the mud and puddles in their way.
“The Clinic is meant for ‘ibu (mothers)’ and ‘anak (young children)’ and also the elderly,” she said.
“If we don’t take steps to safeguard these groups of the public, what kind of a society are we?”
On top of the “bad parking”, she also found the public amenities at the clinic wanting.
“It doesn’t have good toilet facilities,” Belle said.
The toilets at the clinic are cleaned regularly throughout the day.
The spokeswoman said the Clinic was equipped with four toilets: Two were for women, one for men and the last was for the handicapped. She refuted the driver’s suggestion that these amenities were not being maintained as they should.
“Our concessionaire’s workers wash and mop the toilets regularly throughout the day,” she said.
“Blowers are sometimes used to ensure that the floor inside dries quickly.” Nevertheless, in light of the patient’s remarks, she said the Clinic’s administration would speak to the company about according priority to having the toilets cleaned especially during the peak periods.
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