TAWAU: The upgrade of Tawau and Sandakan hospitals to State hospitals is good news for the people of Sabah, especially in the two districts.
Sabah Community Development and People’s Well-being Minister, Datuk James Ratib, said the upgrade also means the hospitals can now house specialist doctors such as cardiologists, cancer specialists and others.
“Of course, this will make it easier for patients to get the necessary treatment without having to be referred to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kota Kinabalu because there are facilities available in Tawau and Sandakan,” he said.
The facilities will also reduce the cost of treatment that the patient has to bear as they no longer have to travel far.
As State Health Exco, he pledged to ensure that the implementation will take effect in two years.
“I will follow-up this matter with the Ministry from time to time until it becomes a reality,” he said.
Regarding the issue of below-par health clinics, James is also determined to ensure the 125 clinics in Sabah will receive the proper help from Malaysian Ministry of Health within a two-year period.
“Out of the 125 poor clinics in Sabah, 70 are still made of wood. Therefore, we want the Ministry of Health to upgrade such clinics within two years.
“We don’t want to see clinics made of wood in Sabah. In other states, they no longer have wooden clinics, except in Sabah,” he said.
Likewise, he said, of the Ministry of Health Training Institute (ILKKM) which has 17 poor hostels in the State made it difficult for trainees to go through their lectures.
He asked the Ministry of Health to review the issue since ILKKM was previously managed under the Sabah State Health Department (JKNS) but its management was taken over by Ministry of Health (Putrajaya) a few years ago.
“We want ILKKM Sabah to be managed by the State under JKNS to facilitate any improvement matters,” he said.
