General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon at the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava says due to the increase in the number of people who are moving to the Lami, Suva and Nausori corridor, the demand that is in the hospital is just too much.
He says the CWM Hospital was only created to look after a certain number of people, but with all the demand, it will take patients admitted with a suspected appendix in Navua two to three days for a bed to clear off at CWM.
Our pregnant mothers are facing serious issues when they are going to the CWM Hospital due to the lack of beds and are expected to be up and walking not too long after caesarean surgeries or critical operations so that the bed is clear for the next person.
This has been an ongoing issue for years as the long overdue maternity ward extension has not been done despite being talked about in many National Budgets.
All we could see was a cleared area that was then used as a parking area, and a board saying that there will be a CWM Hospital Maternity Ward extension.
The ground breaking ceremony for the CWM Maternity Unit extension was officiated by former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama in 2018.
It was announced at the time that the extension upon completion will offer post, ante and neonatal facilities, a first stage delivery room, a post anaesthetics delivery unit, eight new delivery rooms, three new operating theaters, a palliative Care Ward; a High Dependency Unit, conference rooms, ultrasound and x-ray capabilities and a family planning office.
The issue was raised during fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan where the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Professor Biman Prasad discussed about the National Development Plan consultation and health care facilities.
The Deputy Prime Minister says it is sad to hear these stories and they are concerned as this would affect the mental health of the mothers.
He says the National Budget is allocated to improve and ensure basic health facilities and equipment at an appropriate time.
When questioned on when the maternity unit extension will be completed, Professor Prasad responded that he is not sure about that and he will need to check with the Minister for Health, Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu about it.
The Fiji Government has allocated resources for maintenance to be done not only at the CWM Hospital but also at other medical centres in Fiji.
Acting Permanent Secretary for Health, Doctor Jemesa Tudravu says the process has started after the approval of the Ministry of Health's budget and it is an ongoing process.
He says the infrastructure repair takes time after careful planning with suitable providers that can do the work at the best standards.
He adds that Fiji does not manufacture any medical equipment and the challenges are also faced for the supply which they are considering at the moment.
General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon at the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava had earlier said that due to the increase in the number of people who are moving to the Lami, Suva and Nausori corridor, the demand that is in the hospital is just too much.
He says the CWM Hospital was only created to look after a certain number of people, but with all the demand, it will take patients admitted with a suspected appendix in Navua two to three days for a bed to clear off at CWM.
He adds out of the eight operating theatres at the hospital, only three or four are functioning, and during an operation last month, the ceiling of one of the theatres fell showing that the hospital needs a lot of maintenance and renovation.
Our long-term plan is to build a new tertiary hospital in Nasinu with 1,000 plus beds because the issue here is not about the shortage of beds, but rather a shortage of space.
Minister for Health Dr Atonio Lalabalavu highlighted this in response to questions raised by fijivillage News regarding the chronic issues raised by the General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon of the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava earlier this month.
The Minister says to address limited space is creating new space or a bigger space and while expansion of the current CWM Hospital is a challenge, he believes a new hospital will solve this chronic issue.
He adds the Government is committed to addressing these issues as most are chronic issues and is doing its best to resolve them.
The Minister says through this, they are also addressing the bed blocks, shortage of nurses, shortage of doctors, ageing and dilapidated infrastructure, lack of theatre space and more.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Health says the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Lands and Mineral Resources and the iTaukei Affairs Ministry are still discussing the proposed plan for the 100-bed Super Speciality Hospital that is planned to be built in Nasinu.
These Ministries are collaborating with the Indian Government to finalise this project.
We are focused to deliver better outcomes in health care and address the ongoing issues once and for all.
That is Acting Prime Minister, Manoa Kamikamica's message to the people after serious concerns raised by the General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon at the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava about years of neglect to meet the demands at the hospital.
Kamikamica says the advice by Fiji's Head Surgeon on the issues facing the health system merely supports the argument by the People's Coalition Government that the FijiFirst Government left a mess in the health system.
He says the challenge for the new Government is to fix the issues and look no further than the hard work of the Minister for Health Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu and his team at the Ministry.
Doctor Turagava says the 500 beds at the CWM Hospital are not meeting the demand that is coming through in Fiji.
Dr Turagava says due to the increase in the number of people who are moving to the Lami, Suva and Nausori corridor, the demand that is in the hospital is just too much.
He says the CWM Hospital was only created to look after a certain number of people, but with all the demand, it will take patients admitted with a suspected appendix in Navua two to three days for a bed to clear off at CWM.
He adds out of the eight operating theatres at the hospital, only three or four are functioning, and during an operation last two weeks, the ceiling of one of the theatres fell showing that the hospital needs a lot of maintenance.
He says they have got a whole lot of waiting lists of cancer patients but they are not able to look at them because most of them have to come in after hours to clear the workload.
The Chief Surgeon says one of the examples is that their sterilising machine has been there for the last 24 years and has not been changed, the same with their boiler and laundry room which was burnt over two years ago and they are still outsourcing all the other work.
Minister for Health and Medical Services, Dr Atonio Lalabalavu says chronic issues raised by the General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon of the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava will be solved by the Government of the day together with its staff and partners.
Dr Lalabalavu says what has been highlighted by the Chief Surgeon is the challenges faced by surgeons and the overall health care delivery at CWM Hospital.
He says they have to address the bed blocks, shortage of nurses, shortage of doctors, ageing and dilapidated infrastructure, lack of theatre space and more.
He says the Government is committed to addressing these issues as most are chronic issues and they are doing their best to resolve them.
He further says that the nursing grievances have been addressed and talks about their future progress will continue.
Dr Lalabalavu says on doctors' issues, they are also talking with their specialists about the alternatives and ideas on how they deliver health care.
He says for infrastructure, they have decentralised minor works to relevant cost centres and re-established the Board of Visitors to aid the respective facility management in assisting with various needs that they might have.
The Minister says they have also opened up assistance from the private sector and are discussing with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport on what health facility projects can be prioritised because other initiatives will be initiated this month.
The 500 beds at the CWM Hospital are not meeting the demand that is coming through in Fiji.
General and Chief Pediatric Surgeon at the CWM Hospital, Dr Josese Turagava highlighted this after the World Cancer Day Landmark Lighting held at the Grand Pacific Hotel last night.
Dr Turagava says due to the increase in the number of people who are moving to the Lami, Suva and Nausori corridor, the demand that is in the hospital is just too much.
He says the CWM Hospital was only created to look after a certain number of people, but with all the demand, it will take patients admitted with a suspected appendix in Navua two to three days for a bed to clear off at CWM.
He adds out of the eight operating theatres at the hospital, only three or four are functioning, and during an operation last two weeks, the ceiling of one of the theatres fell showing that the hospital needs a lot of maintenance and renovation.
He says they have got a whole lot of waiting lists of cancer patients but they are not able to look at them because most of them have to come in after hours to clear the workload.
The Chief Surgeon says we need to start thinking for the next 50 to 100 years and create something sustainable for the future.
He says one of the examples is that their sterilising machine has been there for the last 24 years and has not been changed, the same with their boiler and laundry room which was burnt over two years ago and they are still outsourcing all the other work.
He says the CWM Hospital needs a change for cancer services to improve, and they need to improve the facility's infrastructure and supply chains so that they can improve their work.
The Chief Surgeon adds with all the awareness, a lot of women are more willing to come in but are stuck with a waiting list.
Stay with us for developments.
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