Closure of maternity unit keeps mothers out

EXPECTANT mothers in Madang  won’t be able to use the maternity unit at their hospital in the next few weeks because  major repairs have to be carried out urgently.
They have been advised to go to either the hospital in Yagaum or   Sek Mission. The Yagaum hospital is a 40-minute drive towards the south coast area from Modilon. Sek Mission hospital is an hour’s drive towards the north coast area.
The labour ward will be closed from June 27 to July 27.
Pipes at the ward having recurring blockages need urgent repairs.  Pipes in the shower block are to be removed and replaced with new wider pipes, said Lae Builders and Contractors workman Wakol Bais.
“According to the hospital the shower block seems to always have a waste overflow that comes back into the shower room,” he said.
“We have not really located where the main blockage is but the duration of the ward’s closure will depend on how fast we work.”
Modilon chief executive officer Sister Christine Gawi said she would comment later on the matter.
But a sister at the labour ward confirmed the problem.
She also said the blockage was chronic despite the ward undergoing a major extension work in 2008.
“The same contractors did the extension and they know the problem,” she said.
Bais said the shower blockage problem was caused by new mothers who failed to properly dispose of their rubbish during their stay at the ward.