Enga, West Sepik attain health status

 TWO provincial governments have signed an agreement with the Health Department to attain the provincial health authority (PHA) status.

The governors of Enga and West Sepik, Peter Ipatas and Amkat Mai, with their provincial administrators signed the agreement in Port Moresby last Thursday with Health Minister Michael Malabag and Secretary Pascoe Kase.

The authority is an important health sector policy reform given priority under the National Health Plan 2011-20. 

It aims to simplify the uneven health system and to adopt a single effective functioning system for the provinces.

Under the PHA Act, general hospitals would be called provincial hospitals and accountable to the national and the provincial governments through the PHA board for their performances and use of resources.

Kase described the undertaking by the provincial governments as a way forward for them.

“The hospitals will now come under your control. The provincial health authority will be responsible for the curative, public health and rural health services.

“Rural health comes under provincial governments but still people died and doctors are not going to the rural areas because of the hospital boards.”