Focus on improving health services

BASED on a general observation, it seems that most people die from non-contagious illnesses such as cancer or kidney failure because there is no proper cure or treatment available.
The rate at which people succumb to cancer and kidney failure is very alarming and requires immediate intervention from the Government.
Our current health facility standards are very low and desperately it needs to be upgraded.
Our hospitals also need experts in medicine and surgery because we have, in the past, encountered complications in regards to both medical and surgical issues that has cost lives.
Both the State and privately operated hospitals and pharmacies turn out to be profit-oriented agencies.
For instance, an old man experiencing difficulty urinating and was brought to the hospital for a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) but the victim could not afford it.
The test would be conducted to diagnose the patient, not to prescribe treatment.
Just imagine how much the man contributed to the Government’s internal revenue and the economy (i.e from tax) during his life yet he would be charged just for a check-up and not medical or surgical treatment.
This is a slap on the face of the patient who deserves free check-up and treatment.
This is why most people are voicing that the Government step in with a viable contingency plan (as part of “Take back PNG”) to alleviate the mentioned issue and save our people who continue to incur the burden of the goods and services tax.
I urge the Government to refocus their service delivery targets.
This must be done via the rescaling of the Budget.
More resources (time, money, equipment) must be deployed into the health sector than other segments just to alleviate this problem and also contain other communicable pandemics such as the recent coronavirus.
When the nation’s health is in good condition, everything else will fall into place.
This will no doubt be a costly exercise and might involve opportunity cost, but, it is an ethical thing to do because in the end, we are doing it for the common good.

Sine Able John,
Gunangi SSY