Health partnership proven to be successful

THE New Ireland Governments partnership with the Australian Doctors International (ADI) programme has proven to be successful with positive outcomes for the health sector in the province.
This was relayed by Dr Peter McDonald, head of ADI during a briefing on Tuesday to the provincial executive council.
McDonald said the funding from the New Ireland government had boosted the programme, in terms of training health workers in rural areas while reaching out to the rural populace and creating education awareness on gender equality, domestic violence and family planning.
The partnership also built up the experience of the ADI doctors to work in unfamiliar areas thus giving them greater leveraging powers to ask for more funding from the Australian government.
“The New Ireland government has generously been funding our programmes from the beginning, we do have other funding, but as a result of the funding support we get from you, we’ve built experience and we go back to our board and show them the positive impact from data collected.
From the results we are able to apply for more funding from other donors in Australia.
“Because New Ireland supported us, we think it is worthwhile expanding our programme here,” McDonald said.
He said the ultimate aim was to successfully transfer enough skills to local health workers so that when ADI eventually made an exit it would leave knowing it had left a sustainable legacy behind.
When asked about his thoughts of the recently constructed Tinkoris hospital in Matalai, Namatanai, McDonald said the building was of Australian standard.
McDonald described it as impressive.