Medevac agreement signed

SOUTH Bougainville MP Timothy Masiu is set to sign a landmark agreement with helicopter company Manolos Aviation Ltd for the provision of medical evacuation services to his district.
The signing takes place today and will pave way for the company to airlift emergency medical cases from anywhere in South Bougainville to Buka.
South Bougainville development authority board, last Monday, approved the agreement and quote for K118,000 in quarterly instalments for 55 hours of service; the board approved an upfront payment of K200,000 for five months of operations.
Masiu, who is also Minister for Information and Communication Technology, said the district Development authority and his office had the responsibility to ensure emergency healthcare and evacuation services were made available to his people, especially women and children.
Masiu congratulated the DDA board for its decision that would now save lives.
A burden on the Buin health centre has been lifted with the introduction of the evacuation service.
The medical evacuation service is one of two important health decisions approved by the DDA board.
The other was an approval for the St John Ambulance to conduct scoping to determine and establish an ambulance service model for South Bougainville.
The signing of the agreement would be followed by the launching of the South Bougainville five-year development plan and ground breaking for the commencement of work.