National health plan needed, official says

PAPUA New Guinea needs a national health plan to guide healthcare workers to deliver services, PNG Nurses Association president Frederick Kebai says.
Kebai said healthcare workers needed to work according to national health policies to provide health services and to deal with new disease such as the Covid-19.
“Through the plan, we can be able to see the policies, implement it and continue to deliver health services in the country,” he said.
Kebai said it was not right to provide health services to the people without a national health plan.
He said the union was concerned that the current national health plan was outdated.
“The national health plan expired in 2020,” he said.
“We are urging the Government and the Health Department to get the plan in place so that it can direct the health workers to serve the people.
“It will guide our implementers to to look after the health of this nation.”
Meanwhile, Kebai said the Provincial Health Authority Act needed to be reviewed and amended to suit the current needs of the healthcare workers and people.
“There should be a proper alignment in this act so that people can be benefited,” he said.