Shutdown to be chaotic

A TOTAL shutdown of health services would result in a lot more problems in Hela so the Government should release this month all the funds owed to all church health services, an official says.
Evangelical church of PNG (ECPNG) Hela health manager Keith Kedekai said the province was a place affected by tribal fighting which hindered people’s freedom of movement between villages.
Kedekai said due to the persistent tribal conflicts, people from a tribal group cannot go to the enemy’s village to get help so it was crucial that health facilities were open so that people could access healthcare easily.
“Majority of the health facilities (74 per cent) here is run by the churches,” he said.
“It is the provincial hospital and a couple of district hospitals and health centres that are Government-run.”
Kedekai said 10 health centres and seven community health posts under ECPNG were on partial shutdown along with other church-run facilities. He said seven churches were involved in healthcare in Hela.
“We cannot afford to totally close our doors in Hela but we will in August if the grants are not released,” he said.
“We were pushing our health workers to work knowing there will come a time we will have to stop.
“When we close our health services, it will be hard for the people.
PNG Christian Health Services (CHS) executive and general assembly chairman Japalis Kaiok said under the partial stop-work, facilities were not providing: outpatients, maternal and child health, consultation, elective surgeries, dental laboratory and pharmaceutical.
Inpatients and image services would be available only for emergencies.
Kaiok said skeletal staff were rostered to manage new outpatients only from 8am-4pm, accidents and emergencies, deliveries, admissions and inpatient care of acute medical and surgical cases.