Association welcomes master plan

Source: The Fiji Times
Author: Anish Chand

The Fiji Medical Association (FMA) says safe and timely access to life-saving operations and other medical interventions are a barometer with which a country can measure its progress.

FMA president Dr Basharat Munshi made the comment while welcoming the launch of "the master-planning process" for the Colonial War Memorial Hospital.

"This has been a long time coming and it is no secret that currently there are a lot of challenges faced by medical specialists, diagnostic services, nurses and other health professionals in delivering quality health care to the public at the CWM Hospital," he said.

The hospital, he said, needed a state-of-the-art national referral hospital that has international best practice in management.

"This refers to modernising the hospital's management structures including introducing new executive roles that will align with international best practices and boost operational efficiency which will enable excellence in patient care."

Dr Munshi said the hospital's "operating theatre woes" and the multi- resistant organism problems must be addressed.

"We have a long-suffering public when it comes to timely access to the operating theatre due to a multitude of problems including crumbling architecture and human resource challenges with the nursing team to name a few.

"These need immediate solutions as the morbidity and mortality associated with non-access to a timely operation is totally avoidable.

"As we transition into a modern society, safe and timely access to life-saving operations and other medical interventions are a barometer with which we measure our progress."