FOLLOWING last Friday’s handover of the National Referral Hospital Comprehensive Medical Centre from the People’s Republic of China to the Solomon Islands Government, the National Referral Hospital Management is now working to ensure that necessary technical and administrative work are resolved and ready for the facility to open its doors to the public.
NRH Chief Executive Officer Dr George Malefoasi outlined these tasks may take up to more than 2 months to complete but are necessary and important to ensure the facility is all set and ready. “It depends on how quickly all stock; standard operation policies being developed by specialist care teams are finalised and accepted. These are few important steps that need to be taken including installation of a transformer for the building, by Solomon Power Limited.
Until full electricity is installed, no machines, equipment or devices are to be connected. Once electricity is installed, the NRH Biomedical Engineers and Electricians will oversee connection of medical equipment and devices,” explained Dr Malefoasi.
“Other tasks include relocation of staff under the three specialist clinical units, established three years ago following the arrival of the China Medical Team in 2022. The relocation will be followed by stock up of supplies, consumables and pre-service inventory, familiarisation of patient flow, staff flow and systems planning.
Digital Subtraction Angiography (DSA)
“Over the next days and weeks following installation of electricity to the building, other staff such as security, administration and nurses including IPC staff and cleaners will start moving into the new building. All respective specialist units to be given time to familiarise with respective spaces for consultation, specialist investigations, and diagnosis and treatment flow for their patients.
“The Chinese Medical Team will work closely with the NRH, particularly the four specialist teams (cardiac, nephrology, urology and acupuncture) to prioritise specialist care procedures,” said the NRH CEO.
Dr Malefoasi also confirms that training of staff will also be part of the preparation.
“In addition to these tasks, there will also be in-service and in-house training for doctors, nurses and health workers over the next 3 years in order for the facility to achieve its desired role delineation. Such specialist care is new of its kind, and it will take some time before full-services can be achieved. By international standards the level of care for cardiology, nephrology, and urology is pitched higher between 2 and 3 role delineation of which the supporting clinical care units such as medical imaging, laboratory and pharmacy supplies are also high.
There will be continuous planning, monitoring and evaluation of the functions jointly with the China Medical Team over the next 3 years.
The new Comprehensive Medical Centres now would significantly improve access to a wider range of specialized medical services especially for diseases like Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) which often require specialized care, reducing the need for overseas referrals, enhancing the quality of healthcare available, and potentially leading to earlier diagnosis and treatment of complex medical conditions. Thus the Ministry of Health continues to be grateful to the People’s Republic of China for the magnificent facility.