Sabah to get a heart centre ahead of schedule: Liow

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will get a heart centre almost five years ahead of schedule following the purchase of the private Sabah Medical Centre building at Jalan Damai here.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the cardiology and cardio thoracic services would be available almost immediately after the inking of the sales and purchase agreement for the takeover of the private hospital building.

“We expect the agreement to be signed very soon and the cardiac centre will be in place ahead by three to four years of the original plan,” he said, adding that the new building would be equipped with a cathlab, operation theatres and an Intensive Care Unit.

“Sabah will have its own heart centre and people need not travel to Kuala Lumpur or Kuching for operations as all facilities will be available locally,” Liow told reporters after a working visit to the SMC building Friday.

The government had agreed to buy the private hospital building at a cost of RM280mil to overcome the shortage of beds and other service problems following the closure of the unsafe Queen Elizabeth Hospital tower block.

Liow also clarified that the cost was RM280mil and not RM245mil as initially announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

He said another RM90mil would be spent on upgrading works for the establishment of two additional operating theatres on top of the three already in the building.

Liow said the Health Ministry would also look into the limited parking area at the SMC building and other issues that might crop up.

He also slammed opposition Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) for putting up billboards allegedly claiming that “the state has no general hospital following the Queen Elizabeth closure”.

“They are trying to gain political mileage through health issues. It is wrong to say that there is no general hospital here.

“The ministry has taken a lot effort to continue providing health services through commitment from all staff,” he said, adding there now 502 beds available at various hospitals in the state.

Liow said the ministry would also go ahead with plans to demolish the unsafe QEH tower block and construct a new twin tower block