THE Education Ministry (MoE) has approved the construction of a university hospital under Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) in Kota Samarahan.
Assistant Minister of Local Government and Housing Dr Annuar Rapaee said the hospital would be able to provide various health services including expert and specialised services.
“Kota Samarahan has been developing rapidly in the last ten to 20 years and certainly requires a hospital,” he said.
At the same time, he said the haemodialysis centre to be launched by the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) in Kota Samarahan had been approved by the Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) and was now awaiting its licence from the Health Ministry (MoH) to begin its operations.
In response to a question from Datuk Idris Buang (PBB-Muara Tuang) today, he said kidney patients from Muara Tuang could currently seek haemodialysis treatment at the Sarawak Heart Centre in Kota Samarahan.
“At the Heart Centre, we have 15 haemodialysis machines which can accommodate 75 patients. But in the near future, we will add five more so there will be 20 machines in total at the Heart Centre,” he said.
He said kidney patients could also access haemodialysis services at Simunjan Hospital, which currently had ten machines accommodating 42 patients.
“We still have room for patients seeking haemodialysis treatment at either the Heart Centre or Simunjan Hospital,” he said.
Dr Annuar said there was an increase of 250 in the number of kidney patients requiring haemodialysis in Sarawak each year, explaining that this was calculated based on 500 new patients arising per year and a death rate of 250 per year.
“This is a burden not only for the patient but also for the national health service,” he said.
He noted that RM3.24 million had been allocated for haemodialysis assistance under the 2021 State Budget and hoped that such assistance would continue to be rendered by the state government.
“The fact of the matter is that in Sarawak, 60 percent of chronic kidney disease is caused by diabetes mellitus,” he said, noting that there was a high rate of diabetes in the state as well.
