Health staff praised
STAFF of the Colonial War Memorial Hospital (CWMH) were commended for their hard work and commitment to their line of work after the opening of the CWMH Department of Surgery Surgical Registrars Room.
Minister for Health and Medical Services, Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete
commended the work of the staff as he officiated at the opening of the project that became a reality through a collaboration with the Tanoa Hotel Group, Reddy Foundation and the Health Ministry.
“What is happening today will not only benefit the doctors but more importantly will benefit everybody because it is a resource that everyone can use,” Minister Waqainabete said.
With the growing number of doctors and nurses employed in the country, the room came in an effective time and as an advantage.
“In 2005 we had 299 doctors and 1,600 nurses. Now we have more than a 1,000 doctors and more than 3,000 nurses. Before 2005, the one bed and one chair was sufficient because there were only 299 doctors. We have tripled that and I am happy to see that we have also tripled the beds which is in keep with the demand of this time,” Minister Waqainabete said.
The closing of Fiji’s borders when the COVID-19 pandemic first arrived into the country allowed the Tanoa Hotel Group and other hotels in the Western division to take up the challenge of working in partnership with the Ministry of Health in accommodating repatriating Fijians in their hotels as quarantine facilities. “One of the first hotels to put their hand up was the Tanoa to accept our repatriated Fijians was the Tanoa Group. They have been working with us in safely bringing back our people into Fiji and being able to connect our loved ones with those have been overseas up until today.”
The facility became operational from March 1, 2021.