Heart centre needs more cardiothoracic surgeons — Dr Jerip
KUCHING: The Sarawak General Hospital Heart Centre (SGHHC) in Kota Samarahan is in urgent need of more cardiothoracic surgeons to perform operations for the long list of heart patients at the centre.
Assistant Minister for Public Health Datuk Dr Jerip Susil, in suggesting this, said at the moment there were only one fulltime cardiothoracic surgeon and two others on contract basis at the centre..
“With the overwhelming number of heart patients from Sarawak and Sabah at SGHHC, there is an urgent need for at least one more cardiothoracic surgeon and two cardiothoracic anaesthetists so that we can address the needs of our heart patients,” Dr Jerip said when contacted yesterday.
However, he assured the people that there were enough cardiologists serving at the centre.
“One of reasons in having difficulties getting cardiothoracic surgeon is that it takes at least five to six years for a medical officer to specialise in the subject. There
With the overwhelming number of heart patients from Sarawak and Sabah at SGHHC, there is an urgent need for at least one more cardiothoracic surgeon and two cardiothoracic anaesthetists so that we can address the needs of our heart patients. Datuk Dr Jerip Susil, Assistant Minister for Public Health
are not many medical doctors who seem to be interested in pursuing their studies in the field.
“There are only three countries which offer good training for those who wanting to become cardiothoracic surgeons - the United Kingdom, United States and Australia. But our own National Heart Institute ( IJN) in Kuala Lumpur can also train locals,” said Dr Jerip.
He added that SGHHC needed at least one more cardiothoracic surgeon and an additional two cardiothoracic anaesthetists as heart operations could take up to eight hours to perform.
“That’s why we need at least two teams because by the time one team finishes their job, they would be too tired to carry another one the next day,” he said.
However, Dr Jerip said Sarawakians were a very lucky lot as SGHHC had state- of-the-art equipment for heart operations.
Dr Jerip was commenting on a heart patient who has been waiting for 44 days at SGGHC who is in urgent need of valve replacement. The patient, who preferred anonymity, said he was anxious as his wife was due to deliver their third child sometimes next month.
“I am still waiting anxiously and no one seems to be able to tell me when I could have my operation,” said the man, who has been suffering from heart ailment since last year.
SGHHC was opened in 2010 and since then has been receiving an increasing number of heart patients. At press time, Minister of Local Government Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian, who is a former cardiologist at the centre, could not be reached for his comment.