The Health Ministry is considering the possibility of leasing air ambulance services that would aid in transferring severe medical cases to the hospital as quickly as possible, said Health Minister Hilal Al-Sayer Saturday. Al-Sayer told KUNA that the ministry was seriously studying its options regarding the hiring of such aircrafts that would be very useful in the case of traffic accidents usually involve traffic jams which made it difficult for medical teams to reach injured individuals. The hiring of the aircrafts would save valuable time and also save lives, stated the minister, affirming that leasing of air ambulance services would be less costly than actually purchasing it.

Kuwait’s Minister of Health Dr Hilal Al-Sayer urged Saturday accelerating the efforts being made to remove the old tuberculosis hospital and building a new one instead. “The new hospital must be equipped with the latest medical equipment and the best technical and medical teams,” the minister told KUNA while inspecting site of the hospital at Al-Sabah Medical Area. Dr Al-Sayer invited Minister of Public Works and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr Fadhel Safar to visit the site on Sunday with a view to speed up the red procedures relating to the rehabilitation process. “The Ministry of Health plans to build a new pediatric hospital at Al-Sabah Medical Area which will include all specializations of the child diseases,” he disclosed.

“The construction of a multi-storey garage, to provide room for up to 1,000 cars at the medical area, will be complete within 12 months,” he said, noting that the project will end the traffic jams at the area to suit the convenience of patients and visitors. The inspection tour of the hospital aimed at removing all obstacles facing the reconstruction works and ensure finalizing the process as early as possible, the minister added. Dr Al-Sayer was accompanied by Undersecretary of the Ministry Dr Ibrahim Al-Abdul-Hadi Assistant Undersecretary for Engineering and Maintenance Affairs Eng. Samir Al-Asfour and Director of Al-Sabah Medical Area Abdullatif Al-Sahli as well as other senior officials of the ministry. It is important to grant directors of Kuwaiti health bureaus abroad greater authority, especially when dealing with critical and emergency cases that require instant decision-making, said Al-Sayer.

In a statement to KUNA after issuing a ministerial order transferring the health bureaus directly under the undersecretary, he said that granting bureau directors greater authority would allow them to make quick decisions within the framework of set regulations. The minister underscored the importance of focusing on making achievements and not to hinder the needs of patients dispatched abroad for treatment. The bureaus were formerly under the ministry’s Department for Treatment Abroad. Meanwhile, the Health Ministry confirmed that it had paid all due bills to French governmental hospitals. Director of the Kuwaiti Health Bureau in France Dr.Abdullatif Al-Wutaib told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that the last due bill, valued at 3.6 million euros, was paid.

A total of 11.6 million euros were paid in three installments; the first worth three million euros in March, the second worth seven million euros in June, and the last one was paid Friday at the value of 3.6 million euros. He said that this would boost cooperation between Kuwait and France and would rebuild trust between the Kuwaiti Health Bureau and French governmental hospitals that were treating patients and sharing their expertise. Al-Wutaib added that the bureau had set appointments for patients who needed long treatment periods with senior consultants, besides arranging visits for French doctors and health specialists to Kuwait. There are around 70 Kuwaiti patients currently receiving treatment in French hospitals.

In another development, some officials at the Ministry of Health (MoH) have manipulated the itinerary of Minister Dr Hilal Al-Sayer during his visit to Sabah Hospital, reports Al-Shahid daily quoting sources. Disclosing the officials specified certain areas the minister can visit during his inspection tour at Sabah Hospital recently, sources said the officials guarded the minister to prevent the patients from talking to him about their complaints.  Sources added a large number of patients in the hospital had earlier expressed their wish to meet the minister to inform him about their problems, particularly the alleged merging of swine flu patients with others in ward four. Sources confirmed the minister has responded to the fiery statements of MPs in accordance with the inaccurate information provided by the officials even if he has been advised not to divulge the actual number of swine flu cases in the country. 

Arabtimes