Medan hospital to provide more beds

Apriadi Gunawan , The Jakarta Post , Medan | Wed, 09/03/2008 10:44 AM | The Archipelago

Due to limited resources allocated for low-income earners, the Pirngadi General Hospital in Medan, North Sumatra, has been refusing admittance to many sick patients.

This, however, is about to change as more wards are being built.

The lack of wards has been a problem for many low-income patients who have had to go home without receiving treatment or had to find alternative treatment.

Nurmala Sari, 38, for example, said she had brought her father to Pirngadi hospital to be admitted for his chest pain.

Unfortunately, the hospital staff refused to admit him and suggested she find another hospital or clinic.

"The staff member said the hospital had run out of wards," Nurmala told The Jakarta Post recently.

"I was so confused and I had no idea where to go to find treatment for my father. Pirngadi is a state-run hospital which should provide assistance to patients such as us.

However the hospital told us to go and find another hospital."

Nurmala said that was an absurd excuse.

Head of Pirngadi's Health Services Bureau Sjahrial R Anas said the number of patients requiring financial assistance had increased significantly recently.

"Most of the 2,500 poor patients who come to the hospital daily need in-patient treatment," he said.

"We do not have enough wards to treat all of them here. Currently we are treating about 750."

Sjahrial said the Medan municipal administration -- which had run the hospital since 2002 -- had allocated about Rp 17 billion (US$1.84 million) to build more wards.

"In order to cope with the problem, we have decided to add 300 beds.

"We are in the construction phase now and hopefully it will be completed soon."

Sjahrial said Pirngadi received approximately 1,500 to 2,000 out-patients everyday.

The majority of patients are from Medan with 28.2 percent from other cities in the province and about 2 percent from outside the province.

North Sumatra Governor Syamsul Arifin said he would ask the provincial legislative council to approve the planned budget to provide additional beds for low-income earners.

"The Pirngadi management should keep improving services and not be discouraged because of a lack of resources," he said.

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