-Opposition visit to Gizo hospital uncovers a lot of problems challenging services there

-Ministry of Health says it is flying someone over today

BY IRWIN ANGIKI

A visit by the Opposition group has uncovered an array of problems facing Gizo hospital, Western province, which are being blamed on a ‘systematic problem’ with the country’s health system.

Problems with bed space, availability of medicines, patients forced to share bed linens, forced to travel kilometres by boat to the next hospital because the x-ray machine is buggered, and more.

The ministry of health (MHMS) has responded saying it is sending someone over to Gizo today to fix the x-ray problem.

The Opposition group is in Gizo as part of its civic awareness outreach programme.

A visit to the laboratory department saw doctors and nurses sharing of struggles encountered dealing with frequent lab machine breakdowns and having to do tests manually, a statement by the Opposition group yesterday said.

“The x-ray machine in Gizo Hospital is currently out of order despite requests for a new one and patients needing one must travel to Munda.

“Bed space, lack of basic clinical support and equipment’s remained an ongoing problem.

“However, doctors and nurses have attested to improvements in the availability of medical drugs compared to past years although it still remains an issue.

“The immediate need for primary health care and basic health services have also been highlighted.

“Lack of linen for bed covers forcing patients to bring their own and at most time’s more than one patient had to use same bed covers just because requests to Honiara fell on deaf ears.

“Doctors and nurses have highlighted that the business as usual way of doing things need to be changed and it is a systematic problem,” Opposition said.

“Five years down the line Gizo Hospital will be facing bottlenecks like the NRH if there is no priority in improving services in hospitals not only in Gizo but elsewhere around the country,” Dr Michael Belande Buin told the Opposition group.

MHMS yesterday released a statement clarifying only the situation with the broke-down x-ray machine. The ministry’s statement was silent on the other problems hounding Gizo hospital.

“The main floor-mounted X-ray Unit in Gizo Hospital … uses computed radiography (CR), became faulty in October 2023. This Xray Unit comprises of two components: the Xray machine hardware (Xray table and Xray tube) and a computed Radiography (CR) reader for scanning the images on to a computer,” the MHMS statement said.

“However, the CR reader component of the Xray unit became faulty in October 2023, affecting X-ray services in Gizo.  Attempts to fix the reader were unsuccessful, due to the fact that the CR reader and its parts are now obsolete and no longer manufactured.  This is due to the fact that most Xray units worldwide are now using digital technology to capture and process Xray images.

“Shortly after, in mid-2024, a digital mobile X-ray machine was sent to Gizo from NRH Medical Imaging Department to alleviate the issue. X-ray services were restored until the mobile machine became faulty again towards the end of 2024.

“A second mobile Xray unit was then sent down from NRH Medical Imaging department in February of this year, 2025,” MHMS said.

The ministry said consultations between ‘Shimadzu engineers and NRH biomedical engineers’ have been ongoing.

And, coincidentally, following Opposition’s report yesterday, MHMS announced that an officer is heading to Gizo today to fix the faulty mobile x-ray machine and install the one which was sent in February this year.

“Mobile Xray machines are made for light work, such as bedside x-rays in the ward, and not for intense daily use. Also, mobile Xray machines use batteries which can get depleted faster with frequent use,” MHMS said.

“Unfortunately, this is one of the faults that was initially found with the mobile machine that was sent down to Gizo in 2024.Consequently, over time, mobile Xray machines are prone to wear and tear.

“Learning from these lessons and going forward, the best option for the MHMS would be to purchase a digital floor mounted Xray unit for Gizo Hospital as well other Provincial Hospitals because it serves a large population but more so in keeping up with the global practices and standards.”

Meanwhile, after the visit, Opposition leader Matthew Wale acknowledged the doctors and nurses at the Gizo hospital for their commitment to serving the people of the province despite ongoing challenges.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to be here to see and listen to the challenges and also the recommendations shared by doctors and nurses at Gizo Hospital. This will help us to advocate on your behalf to the Government also to recommend policy that will try to address these issues,” Mr Wale said.

Other Opposition MPs who accompanied Wale include MP for West New Georgia/Vona Vona Constituency George Temahua, MP for South New Georgia Rendova & Tetepare David Gina, MP for North Malaita Daniel Waneoroa, MP for Small Malaita Rick Hou and MP for West Makira Derick Manuari.

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