Historic Saiho Hospital receives a long overdue facelift
26 March 2014
ORO PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT
SAIHO Hospital in the Sohe District of Oro Province during the colonial period was a first class hospital and training facility.
First constructed in 1951 as a tent hospital (picture) by Roger Claridge to cater for victims of the Mount Lamington eruption, it evolved into a premier facility under the colonial administration that trained many health workers and served the populous Central Kaiva area and surrounding areas.
Oro Governor Gary Juffa’s mother trained and served at the hospital and the Governor spent a portion of his early childhood in its precincts.
After independence in 1975, the hospital deteriorated due to lack of attention by successive PNG governments and its buildings rotted away and services declined.
It is now a former shadow of the once bustling hospital that housed doctors, nurses and health workers.
There are no doctors and a handful of nurses and orderlies. There is only one ambulance and the condition of the health infrastructure is minimal.
Governor Juffa visited Saiho Hospital immediately after taking office and vowed to restore it to its former glory. He has kept his word, allocating an initial K500,000 of his 2013 Provincial Improvement Program to carry out general maintenance and restore electric power. The work will also include the repair of toilets, wards and offices.
Contractors have been working to maintain the power supply and undertake general maintenance. Plans are underway to establish an office for volunteer workers who regularly visit Oro to immunise and carry out health outreach programs.
The Perpetual Niugini company has been working intensely to bring about the restoration of Saiho Hospital and significant changes are already visible.
Governor Juffa inspected the work undertaken this week and expressed satisfaction at the quality and progress.
“In due time, we shall restore Saiho Hospital to its full potential, serving the 50, 000 people of area with doctors, health workers and nurses,” he said.
“ I hope to use it as a training station and a base for the many volunteers we are bringing into Oro to help build our province. Health is a primary pillar in the development of any society and economy.
“No economy can progress without good health. Its one of the basic steps we are undertaking to rebuild our province. I shall be working closely with Local Level Government and local politicians to restore Saiho and other facilities in the province.”
The facility will include the building of a Saiho Police Patrol and five police houses as well as a TB treatment and eradication facility. The Governor also hopes to establish a women’s medical clinic and a children’s outpatient facility and ward.
Maybe this comment tells a case of dumb and dumber. (It seems that to make a political point) “Queensland government commits $200,000 to rename satellite hospitals to health centres”.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-02-06/qld-government-renames-satellite-hospitals-health-confusion/104904258
People might ask “What’s in a name", which is a saying that is a phrase.
The phrase originates from William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, specifically from Juliet’s famous lines: “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
https://nosweatshakespeare.com/quotes/famous/whats-in-a-name-2/
Back to the politics, one Queensland party had an idea and that was to construct new 'satellite hospitals' but the new incoming other party objected to that phrase/name and decided to make a name/phrase change, but at a cost of $AUS 200,000.
Other names were suggested, including 'ambulatory centre' and 'minor injury and illness clinic'. Now each constructed location is to be known as 'Satellite Health Centre'. Really!
Perhaps people in PNG will be able to assist Queenslanders to comprehend 'health centre', a phrase in use for many generations.
Many the children were born at a hospital (like at Katereda, Oro Bay, Northern Province, PNG) was and is smaller than the new Queensland Satellite Health Clinics.
So to both parties of Queensland, what a shame of waste, energy, sign, paper, time, respect.
Health Minister Tim Nicholls said most of the funding would be spent replacing signage and stationery, admitting that he's "no signage expert".
Posted by: Lindsay F Bond | 06 February 2025 at 07:11 PM
I think my Aunty Jen Drysale was one of the Nursing Sisters who helped establish Saiho hospital in the 50's. She taught the local girls to become Nurse as well. Jan Macpherson
Posted by: Jan Macpherson | 02 February 2025 at 09:15 PM
I make a comment here because Saiho was my closest hospital in 1968-69. The facility worked well and offered a real sense of dependability to my wife (a teacher) and I.
It was such that we not only stayed for our agreed six months for her to fill-in as headteacher at short notice, we extended that to three years.... and came back to Australia with our two boys born in Oro. This I keenly remember, every day.
Health provisioning was easily the most pressing problem for early Anglican missionaries. No matter that people were wanting education, for the missionaries the most perplexing matter was health.
Fast forward to today. At "Alotau hospital ... 80% of essential drugs and consumable supplies are out of stock."
https://www.thenational.com.pg/hospitals-face-drug-shortages
My eyes 'water'.
Is it that the people of PNG cannot organise themselves? Here we are not thinking province, not thinking denomination, not thinking religion, not thinking political allegiance, not thinking 'bikman'.
This is about love for neighbour, (yeah, every neighbour) even those that are descended from people that may have been attacking our forebears.
There are villages where they still celebrate the coming of missionaries as the ending of clan killing. But this is not about the 'old days'. This comment is about now and tomorrow and human health.
The inquiry into health provisioning (by Sir John Pundari, Gary Juffa and others in 2019) was looking into "misuse of more than $US46 million of public funds."
https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/404817/png-parliament-committee-probes-corruption-in-health-sector
Let's get to one big problem of "health officials demanding bribes". Even wasting work time in asking and talking about illegal matters is a 'stealing' of valuable time, precious time, from the people of PNG.
Is this how people on the public payroll act in their own interest and walk away from the job thinking they are paid for the work they're required to do.
If their relatives think that is OK (no matter any sick people in hospital), then is PNG really a nation and independent and free or is PNG just a tok place of emptiness between too many pairs of ears?
Posted by: Lindsay F Bond | 08 April 2022 at 10:15 AM