ALTHOUGH the Penang Hospital has some of its operating theatres (OTs) closed for upgrading since December 2016, its handling of emergency cases has not been disrupted.

The completion of the upgrading works have been delayed until the end of the year. They were supposed to be finished in February this year.

Penang health director Dr Wan Mansor Hamzah said statistics have shown that there were no disruption, as the number of emergency cases handled by the hospital had remained the same as before the general operating theatres (GOT) were closed for works.

He also said at the same time, the hospital’s Ambulatory Care Centre (ACC) is being used to handle surgeries around the clock.

“To address the temporary closure of the GOT, the ACC stopped taking daily treatment cases and all its seven OTs have been used for daily operations.

“Three OTs handle emergencies around the clock while the other four handle elective cases from 8am to 10pm,” he said in a statement posted on the state health department’s Facebook page.

Elective surgeries refer to those scheduled in advance as they are non-emergency cases.

Earlier today, P. Murugiah from the Penang Hindu Association highlighted to the media that the delay in upgrading works at the GOT had caused patients to be put on long waiting lists.

Dr Wan Mansor said the hospital had a 30% drop in elective cases as a result of the ongoing upgrading works, which led to the postponement of daily treatment cases as well as non-emergency ones.

He said elective surgery cases were still handled by other government hospitals in the state.

Two OTs at the Kepala Batas Hospital and one at the Bukit Mertajam were handling them from 8am to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, he said.

Explaining the GOT’s upgrading delay, Dr Wan Mansor said several weaknesses in terms of the GOT’s original design were discovered as the works were ongoing.

“The design did not meet current specifications.

“For the safety of patients and staff at the Penang Hospital, the Health Ministry agreed to expand the GOT’s upgrading scope.

“The order to change the work scope was issued by the Public Works Department on June 12. The additional work is expected to finish on December 12 this year,” he said. – June 30, 2018.