PATIENTS who need urgent heart surgeries may be referred to private hospitals’ cardiac surgery units until the Sultan Idris Shah Hospital’s (HSIS) operating rooms are operational, said Datuk Dr Kuljit Singh.
The Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia president stressed this could be done provided that no further resources are available at public hospitals.
He said private hospitals in the Klang Valley have the capacity to provide aid to patients who are awaiting surgeries involving cardiac complications at the HSIS heart centre.
He noted that there are six to eight private hospitals in the Klang Valley that are equipped with state-of-the-art operating rooms for cardiac surgery and staffed with senior cardiac thoracic surgeons.
“These facilities are available to patients who are unable to wait for surgical appointments.
“The cost of these services is determined through a public-private partnership agreement between the Health Ministry and select private hospitals, which is wholly financed by the government,” he said in a statement today.
Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said yesterday that repairs to defects found in the surgery complex at HSIS would be carried out by next month.
Dzulkefly said emergency cases would be referred to other facilities such as the National Heart Institute.
The Selangor Health Department had confirmed technical issues at the heart surgery complex, including electrical supply problems and high humidity levels.
It was reported earlier that four operating theatres at the cardiac facility, which opened less than two years ago, could not be used. – May 21, 2024.
