Aussie medical aid for Maluku hospitals
Aussie medical aid for Maluku hospitals
JAKARTA (JP): The Australian government, which has pledged
A$4.5 million in emergency medical aid to Indonesia's district
hospitals and clinics, delivered on Thursday a medical aid
shipment to Ambon, Maluku.
The package, containing essential medicines and other
necessities, will supplement stocks at Maluku's seven type C and
D district hospitals and will be used in the treatment of public
patients, the Australian Embassy said in a statement made
available to The Jakarta Post.
Rani Noerhadhie, a representative of the official Australian
Aid Agency (AusAID) in Jakarta, presented the aid to the vice
governor of Maluku, Brig. Gen. Paula Renya'an, at the provincial
health office in Ambon on Thursday during an official ceremony to
commemorate the National Health Day.
The aid is part of Indonesia's A$60 million crisis aid package
to Indonesia.
"Besides Maluku, Australia is concentrating its help in four
provinces -- West and East Nusa Tenggara and Southeast and South
Sulawesi," Noerhadhie said.
"Australia is aware of the complexity of problems caused by
the current crisis and realizes that this is a burden on
hospitals and clinics because they are dealing with more patients
and higher costs."
The aid will go to a total of 53 hospitals and a second
shipment later in the year will be directed to 780 public health
centers in the same five provinces.
Each box of supplies contains essential medicines, including
the commonly used Amoxicyllin and Paracetamol and items for
surgical use such as infusion sets, disposable syringes and
sterile surgical gloves, and other necessities, and will
supplement stocks at public hospitals.
Australia has worked closely with Indonesian health
administrators, hospitals and state-owned pharmaceutical
companies -- PT Kimia Farma and PT Indo Farma -- to stock and
distribute the packages.
The medicines, labeled as Australian aid, are formulated to
conform to Indonesian standards and have been made in Jakarta by
PT Kimia Farma and PT Indo Farma.
Australia and the Ministry of Health will closely monitor
distribution and use of the medical supplies in the targeted
provinces and districts. (hhr)