Deputy Home Affairs Minister Drives Healthcare Service Transformation at Yowari General Hospital
Deputy Home Affairs Minister Ribka Haluk led an evaluation meeting and capacity-building initiative for healthcare services at Yowari General Hospital (RSUD Yowari) in Sentani, Jayapura Regency, Papua. She encouraged service transformation through improved coordination, strengthened hospital capacity, and enhanced quality of care for the public.
The meeting followed Ribka’s direct inspection of healthcare services in the hospital’s emergency department. The activity represents a rapid government response to various service issues that have attracted public attention.
In her remarks, Ribka emphasised that the central government is taking serious note of healthcare service conditions in Papua, particularly regarding RSUD Yowari’s strategic role as a referral hospital.
“We do not want this problem to drag on. If there is determination to resolve it, I am confident we can overcome all issues,” Ribka stated in written remarks on Tuesday (17 March 2026).
Ribka identified the core problems as not merely technical in nature. According to her, the issues stem from weak coordination and persistent sectoral ego.
“I see the problem as inadequate coordination and insufficient attention. This sectoral ego remains high, resulting in mutual blame and unresolved issues,” she said.
Ribka explained that the government has mapped all issues in a more structured manner, categorising problems by urgency level—from highly urgent to medium and long-term. Concrete steps have already been taken through the establishment of a special team to accelerate problem resolution.
“We have established an FGD team and inter-leadership discussion groups to formulate solutions to be implemented jointly with the regional government,” she explained.
According to Ribka, RSUD Yowari’s capacity must be strengthened because it serves not only local residents but also referred patients from various regions, including newly autonomous regions.
“This region is a hub, so many people from newly autonomous regions come here for treatment. Meanwhile, the hospital’s capacity remains limited in terms of beds, medication, and equipment,” she noted.
Regarding BPJS Health insurance, Ribka highlighted the issue of inactive members despite holding membership cards. Based on spot checks in the field, many people possess BPJS cards but are inactive. She maintained this should not occur.
“We will immediately coordinate to reactivate them,” she added.
Ribka also addressed the need to improve hospital budget management, particularly regarding the composition of human resource expenditure. Personnel spending should be proportional to the standard allocation of approximately 40-45 per cent.
“Currently it has reached about 50 per cent here. We will evaluate this jointly,” she stated.
Ribka further encouraged upgrading RSUD Yowari’s status to a Type B hospital upon meeting certain requirements. To upgrade to Type B, the hospital needs a minimum bed capacity of approximately 250 units, compared to the current approximately 130 units. This requires strong commitment from the regional government.
Additionally, Ribka emphasised the need to overcome blood supply constraints. She appealed to civil servants, military personnel, police, and the public to become blood donor volunteers, given that blood supply remains a challenge.
Finally, Ribka underscored the importance of rebuilding public trust in hospital services. Healthcare delivery is a shared responsibility of all stakeholders.
“Healthcare is not only the duty of medical professionals, but our collective responsibility. If we work with dedication, we can certainly improve services,” she concluded.
The meeting was attended by Papua Vice Governor Aryoko Alberto Ferdinand Rumaropen, Papua Provincial Regional Secretary Lukas Christian Sohilait, Jayapura Regent Yunus Wonda, Head of the Steering Committee for Accelerating Special Autonomy Development for Papua (BP3OKP) Albert Yoku, RSUD Yowari Director and medical and management staff, PMI representatives, BPJS Papua representatives, Jayapura Police Chief, and Heads of Health Services for Papua Province and Jayapura Regency. Several ministry officials also participated virtually.