Gibran Promises Type C Hospital for Asmat, Papua

Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka has promised to upgrade the status of RSUD Perpetua H. Safanpo in Asmat Regency, Papua Selatan, to a Type C hospital. He stated that strengthening healthcare services is part of implementing President Prabowo Subianto’s priority programmes to provide quality and equitable basic services to regions classified as 3T (frontier, outermost, and underdeveloped). “I promise that a Type C hospital will be built here in Asmat, so we will also intervene on health issues,” said Vice President Gibran during a visit to Agats District, Asmat Regency, on Sunday (21/6). Gibran inspected RSUD Perpetua H. Safanpo and its facilities and spoke with several patients. On that occasion, the Director of RSUD Perpetua H. Safanpo, Yenny Yokung Yong, said that the Vice President’s visit to the hospital, which has been built in stages since 2016, could accelerate its upgrade from Type D to Type C. RSUD Perpetua H. Safanpo is one of the hospitals included in the Quick Best Results programme of the Prabowo-Gibran administration in the health sector. Yenny also highlighted that the status upgrade is expected to be accompanied by the addition of essential medical equipment such as a CT scan, in order to reduce the need to refer patients to other regions and ultimately lower referral costs. “For our hospital, we cover the costs through special autonomy funds for native Papuan patients, especially the Asmat people,” she explained. The costs covered include medical assistance and facilities at halfway houses in referral locations such as Jayapura, Merauke, and Makassar.