It is unclear when open heart surgery will begin at the Lautoka Hospital, now that the fourth date set for operations to begin has passed.
Aspen Medical has not responded to questions sent on August 21, August 23 and October 4, 2022, asking if the operating theatre at the Lautoka Hospital has been completed – and the contractor who had done the works.
On August 31, an Aspen Medical spokesperson said questions about the open heart surgery operating theatre had been addressed to a senior reporter from this newspaper during a tour of the Lautoka Hospital.
The Fiji Times reporter in question, however, said they were never shown the operating theatre during the tour and were told not to ask any questions in relation to open heart surgery at the hospital.
Questions sent to Aspen Medical again on October 4, October 7 and yesterday, about the start of open heart surgery at the Lautoka Hospital, remain unanswered.
Last week Health Ministry permanent secretary Dr James Fong said “indications are that things will be ready next week”.
There has been confusion as to when the operations would actually start with a string of different dates announced by different people.
While delivering the Revised 2021-2022 National Budget in Parliament on March 25 this year, Attorney-General and Economy Minister Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the operations would be conducted from early May 2022.
That, however, did not eventuate.
He then said on July 5, during a budget consultation at Nakasi Sanatan Hall, the surgery could begin “next week”. But that did not happen either.
Aspen Medical, the Australian company that has taken over management of the Ba and Lautoka hospitals in partnership with the Fiji National Provident Fund told this newspaper that open heart surgery would begin at the end of August 2022.
That did not materialise.
Speaking in Parliament on September 2 this year, Health Minister Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete said the surgery would begin at the end of September 2022.
