Use of hotels during Covid-19 shows why Sarawak needs healthcare autonomy

Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian

By Shikin Louis

KUCHING, March 29: The use of hotels as quarantine centres during the Covid-19 pandemic highlights why Sarawak needs greater autonomy in healthcare decision-making, says Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian.

Dr Sim said the State’s experience during the pandemic demonstrated how effective collaboration between the public and private sectors could be when given the flexibility to act.

He recalled that while the government initially used community halls as quarantine centres, the approach later evolved to include hotels, which were paid to accommodate individuals under quarantine.

“At that time, you could stay in hotels like Hilton or Pullman for about RM150.

“If we didn’t pay the hotels, many of them would have closed.

“These are the potential of collaboration if we’ve got the healthcare under ourselves, under autonomy,” he said when speaking to reporters after officiating Borneo Medical Centre’s (BMC) Second Satellite Laboratory in Kuching today.

Dr Sim further said Sarawak has already begun taking incremental steps, including strengthening the Sarawak Medical Committee to allow the State greater flexibility in recognising and deploying medical specialists.

“If a specialist is unable to practise in Malaysia, the Sarawak Medical Committee can assess them based on our own criteria and allow them to work in Sarawak only.

“That is already good enough for us, because Malaysia is facing a shortage of doctors — and the situation in Sarawak is even more acute,” he added.

He also said the State may expand its scope to include housemen in the future.

At the same time, Dr Sim emphasised the importance of long-term healthcare planning, revealing that Sarawak has developed its own master plan to project future needs based on disease trends such as cancer and heart disease.

“We look at how many people are expected to get certain illnesses, and then determine what kind of specialists we need. That’s why we are proactive,” he said.

He added that simply building hospitals is not enough, as operational costs far exceed construction expenses over time.

“Building a hospital is the easy part. Running it is the real challenge,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dr Sim also welcomed the expansion of Borneo Medical Centre (BMC), including the establishment of a second laboratory centre, describing it as part of the broader public-private collaboration needed to strengthen Sarawak’s healthcare system. — DayakDaily