Port Moresby General Hospital

The first batch of students studying towards their Advance Diploma have now completed most of their theory and practical but are still awaiting hospital work experience in order to add onto their course requirements before they can graduate.

The school has expressed desperation for approvals from the Port Moresby General Hospital and NCD Provincial Health Authority, for its Final Year nursing students, to utilize their hospitals and clinics, to complete their clinical Hospital placements, to meet curriculum requirements.

A recent post on the Facebook page, showed people crowding outside the hospital with a comment saying that hospital is filled to capacity with the increase of the city’s population. 

Medical and clinical services are stretched to the limit at the Port Moresby General Hospital due to NCD & Central province populations seeking primary and secondary health care at this hospital.
The hospital clarified that people line up to be screened at the triage before being sent to the respective clinics within. 

The  Propofol Injection, which had fatal effects on the lives of seven patients on 12^th of August during surgery at the Port Moresby General Hospital.

This newsroom understands from these seven patients, four of them died including late 14-year old Rex Wanzing.

According to a circular from Dr. Osborn Liko, the anaesthetic drug in question was manufactured in India.

Product Name: “Propofol Injection IP 10mg/mL vial (1% W/V)

Manufacture: Cooper Phama Limited, India

To ensure that the root cause is identified, the Minister of Health Jelta Wong, will sanction an independent Investigating Committee with clear Terms of Reference. The Terms of Reference will be directed towards identifying the root cause(s) to clearly establish the exact cause of death.

Prime Minister James Marape made these remarks recently when witnessing the historical first-ever stenting procedure at the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH).

Stenting is a treatment where a small mesh tube is placed in a person’s blood vessel to widen it, and allow for efficient blood flow, preventing him/her from dying of heart attack.

PMGH has become the first public hospital in the country to carry out invasive cardiac cauterization to diagnose and treat coronary heart diseases.

Chief Executive Officer of Port Moresby General Hospital Dr. Paki Molumi said at the landmark occasion that when the Cath Lab was opened only angiography procedures were performed by visiting Interventional Cardiologist. Now, following support from Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited (KPHL), an Interventional Cardiologist has been recruited and with the assistance of the local team, performed the first stenting of a blocked coronary artery.

This is a life-saving procedure to prevent the patient from dying from what is commonly called the ‘heart attack’.  

The team of seven doctors and a nurse had arrived earlier this year, they are registered with the PNG Medical Board to practice medicine and will be in the country for a year.

The doctors will work with the PMGH doctors in the areas of oncology, urology, cardiology and others.

In welcoming the team PMGH Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Paki Molumi spelled out the different strands of specialist fields PMGH performs which the Chinese team will be engaged in.

It was even alarming when many of those who gave birth were teenage girls, who are regarded by health workers as at high risk.

Staff at the Labour Ward worked around the clock to deliver the 182 babies. On Good Friday, 45 babies were born, Saturday 39 babies, Easter Sunday 48 babies, and 50 babies on Easter Monday.

Shift team leader and midwife, Sister Dephney Hevelawa said due to the extra workload, staff had to take double shift during the long Easter weekend.

She said the beds were all full and mothers had to be assisted to deliver on the floor.

Komo-Magarima in Hela province and Nipa Kutubu in Southern Highlands both had their district procurement committees sworn in together with the Port Moresby General Hospital’s special committee on Monday 9^th November at the NPC office in Port Moresby.

NPC CEO, Simon Bole addressed the new committees by explaining some of the administrative procedures within a newly set up procurement office. He said the boards are only the end part of the administration powers, while the administrative functions complete the processes.   

BSP Life PNG is a licensed life insurance company which commenced operations in PNG in January 2018. It is the youngest subsidiary of the BSP Group. This event is an historical one for the team as it is the first community project for the business.

The Emergency Department was selected after sighting an appeal by PMGH on social media. The BSP Life team selected the Emergency Department as they are the frontline and point of entry at PMGH.