Assistant Health Minister Alexander O’Connor and Opposition Leader Sitiveni Rabuka.

The Assistant Health Minister has slammed Opposition Leader for making comments against the Health Ministry saying it is not in a sound state.

In his budget address to Parliament, Alexander O’Connor says the Opposition should come with facts of the Health Ministry.

He adds the Ministry has expanded its service delivery and coverage, established new specialist services following years of specialist training through the Fiji National University and abroad.

“Many of these high-end complex specialists’ services did not exist in Fiji before 2012 and the Ministry used to send Fijians to overseas hospitals for expert treatment. These treatments would take hours and cost thousands of dollars. Now well trained and competent local medical specialists provide these services in Fiji and this means significant savings, transportation, living expenses and emotional pressures from being away in a foreign land for specialists’ treatment.”

The MP says the Government has also established a new cardiology centre at the CWM Hospital in Suva and replaced the Cath lab machine with a newer model.

O’Connor says the Ministry is also conducting visits at sub-divisional hospitals and the Maritime Islands.

“This means taking the best specialist team from CWM Hospital, Labasa, and Lautoka Hospital to the rural areas. The MV Veivueti – the hospital ship has also enabled the Ministry to roll out specialists’ health services to the maritime community. This is a significant step toward ensuring no one is left behind.”

The Assistant Minister says the outreach has become an integral part of the Ministry’s annual programme with dedicated funding.