Selangor sultan advises gov't to ensure proper completion of hospital projects

SHAH ALAM: The Sultan of Selangor has advised the government to ensure that all hospital projects are completed on time so that the people will not be unduly burdened.
Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah said this is especially important as it involves the people's wellbeing.
"I stress that all priority projects involving the wellbeing of the people, such as building a hospital, should be completed according to schedule.
"The responsible implementation agencies must monitor the execution and maintenance of such projects closely," Sultan Sharafuddin said in his address at the Shah Alam Hospital today.
He said finishing such projects on schedule will provide much needed health services without further troubling the people, who are already burdened with the rising costs of living.
Construction on the hospital started in November 2007 and was supposed to be completed within three years time at a cost of RM482.6 million.
The government cancelled the contract when it was found that only 27% of the hospital was completed using RM139.9 million in September 2010.
A new contractor was then hired in 2011 to complete the hospital for RM410.87 million, and the facility opened its doors in stages in October 2015.
"The Shah Alam Hospital, which has been long awaited by the people here, has now been completed and is operating at a level it is supposed to," Sultan Sharafuddin said.
The Sultan added that people in the area no longer have to rely on the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital in Klang or the Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) in Petaling Jaya.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam said the hospital is now a major specialist centre and had received 45,456 patients seeking specialist treatment from January to September this year.
Subramaniam said the hospital's emergency department also recorded 61,679 patients while the maternity ward saw 5,062 births.
He added that the hospital's bed occupancy rate is currently at 74.58%.
The hospital is equipped with 300 beds, 230 staff quarters units, and specialises in 14 medical fields.