The Victoria Hospital will be expanded and modernized. At the celebration of the hospital’s 100th anniversary in Candos, the Prime Minister, Pravind Jugnauth listed the new services to come, but also other projects under development in Health and the 2nd booster dose. The PM also launched the 2021 report on non-communicable diseases.
A national institution to be modernised
“The Victoria Hospital remains a national institution and these infrastructures, which have served us for a century, require change. The government has voted a ‘master plan’ for its expansion and the modernisation of its services,” announced the Prime Minister on Wednesday 10 August at the 100th anniversary ceremony.
The infrastructure will be given a facelift and expanded. There will be new services in pediatrics, dentistry, neurosurgery, autism care and services and Ayurvedic medicine, among others. The PM also announced an allocation of Rs 1 billion by the Ministry of Finance to the Mauritius Institute of Biotechnology. ” The pandemic has made us realize the need to develop the pharmaceutical sector. So, we are investing in a manufacturing platform for drugs and medical devices,” he said. As for the local manufacture of vaccines, the PM admitted that the process is “very complicated”. He took the opportunity to underline the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian invasion: “There is a total break in the production chain, not only of foodstuffs but also of pharmaceuticals, and producing countries are limiting their exports. Small countries like us are paying the price,” he said, noting the shortage of certain medicines and the increase in prices.
Other projects to come
The PM unveiled three upcoming projects, namely a new eye hospital at the Triangle Reduction, the teaching hospital at Constance, Flacq which will be delivered in February 2023 and a kidney transplant unit at the Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital in Rose-Belle and a modern heart centre. “This centre will do paediatric surgery and vascular treatment. It will not be easy as it will cost a lot. We are still studying its working system. We are mainly specialised in cancer. There are 100 patients undergoing chemotherapy,” he said. The PM took the opportunity to thank those countries that fund such projects, including Indi and asked his critics who attack India to “think about the policy they adopt” for the continuity of such projects for the people.
He concluded by stressing the importance of prevention through vaccination, the second booster dose. Pravind Jugnauth used himself as an example to motivate Mauritians towards this “ongoing second booster dose campaign. We have done it. I am in great shape. This second booster dose is an additional protection.” Pravind Jugnauth ended his speech by saying “as PM, I will do everything to save the people. Our good health is in our hands.”
Dr Jagutpal: 24/7 specialist service estimated at Rs 50 million annually
This is how much this new service will cost the government, according to the Health Minister. He also announced during his speech that a National Renal Registry would be set up to provide better service to kidney patients and specialized training in dialysis for the staff. He also said that with the financial support of the Ministry of Finance for the fiscal year 2022-2023, “We have already started the process of purchasing 80 dialysis machines at a cost of Rs 32 million“. On the Victoria Hospital, Dr Kailesh Jagutpal announced that “the hospital has 56,000 visits and serves about 400,000 people and has 3,070 employees. The Accident and Emergency has been reorganised and emergency doctors are deployed for EMS services.” The Minister also announced that several Medi Clinics and Area Health Centres will be coming on stream within the next few months.
