Help now available for Ujai to go to hospital

The Star

BY LOH FOON FONG
FOONFONG@THESTAR.COM.MY

Due for surgery: Ujai will get to the Bintulu hospital in time for his hip replacement surgery, thanks to the Hulu Rajang MP.

PETALING JAYA: Hulu Rajang MP Wilson Ugak is stepping in to ensure that 50-year-old Ujai Japi will get to the Bintulu hospital in time for his hip replacement surgery.

According to Wilson, he would ensure that Ujai gets to the hospital for his admission on Sept 3, either by getting someone who is travelling to Bintulu to give him a ride or by providing Ujai with some funds.

On Aug 5, The Star reported that thousands of indigenous people in remote areas all over the country could not enjoy highly-subsidised national healthcare because they did not have money to make the trip to hospitals located in urban areas, and Ujai’s case is one such example.

In Ujai’s case, a door-to-door overland trip using four-wheel drives is estimated to cost at least RM400 if he uses a chartered vehicle.

The trip takes about five hours, depending on the weather.

Ujai was offered hip replacement surgery at the Bintulu hospital, which is 200km away from his longhouse in Kejaman located within the Kapit division, but he said that he was too poor to afford the cost of getting there.

“Since this problem affects many and there is not enough funds for all, the ultimate solution is to have a specialist each at the Belaga and Kapit clinics,” said Wilson, who added that he was aware of the plight of those living in remote areas.

Wilson said that he had requested for specialists for Kapit and Belaga in the last Parliament session, but had yet to receive a response.

A doctor in the area said that Ujai could also hitch a ride from the Belaga clinic whenever the clinic sent emergency cases to Bintulu, but added that he was uncertain as to whether Ujai could get to the hospital in time.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subra­maniam said there were various state agencies that took care of such needs, and these Sarawak agencies should look into the transportation problems faced by such patients.

“State agencies should be proactive and solve such problems,” he said.

Calls to Belaga state assemblyman Liwan Lagang were not immediately returned.