World-class level 3 hospital opened for primary healthcare services

More than 60,000 people from Hanuabada Village and thousands of others from nearby communities in the Moresby North West electorate as well as nearby villages in Central Province will now have access to a world-class Level 3 hospital for all their primary health care services.

This will be possible through the Australian Government supported Metoreia Urban Health Centre opened this week.

Equipped with 32 staff, the Health Centre is prepared to provide Level 3 and Level 4 health care services to not only the Motu Koitabu villages but also to residents of the Mosby North West electorate as of next week.

This hospital will provide maternal and childcare services for mothers and babies, an outpatient ward, a tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS center, eye care, and oral health care services, among others.

Prime Minister James Marape during the opening acknowledged the Australian Government for recognizing the need of the Motu Koitabu people and especially the Hanuabada community.

“It was here that the Australian administration first settled. It was here where the first contacts were made.

It was with the people of Motukoita, more so Hanuabada when the Australian administration found residence here in Konedobu.

“And we suddenly, in our two nations' bilateral relationship, in the heart of it all, we owe a lot of gratitude to the landowners here and today I am extremely joyous that we are giving back something that they truly deserve a better life,” Prime Minister Marape said.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Elias Kapavore emphasized that this facility will relieve patient congestion at Port Moresby General Hospital and more so the maternity wards.

“Importantly, the center will soon be able to safely deliver around 1,000 babies every year. This means fewer mothers and children will have to travel long distances for care.

“More families will have access to high quality, life-saving health that they deserve.” Minister Kapavore said.

“At the moment we have up to 15,000 to 17,000 mothers delivering at Port Moresby General Hospital every year.”

Australian High Commissioner John Feakes highlighted that the Australian support for health services in the Motu Koitabu community dates back to the 1950s when Australia launched the Maternal Health Clinic in Hanuabada.

“Today, 75 years later, I'm proud to be officially opening with the Papua New Guinea Government this new health facility, which will continue to have a strong focus on maternal and child health.

“The clinic will enable supervised delivery of babies for local communities, and we are anticipating at least 1,000 births each year. We can be proud, all of us, that we are giving these children the best start at life,” High Commissioner Feakes said.