Govt did not say they will not assist 9yr-old kidney transplant patient - Akbar

Minister for Health Rosy Akbar says the government did not say they will not assist a 9-year-old boy who needs a kidney transplant.

Akbar says she has personally been dealing with the family and the doctors had recommended the child for overseas surgery.

She says, unfortunately, the patient was taken to India without their approval while they were still waiting for the committee’s approval because some documents and reports were needed.

Akbar adds that the family, friends and other well-wishers had helped the child to go to India and upon returning they came to the Ministry and said that the child will need to go back to India in April.

The Ministry of Health and Medical Services says they are currently assessing all the information aligned with the assistance criteria that the Ministry has to follow to ensure transparency when dealing with such cases.

Fijivillage has received confirmation from the boy’s father that the kidney transplant was not done when they went to India but the boy’s left kidney was removed.

The boy now has a kidney which is working at 27%.

He says he had to take his son because his condition was getting worse.

Daniel Munif has made claims that the Ministry of Health had said that his son’s kidney transplant documents are fake and that the Ministry said that they cannot help him.

He says that no parent would have any interest in taking their son to a private hospital to get a fake medical report.

The Minister for Health says for a kidney transplant, it is very important that a prior diagnosis is done to see whether the donor’s kidney is compatible to the patient’s kidney.

Akbar highlighted that they assist a lot of patients on a daily basis in regards to those that need specialist treatment that are not available in the country.

She says the government has given the Health Ministry a budget of $1.3 million that they use for this purpose.