Renowned General and Interventional Cardiologist, Dr Vijay Kapadia, based at the Gold Coast University Hospital in Australia, has voiced his frustrations over the serious lack of support for proper heart care services for the people of the country.
Dr Kapadia mentioned this during his appearance on fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan, where he expressed his worries about the healthcare system in Fiji.
The former Marist Brothers Primary and High School student who has been practising medicine for 45 years has managed to secure the angiogram and cath lab equipment for the CWM Hospital in 2009, 2014 and again in 2022 after negotiations and consultations with a lot of generous people.
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While serious questions arise regarding the government supporting the Aspen hospitals in Ba and Lautoka through millions of dollars of taxpayers’ funds based on a rushed set up by the former Bainimarama led government in 2022, Dr Kapadia says the heart care support at CWM is seriously neglected although they have a good group of medical professionals working with people like him.
He reveals that for the treatment of complicated cardiovascular cases, a functional cath lab is needed, however, they may have to close their current facility for a few months because they are running out of sheaths — small tubes that allow the passing of catheters into the vessels while minimising bleeding.
He says while Fiji has a reasonably good primary care system that focuses on prevention and diet, the people still require access to the benefits modern medicine can provide, especially in the field of heart disease which claims more lives in Fiji than anywhere else in the world.
Dr Kapadia says in cardiovascular diseases, arteries become blocked due to the formation of clots, and to treat patients, the necessary equipment and medication are required.
Dr Kapadia says the processes involved in obtaining them was difficult and that the government needs to focus on and provide a new, proper facility at the CWM Hospital instead of the makeshift one currently in use.
He is urging the government to support their efforts in securing more healthcare resources for the people of Fiji.
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