WHO to donate eight ambulances to NE

[TamilNet, Friday, 31 January 2003, 01:41 GMT]
The World Health Organization (WHO) is to donate eight ambulances, each costing about Rs 1.8 million, to the North East Provincial Council to conduct mobile medical services in remote villages and difficult areas in the northeast province, provincial health ministry sources in Trincomalee said.

The Minister for Health Mr.P.Dayaratne will hand over these ambulances to North East Provincial Health Ministry Secretary Mr. R.M.S. Ratnayake Friday morning at the Colombo Ministry office, sources said.

Ambulances will be distributed one each to the eight districts Jaffna, Killinochchi, Mullaitivu, Mannar, Vavuniya, Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Amparai, in the northeast province, sources said.

Medical officers are reluctant to serve in several remote villages in the northeast province.

The Eachilampathu government hospital is one of the hospitals in Trincomalee district without a medical officer for the last twelve years. Recently a medical officer was appointed after repeated requests by the people of the area. However the medical officer managed to get a transfer out of Eachilampathu within twenty-five days of assuming duties in the new station, sources said.

During the last two months twenty-five people have been bitten by snakes in Eachilampathu village. One of the victims, a fourteen-year male student died in Trincomalee general hospital three days later without prompt medical attention.

Eachilampathu hospital has been closed due to the non-availability of a medical officer, sources said.