- Dr. Beat Richner,
Kantha Bopha Children's Hospitals
- Phnom Penh/Siem
Reap Angkor, 30.11.2005
-
- The New Kantha
Bopha Children's Hospital in Phnom Penh: Kantha Bopha
IV
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- On December 29th
2005 the new Children's Hospital Kantha Bopha IV will
be inaugurated. Kantha Bopha I with its three
buildings is too small. Day by day there are 2000
outpatients, day by day there are between 400 and 500
inpatients, day by day there are 30 surgical
operations.
-
- That is why we
started this construction on August 3rd 2004 after
having bought a land giving on the Wat Phnom. Without
this new construction Kantha Bopha I could not
function any longer. Two of its three buildings are in
a very bad and dangerous condition. One of its three
buildings will continue to function. The other
buildings will be evacuated and later restored as soon
as we move to the new Hospital on January 9th
2006.
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- The new Hospital
Kantha Bopha IV will be connected with the old Kantha
Bopha I. The new Hospital will have 555 beds, 4
surgical operating rooms, two intensive care units, a
complete laboratory with a blood bank, an imaging
department (X Ray, 4 Ultrasounds and a CT Scanner) a
huge pharmacy, an outpatient station and a prevention
center.
-
- The costs of this
new Hospital (all included) are 15 Million
USD. We asked the Swiss people to contribute a
bill of twenty Swiss Franks. With this action we got
this money last year , there were school children
helping too, Swiss citizens over all Switzerland
contributed a bill of 20 Swiss Franks. (Aktion
Zwaenzger Noetli 2004).
-
- So soon, in January
2006 there will be 860 beds available in the three
Kantha Bopha Hospitals in Phnom Penh.
-
- In Siem Reap Angkor
the Kantha Bopha III (or Jayavarman VII ) Hospital's
extension with 350 additional beds was opened in March
2005. There were days in July 2005 when 700 severely
sick children were hospitalized! In the maternity,
built in order to break the transmission of AIDS from
the mother to the child there are 900 deliveries per
month!
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- All treatment is
free. The patients are arriving from all over
Cambodia. The Kantha Bopha Hospitals are treating
85% of all Cambodian children.
- (The National
Pediatric Hospital in Phnom Penh is hospitalizing only
between 80 and 100 children, the Angkor Children's
Hospital in Siem Reap only 24 up to 30
children.)
-
- There is no
corruption in the Kantha Bopha Hospitals. So all
patients have access to a correct and efficient
treatment. Nobody has to pay under the table in order
not to pay on
- the table, in order
to get this or that. Most families are poor, there is
no cash. We were able to reduce the mortality during
the last 13 years to 1,1%.
-
- The annual
budget for the running costs is 16,5 Million USD.
By the Cambodian Government ( a decision by Prime
Minister Samdech Hun Sen) we get 1,6 Million USD. By
the Swiss Government 2 Million USD. All the other
Millions are private donations. In other words without
these private donations 60 000 Cambodian children
would pass away year by year. Because 80% of all
hospitalized children have no chance without a correct
and efficient treatment which they get in the Kantha
Bopha Hospitals! And every child, if poor or rich,
has the right to get a correct and efficient medical
treatment.
-
- Desinformation
by "The Cambodia Daily"
-
- More than 7 Million
children were treated by the Kantha Bopha Hospitals
during the last 13 years. Not one single child had to
pay. This year 2005 there were 5800 Dengue cases to
hospitalize. Children in preshock or shock. Not
one single Dengue child was refused. Why is "The
Cambodia Daily" telling people on November 24th 2005 ,
that in order to bee saved from a Dengue Fever, you
need 200 USD, because only the private sector can save
a Dengue case? All Cambodian citizens, included the
High Royal Government knows that this information is
not true. His Majesty King Father Norodom Sihanouk
knows it: 12 years ago His grand daughter was brought
at midnight to Kantha Bopha, not to a private Clinic!
Samdech Chea Sim knows it: 6 years ago His grand son
was hospitalized in Kantha Bopha with a Dengue Fever,
not in a private Clinic! The Prime Minister Samdech
Hun Sen knows it, since His grand daughter was
recentely hospitalized in Kantha Bopha, not in a
private Clinic! Samdech Hun Sen himself was in the
Kantha Bopha Hospital that night. He knows the
Hospitals, he has talked to the 72 other patients
hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit that night.
Nobody was refused. Nobody had to pay. Everybody was
cured. Why is " The Cambodia Daily" publishing this
wrong information? For what purpose? For who's
pleasure? To who's advantage?
-
- In Kantha Bopha III
(Jayavarman VII) in Angkor in 2005 there were 2120
severe cases of Dengue Fever. Nobody was refused.
Everybody was cured and saved. The Mortality was 1,2%.
(These 1,2% of Dengue cases were at the same time
cases with drug intoxications. They got the wrong
treatment before - outside in the private sector.
Their liver transaminases were more then 20
000!!)
- Ironically we
remember that "The Cambodia Daily" told people in 1999
that this Children's Hospital Kantha Bopha III
(JayavarmanVII) in Angkor, then inaugurated by His
Majesty The King Norodom Sihanouk and Samdech Hun Sen,
would not be necessary! Why all this wrong
information? We would certainly deserve an honest
answer, me and the 1500 Cambodian staff.
-
- Dr. Beat
Richner
- www.beatocello.com
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