4WD vehicles, boats used to deliver healthcare to interior after FDS suspension

The Sarawak government is temporarily using alternative methods to deliver healthcare to the state’s interior following the suspension of the Flying Doctor Service (FDS) after a fatal helicopter crash at Long Lellang, Baram, on Sept 8.

Sarawak deputy public health, housing and local government minister Michael Tiang said mobile clinic teams were being deployed using four-wheel-drive vehicles and boats to reach accessible areas, while the government worked on a proposal to improve the FDS’s safety and effectiveness.

Tiang said the government was also coordinating emergency medical evacuations using other air assets, including the fire and rescue department’s air unit, the police air wing, and the Royal Malaysian Air Force.

“The government will continue to evaluate and improve its healthcare delivery methods to ensure rural communities have access to the necessary services,” Borneo Post quoted him as saying in the state assembly today.

He said the proposal would outline comprehensive improvements to the FDS, including operational safety, emergency training and preparedness, personnel welfare and protection, and aircraft suitability and capability.

In the Sept 8 incident, a Bolkow BO-105 helicopter operated by Layang Layang Aerospace Sdn Bhd under a health ministry contract crashed at the Long Lellang airstrip in Ulu Baram, killing the pilot and four medical workers.

Transport minister Loke Siew Fook said in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday an initial investigation report would be presented to the Cabinet today and a final report completed within a year of the accident.