JB hospital ‘sick’ again

Star: JOHOR BARU: The Sultan Ismail Hospital is facing structural problems again.
Large portions of the ceiling at the front of the building had to be removed last week due to structural defects.
The RM550mil hospital was closed in September 2004 for 17 months due to a fungus problem. It was only reopened in February last year.
The hospital’s deputy director (management) Md Yasin Ibrahim told The Star that the ceiling problem surfaced last week.
“We have informed Pantai Medivest that is responsible for the maintenance work at the hospital about the problem.
“It is investigating. It is believed that the cause is most probably due to structural defects,” he said.
Md Yasin ruled out strong winds and storms as reasons for the ceiling coming off.
“We noticed some portions of the ceiling are coming off, so we got the maintenance staff to remove them before they could fall on anyone,” he said.
He added that Pantai Medivest did not give an estimate on the cost of repairs, or how long they would take.
He said the hospital would remain open, as the defects did not affect hospital operations.
“We have cordoned off the affected areas with tape to ensure the safety of patients and visitors,” Md Yasin added.