Hon. (Prof.) Chrishantha Abeysena

¶ 01 Very well. We must move towards such a structured programme.

¶ 02 For traditional medicine research, we have allocated Rs. 605 million in this Budget. Last year it was Rs. 175 million. Our Hela medicine is important; there is some evidence on its significant benefits, but these must be scientifically validated. That is why we allocated Rs. 605 million for traditional medicine research. Thus, we can do a substantial amount on the indigenous medicine side—and we have begun.

¶ 03 Another major issue in our country is accidents. Many people die due to accidents; daily casualties are high and many are admitted to hospitals with injuries. Therefore, as the Ministry of Health, we have allocated Rs. 2,630 million for constructing buildings for Emergency Accident Units in Kandy, Kegalle, Trincomalee, Mannar, Jaffna, Ampara, and Chilaw. In addition, Rs. 650 million has been allocated to further expand Emergency Accident Units. This is important as it addresses a major problem.

¶ 04 On the Suwaseriya ambulance service, we have allocated Rs. 4.2 billion. It is a good programme, but several aspects must be broadened. Especially, the emergency medical technicians must be higher-skilled and better trained; the Ministry has a plan for this. An ambulance is not just a van—it must have proper facilities, which must be upgraded. Hence the Rs. 4.2 billion allocation.

¶ 05 To uplift our health sector, health workers must have good job satisfaction. Otherwise, the work cannot be done. From doctors to attendants, all must work with contentment.

¶ 06 Regarding doctors: we know how hard medical students work to obtain the degree—five to six years at university, with very heavy credit loads and clinical work that builds skills. Doctors form a highly skilled group and should be treated accordingly.

¶ 07 For postgraduate qualifications, doctors spend five to seven years; these are not part-time doctorates. We understand doctors’ issues; they do on-call duties and work 24 hours, and we are aware of administrative challenges. We also understand these issues because we have worked on them; I myself was a member of the GMOA for four years early in my career linked to the university.