Administrators at the Malacca Hospital scrambled into action, delivering fans to a ward after finding out that patients were sweltering with no source of ventilation for at least two days.

The patients were left to bear the heat because the private maintenance contractor would not do repairs to the faulty air-conditioning system on a weekend, when alerted by the nursing staff.

“I have just checked on the situation and instructed immediate action, including providing temporary fans while the air-condition system is repaired,” Malacca Hospital director Dr Zaaba Baba told Malaysiakini when contacted.

Zaaba, who addressed the complaint within an hour of Malaysiakini ’s e-mail, said the private maintenance contractors are obligated to provide service round the clock.

This comes after the Health Ministry said repair works are underway on the centralised air-condition system for Hospital Selayang which broke down on Jan 14.

The intensive care unit patients at Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan in Kuantan also stewed with the windows open after air-conditioners faltered, leaving staff to use fans to keep critical equipment cool.

A Hospital Malacca patient’s relative told Malaysiakini that maintenance workers did repair works on the faulty air-conditioning system late last night.

“We had complained to the hospital staff, and they told us they cannot do anything as the maintenance company would not do work on weekends,” she said.

The woman, who declined to be identified, said her family brought in a table fan, which became the only source of ventilation for the ward.

Some elderly patients also took off their clothes because they could not bear the heat, she said.

“Now everyone is comfortable. It was just a few hours of repair work,” she said.

While hospital maintenance is outsourced to private contractors, the standard of service at public hospitals has been a cause for concern following budget cuts to the Health Ministry.

The government has assured that it will not compromise on healthcare, and that the cuts will come from conferences and overseas trips, among others.

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