Oil Search hands over food drive donations to Kikori Hospital

By Jacob Marcos

Photo: Oil Search Foundation Kutubu-Kikori Field Supervisor officially handing over the food-drive donations to Mr. Kaipu, Kikori Rural Hospital Admistrator. Attending the donation (R-L), Sr. Mefaramu, Sr. Kaipu and Clement Kumaru.

The Oil Search staff-led tuberculosis (TB) food drive for the Kikori Hospital in the Gulf Province has received overwhelming support. The donations included 190 kilograms of rice, 7 cartons of noodles, 6 boxes of biscuits, 7 cartons of tinned food, 5 litres of cooking oil, and 70 packs of laundry detergent.

Last week, Program Supervisor for the Oil Search Foundation (OSF), Chris’bourne Taput, officially handed over the food donations to Hospital Administrator, Larry Kaipu. The donations highlighted the importance of building on the existing partnerships to continuously strengthen support and deliver patients with the care and management they need.

Kaipu thanked Oil Search for identifying and addressing the need, noting the food supplies would enable compliance to two weeks intensive tuberculosis (TB) medication.

“For TB in-patients. The OSF continues to work with Kikori Hospital to stabilise the critical food supply for patients,” Kaipu said.

Recently lack of adequate food has seen numerous in-patients with TB abandoning treatment to leave the hospital in search of food. Ceasing treatment before the end of the intensive treatment courses raises the risk of spreading TB and consequently developing multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB.

The food donation was attended by Kikori District Health Manager, Sr. Ekaloa Mefaramu, Kikori Rural Hospital Director Nursing Services, Sr Kaipu and patients and staff of the hospital.

Kymberley Kepore, CEO of the Oil Search Foundation, thanked Oil Search and Foundation employees for the very generous support to help address the TB burden in Kikori and said:

“This year’s food drive has been enormously successful. Last year a first round of TB fund-raising was kicked off and I would like acknowledge Oil Search and Oil Search Foundation staff, the Bangladesh Association of Port Moresby, Port Moresby Electrical, TEPNG, Aaron Bird, Kina Securities staff, Simon Anderson, James Watson, Pieter Berkout, Jacob Lakenby, Bupa Medical staff in Australia, and Anne-Sophie Hermann,” Kepore said adding that their help is going a long way in the fight against TB