KUCHING: Sarawak General Hospital’s (SGH) palliative care service has been relocated to the Kuching Lifecare Society’s Hospice and Palliative Care Centre in Malaysia’s first government–NGO healthcare service arrangement.
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian described the relocation as a significant milestone in strengthening palliative care services in Sarawak.
“No one could have imagined the progress and development of palliative care service in Sarawak with this milestone today when we first launched the service in 2016 at SGH as part of the cancer ward,” he said in a Facebook post on Saturday.
He said the eight-bed SGH palliative ward was relocated en bloc – involving patients, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and supporting services – to the purpose-built RM19-million Hospice and Palliative Care Centre (HPCC) by the Kuching Lifecare Society.
The service will be progressively expanded to 35 beds, utilising 35 of the centre’s 58-bed capacity, subject to additional staffing support.
“Today, the SGH palliative care service has been successfully relocated to the specially built state-of-the-art facilities of the HPCC, providing our patients with a serene, specialised environment designed specifically for their comfort and dignity,” he said.
Dr Sim noted that Sarawak is projected to have the highest palliative care needs in Malaysia by 2030, with about 35,000 people expected to require such services.
He added that the relocation represents Malaysia’s first arrangement allowing Ministry of Health services to operate within an NGO-owned facility.
“This is the first of its kind in Malaysia, allowing KKM services to operate in an NGO facility,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Home Domiciliary Palliative Care Programme implemented between 2022 and 2025 has supported more than 1,000 patients statewide.
Looking ahead, Dr Sim said the next major milestone will be the proposed RM1.5 billion Sarawak Cancer Centre, expected by 2030 or earlier, which will include acute inpatient palliative care beds.
