New Ren Ci Hospital will open in 2008
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Ren Ci Hospital and Medicare Centre is expanding its medical services to serve the needs of the poor better.
By 2008, a brand new hospital will be built at Irrawaddy Road at Novena.
The new hospital will replace Ren Ci's current facility at Jalan Tan Tock Seng.
It will be a haven for patients with chronic illnesses, or those in rehabilitation.
The new Ren Ci Hospital will have 277 beds and services like outpatient clinics, X-rays, laboratories and even a traditional Chinese medicine clinic.
There will be many gardens and the rehabilitation rooms are also made bigger to allow patients to move around more comfortably.
Occupying 0.5 hectares of land, the new 14-storey Ren Ci Hospital will cost nearly S$31 million.
With the Health Ministry's contribution of $21.04 million, and the Lee Foundation's $4.5 million, Ren Ci will still need to raise some $3 million for the construction of the new hospital.
Shi Ming Yi, Chairman and CEO, Ren Ci Hospital and Medicare Centre, said: "I strongly believe that there will be more people who will support Ren Ci by donating to this worthy cause. We were not affected in the last few months even with the NKF saga. So I do not see why people should withdraw if you're able to be accountable for what you're doing."
Venerable Shi is a full-time volunteer at the hospital and hopes to win back the confidence of the public towards charitable organisations.
From its early days at the Chronic Sick Unit of Woodbridge hospital 11 years ago, Ren Ci, or compassion in Chinese, has reached out to the needy.
It now pledges that despite a posh new home, it will maintain its current charges of S$18 a day for hospitalisation. - CNA/ch -
ahah.. year after year of public donations and "donors" are seeing something in return..
seeing is believing