The Colonial War Memorial (CWM) Hospital in Suva is on the verge of a major upgrade as part of the Pacific Healthy Islands Transformation (PHIT) project. This initiative, which is being funded jointly by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank at a total cost of $239.5 million, aims to transform the hospital into a modern center for medical training, creating around 11,000 jobs in the healthcare sector across the Pacific Islands.
According to the World Bank’s project appraisal, CWM Hospital is crucial for the education and availability of healthcare workers in the Pacific region. As the largest country in the Pacific, Fiji is positioned as a key training hub for medical professionals, a role that is expected to be enhanced significantly with the hospital’s upgrade.
The enhancement of CWM is particularly important for many Pacific Island Countries (PICs) that rely on Fiji for training healthcare personnel, including doctors, nurses, and allied health workers. Prominent institutions, such as the College of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences at Fiji National University (FNU) and CWM Hospital, play a vital part in meeting this educational demand. Between 2015 and 2022, FNU produced nearly 6,500 health professional graduates, with many students coming from neighboring countries like Tonga, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu.
Healthcare students training in Fiji gain valuable experience through supervised patient care at various facilities, with up to 60% of their clinical training conducted at CWM Hospital. This hands-on experience is essential for standardizing healthcare training and management practices across the region.
The investment in the CWM, which includes $70 million specifically for renovations, will see the establishment of a new referral and training hospital equipped with a Radiotherapy Centre. This upgrade affirms Suva’s leadership in healthcare education and services within the Pacific Islands, promising a brighter future for healthcare in the region and improving the overall quality of medical training and services available.