The Lee Kwok Kuen Family has handed over a new Tuberculosis (TB) Isolation Wing to the National Referral Hospital (NRH), the Ministry of Health and Medical Services said on 28 October.

The handover ceremony was attended by ministry executives, NRH staff and workers from Lee Kwok Kuen Construction. Speaking for the family, Mrs Sophia Lee thanked the ministry and the hospital for working closely with the company and its workers during construction, and said the family was humbled and proud to contribute to Solomon Islands. The wing, she said, would serve patients under treatment for TB and the health workers caring for them.

Minister for Health and Medical Services Hon Morris Toiraena accepted the wing for the government, thanking the family and its staff and saying the donation would strengthen care for people affected by tuberculosis. He said the family had also supported the renovation of the Special Care Nursery and the Green Ward.

Hon Toiraena said TB admissions at the hospital had risen from 102 patients in 2016 to 245 in 2024 and 255 in 2025. Bed occupancy was high and stays averaged up to 45 days, he said, but treatment outcomes remained strong and the hospital had recorded a single TB death in each of the last two years.

The minister said the national TB programme had a treatment success rate of 92 to 96 per cent, but the latest figures were of concern. "TB incidence increased from 60 per 100,000 people in 2021 to 123 per 100,000 in 2025, while treatment coverage fell to 45 per cent," he said, adding that more than half of estimated cases may remain undiagnosed or untreated.

According to Hon Toiraena, the wing will be used for treatment, patient education and rehabilitation, and will give the country a dedicated space for training, research and workforce development under the National TB Control and Prevention Policy. "This facility will serve as a national centre for TB prevention and control, with greater scope for research and continuous improvement," he said.

Source: Statement on the handover of the new TB Isolation Wing, published by the Solomon Islands Government portal under the Ministry of Health and Medical Services, 28 October 2026. https://solomons.gov.sb/lee-kwok-kuen-family-hands-over-new-tb-isolation-wing-to-national-referral-hospital/