Govt steps in to resuscitate Musami Mission Hospital 

Source: Govt steps in to resuscitate Musami Mission Hospital | The Herald

Deputy Minister of Health and Child Care Dr John Mangwiro (left) being shown the dental room at Musami Mission Hospital by staff.

Victor Maphosa Mashonaland East Bureau

Musami Mission Hospital in the Murehwa area will be restored and improved with the Government intervening to resuscitate it.

The hospital, a major health institution for many years and catering for a community of around 50 000, had been operating without an ambulance, theatre room, dental room and an isolation centre before the Ministry of Health and Child Care intervened.

The crumbling state of this hospital prompted its authorities to seek assistance from the Government to keep offering continued health services to the communities.

Part of the hospital structure needs refurbishments.

Health and Child Care Deputy Minister Dr John Mangwiro recently led a delegation comprising of staff from his Ministry and toured the hospital to have an appreciation of its challenges and mapping the way forward in addressing them.

Speaking soon after touring the Hospital, Dr Mangwiro said he noted various areas which are in need of urgent attention and said Government will intervene.

“As Government, all hospitals be it church, council or Government and or even private, they are serving Zimbabweans and we want Zimbabweans to get the best services. This hospital has a catchment of about 50 000 people but when we came here we found that there is no functional theatre so I brought the chief directors with me with theatre tables and we have said they must get at least three machines. The theatres are going to be equipped.

“There is now a dental section which was not there before, it has been created. I also found out that they do not have a functional pharmaceutical department but the building is almost complete. 

‘‘In terms of Covid- 19, they do not have any isolation ward so we have arranged and made sure there are six beds for ICU and 12 for HDU.

“The hospital does not have properly functioning ambulance and we have allocated them one and with time they can get a second one.”

Dr Mangwiro said there is also an urgent need to address the welfare of doctors and nurses as matter of urgency.

“The other thing is that the other doctors and some nurses have gone citing lack of accommodation and other things. We have said the hospital authorities must come with a budget for the construction of flats around here. 

Our policy is that we need to have lots of accommodation for doctors and nurses. So once they bring in their plans a block of flats or two will be put up that will accommodate about 16 people. 

“In the long run, this hospital must have at least five specialists and they will need to be accommodated. We have also asked them to have these plans also in place so that proper houses can be built for those who would be coming.

 “Our nurses have been suffering, coming to work no breakfast and no lunch, even no super if they are on night duty. We are saying the hospital as of now must start providing our nurses with proper food so that they don’t go hungry,” he said.