Midwives at Kyaali Health Centre 11, in Kyaali parish, Mpigi town council, Mpigi district are in da ilemma after their maternity ward lacks a lot of equipment's which leads to the mothers to move long to move long distances while looking for better service
This prompt the Rotary Club Of Sonde to visit the facility to see the situation and Annet Nakivumbi the midwife while touring the facility especially where women give birth from (Maternity ward), antenatal ward and ART clinic but the equipment's were lacking.
In an interview with her, Nakivumbi told us about the challenges they are facing in the facility , especially when it comes to the women where they give birth which she said has caused the number of women who are coming to the facility to cease as many are running to Mpigi Hospital.
She highlighted some of the challenges facing the hospital including buildings with one as it does where women are taking medicines, where they give birth and people with HIV where they get medicines ANT and at the same time work as a store which he said causes some women not to be afraid of people.
She added that the challenges that are stopping them from doing the work are lack of enough space, the maternity building is not enough for them, where they end up improvising, putting ART clinic, the facility store, ART services, building them from the same building that was meant to be for maternity services only.
So they want to be helped to get a new building that is maternity only, so they can get a space very well, so that they can sterilize the instruments in the area where they are supposed to do that.
“Another challenge I found at Kyaali Health Centre 111 is a lack of enough delivery beds, lack of enough continental beds the ones we have are broken. The mattresses are torn.We don't have lockers in the continental ward. When it comes to LEPA ward, we lack the delivery beds. All the foot stands are not there. We have one and it is broken. The grip stand is very old. It is broken. We don't have drums to sterilize our instruments. We lack oxygen concentrators and we don't have oxygen tubes.”
According to Diana Kagere who coordinated the projects and development in Rotary Club Of Sonde as the club , they were assigned an area that they have been working with for a long time and that is maternal and child health, and they have been assigned Kyaali Health Centre 111, which has a maternity ward that was built by other Rotary Clubs of Nyenga and has received support from Rotary before.
“So we have been asked to advance this health facility and support the maternal and child health services here. So as the club, we had an advance team that did an assessment and they found out that they need more beds, they need more facilities, they need an ultrasound for pregnant mothers and so many other equipment that they may require to enable the health workers here to serve the community better and improve maternal and child health in Bujjo village. So as a club, we accepted this work and this year, this Rotary has started a party tonight.”
She added that this is going to be one of their project areas, and they have already sourced some partners who are willing to support them in this project and move with them until they upgrade this health facility, especially the maternity ward and improve their services. And also help the health workers have the equipment they need to serve the community better.
Kagere added that they realized that the ward he has about to build, so they asked that they fund that and provide more beds for the mothers because that means that they limit the number of mothers we can take in at a certain time, and they hope that with the funded support, they are able to take on more mothers at a certain time. And then there is are lot of equipment that they need in their nursery.
“Sometimes the mothers give birth to preterm babies, which means specialised equipment where they can be treated and kept for safety and to sustain their life. So all those are needed. So the nursery also needs to be upgraded. We also found that the facility, much as we still serve in mixed capacity, may need a facelift. So we anticipate that we will be undertaking some renovations to make sure that we are still in general output.”
Christine Alupo, President Rotary Club of Sonde, says that the facility needs some short-term and long-term interventions. In its immediate state, it needs hygiene facilities, toilets because they are out.
“So you can imagine what it takes for patients in these facilities. Mothers have come to give birth and the external toilet is like that. Internally, they don't have a toilet in the maternal ward.So they don't have a toilet and a bathroom. And what that means to the hygiene of a mother having a child. So those are some of the short-term things.”
Alupo added that they do need some equipment, they don't even have enough pressure machines, they need maternity beds so those are some of the things they can look at and say, obviously, that they need that and seen how congested the place is.
She says that these are the immediate short term, one might say, the population is higher than what the health center can take. The type of equipment that they need is not here. Sometimes they need supplies. So what they are looking at is a long-term intervention. And that is why, consistent with Rotary's approach, they are looking at a three-year program during which they can really work with the experts and partners, seek the partnerships, to determine what is the best way. So that they can help this community on a long-term basis.
The District Governor Geoffrey Kitakule added that if you have issues in disease, preventable diseases, you are going to affect people's ability to be productive,, in community economic empowerment. You're going to affect people's, children's ability to be consistent in school.
“You are going to affect their ability to learn and everything there. So that is why, as much as we care and are quite focused on the maternal and child health care area, we are concerned about all the areas of focus. By improving their health, they will be able to attend school. By improving their health, they will actually become more productive citizens. That's the power of Rotary.”
Governor Kitakule added that , they are there to help and make an impact and make a left turn, in the communities. And they are showcasing the things they are doing. Because you know, people can only join them if they see the good things they are doing.
“One of the good things we are doing is going to the communities like Bujjo and help and reach out in terms of health and help the people in need.”
Residents sighted out some of the
