Mulago to spend sh1.8bn on meals
Sep 20, 2014
UGANDA’S national referral health facility Mulago has made adjustments to the meals it serves its in-patients, with a special diet introduced
By Violet Nabatanzi
UGANDA’S national referral health facility Mulago has made adjustments to the meals it serves its in-patients, with a special diet introduced.
Previously, up to 1,500 in-patients at the hospital were fed with plain porridge for breakfast and posho (maize meal) and beans for lunch. Nowadays, a new meal menu features a much improved diet.
A protein and carbohydrate-rich breakfast of eggs and porridge (maize or soya) mixed with milk, and sometimes plain milk, is what patients now wake up to.
Later for lunch and dinner they eat beef, rice, peas, pasted groundnuts mixed with silver fish (mukene) and matooke (green bananas), depending on the day’s menu.
Peter Mbanjitale, the hospital’s senior catering officer told New Vision the improvement in the nutrition has excited patients and caretakers.
The hospital principle administrator David Niwamanya said, about sh1.8billion is budgeted for meals for the whole year.
This translates to sh1, 650 per patient per day for the three meals including breakfast, Lunch and dinner adding that last year, the hospital had a sh276m budget for patients meals which was inadequate for them.
“Previously, we used to serve lunch late because we thought that if we served patients at 1.00pm, then by 8.00pm they would be hungry. Due to the limited budget sometimes the patients would be given porridge for lunch.” Mbanjitale said.
He said with the new meals coupled with them being served in time, patients can now take their drugs promptly as recommended by medical personnel.
Patients, in the past, would refuse to take drugs on an empty stomach, he added.
Niwamanya explained “We had to change the diet because food is treatment to most of the patients. For example at wwana-mugimu nutrition unit food is the biggest treatment, because these are malnourished patients. Patients admitted in the TB, surgical and medical wards also need special diet to be able to recover as they take their medication,”
He said most of the patients cannot afford the meals as required by the medical experts.
“Most of the patients are referred from far and majority of them don’t have money to buy food,” he added.
Nuwamanya said the meals are free of charge and are strictly served to only patients.
Fred Ssevvure, a patient at the hospital, was lying in the plastic surgery ward on 3B-E with a head injury. He said he is happy that the health facility has improved the meals.
“Yesterday I was served with pasted groundnuts mixed with silver fish and matooke. Ever since I was admitted here, the hospital staff has been changing the meals.
“There is a significant change compared to the past, the health workers treat us with care and are not rude,” he said.
A caretaker who did not want to be named said the development is a “great achievement” for the hospital, later admitting that in case of sickness, she would not afford to buy milk, eggs and matooke for her sick child.
Amid these changes, there still lies a problem.
Mbanjintale spoke of how the catering department is faced with the problem of limited number of staff, and that with most of the few available ones nearing their retirement age, the department is using volunteers.
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