Aceng inspects Jinja’s Kyabirwa surgical centre
Sep 09, 2023
According to Baiga, after the procedure the next day, she was allowed to return to her home where she was continuously monitored by a team of medical experts.
Health Workers at surgical centre pose for a photo with the team from the health Ministry after the inspection. (Photos by Charles Kakamwa)
Charles Kakamwa
Journalist @New Vision
______________________ Jane Aceng, Health Minister being welcomed at Kyabirwa surgical centre
In 2020, Hajira Baiga got a wound due to an infection on one of her toes, which soon turned septic.
She visited several hospitals for treatment but the situation only got worse yet the cost of treatment kept surging.
Baiga, who is diabetic, was also worried by the likelihood of having her entire leg amputated as has been the case with some of her peers.
“I was worried I would never walk again without being supported but today I’m grateful that only the affected toe was removed,” said the 53-year-old as she heaped praises on Kyabirwa Surgical Centre (KSC).
According to Baiga, after the procedure the next day, she was allowed to return to her home where she was continuously monitored by a team of medical experts.
She says that the surgery cost Baiga much less than what she had previously paid to other facilities for treatment, without much success.
Today, Baiga a resident of Nkuusi cell in Bugiri municipality says she has fully recovered and going on with her catering work.
Like Baiga, Kolosi Alamo who had endured pain for months, had her joy restored following a surgical procedure at the same facility.
Alamo, a resident of Buzibirira village in Kamuli district told New Vision in an interview that in early 2021, she got swellings in her tummy which she initially mistook for a pregnancy. But a scan proved otherwise.
At KSC, the 27-year-old mother of one says the treatment began withdrawing fluids from her tummy before eventually a huge mass of flesh was removed.
The two are among hundreds of patients who have consulted and received treatment at Kyabirwa Surgical Centre, a private health facility in Kyabirwa Cell, northern division of Jinja city, which treats patients
Since its inception in 2019, at least 3,650 surgeries have been performed, according to Anna Kalumuna, the director of the medical centre.
“We handle minor and major surgeries for instance Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) ailments, gall bladder, goiter, hernias, hydrocell, appendicitis, and breast tumours among others,” she told health minister Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng who on Friday visited the centre to acquaint herself with its operations.
About laparoscopy
Using laparoscopy, the surgeon inserts into the small incision on the patient, a small tube that has a light source and a camera, which relays images of the inside of one’s body to a television monitor on the laparoscopic machine.
“The advantage of this technique over traditional open surgery is that it has a shorter hospital stay and faster recovery time, less pain and bleeding after the operation, and reduced scarring,” Dr. Michael Marin chairman board of Kyabirwa Surgical Centre explained.
Kalumuna said the surgical centre which is under the Global Surgical Initiative was established in conjunction with partners such as Mount Sinai Health System based in New York, United States of America for $1.6m (about sh6b).
Kalumuna further said the centre with the capacity to handle up to 10 surgeries a day, aims to enable low-income earners who cannot afford treatment in hospitals at high costs, to access treatment.
“Initially there was skepticism about the procedure as many doubted whether a person could undergo surgery in the morning and leave the hospital in the evening or the next day but they have now believed it,” she said.
Apart from ongoing research work, Kalumuna said the centre is undergoing an expansion to improve the capacity of its laboratory as well as the training centre.
According to the president of the Laparoscopic Association of Uganda Dr. Spire Kiggundu, despite its advantages, this kind of treatment is not widely used in Uganda due to the high costs involved. He adds that there are only 50 laparoscopic surgeons in the country.
“It is an expensive venture to set up a minimum laparoscopic theatre,” he said pledging the association’s support to the surgical centre.
Kiggundu said in Uganda, laparoscopic surgery has been only available at Mulago Hospital’s private wing and a few major private hospitals because the majority of patients cannot afford it as costs could go up to sh 6.5 million.
The chairman of Uganda Medical and Dental Practitioners Council Dr. Joel Okullo said because laparoscopy involves a lot of investment, it was still new in Uganda and Africa in general but happily noted that it was gaining ground.
He said at Kyabirwa, surgical procedures are done with surgeons linked by the internet to colleagues in the USA saying this allows the two teams to share knowledge and ideas.
“This is the only centre in Africa where this is being done, we want this to be a training centre and that this kind of treatment extends elsewhere,” he said.
During a visit to the facility on Friday, the minister of Health Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng commended Kyabirwa Surgical Centre, saying that it
“presents a great opportunity to handle the huge backlog of surgical cases that we have in Uganda,”.
She hinted at the possibility of the government offering support for entering a partnership with the surgical centre to popularize the model throughout the country.
“This (visit) was the first step, thereafter we shall discuss the possibility of a collaboration geared towards service provision,” she said.
Aceng’s delegation to the facility included Dr. Henry Mwebesa the Ministry's Director General Health Services.
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