Hoima Hospital sh8.4b ICU facility complete
Hospital director Dr Ibrahim Bwaga says the facility is now only waiting for the installation of major equipment to enable it to start normal operations.
The intensive care unit (ICU) facility which has been constructed at Hoima Regional Referral Hospital. (Photos by Wilson Asiimwe)
NewVision Reporter
@NewVision
The construction of Hoima Regional Referral Hospital's intensive care unit (ICU) worth shillings 4.8 billion has been completed, New Vision Online has learnt.
Hospital director Dr Ibrahim Bwaga says the facility is now only waiting for the installation of major equipment to enable it to start normal operations.
According to the director, the facility, which was constructed by the health ministry with funding from the World Bank, has a 20-bed capacity including isolation beds and an operating theatre.
Bwaga says the hospital, which services a population of over 3.5 million from Bunyoro region's eight districts and other neighbouring ones like Kyankwanzi and Kiboga, has been struggling to offer ICU services. It also serves the Kyangwali and Kikuube refugee camps.
“Currently, we refer all our patients to Kiruddu and Mulago [hospitals] but with the completion of the ICU structure, we hope that after all the equipment has been installed, we shall handle them here,” he says.
Bwaga expressed concern over the ongoing congestion at the hospital, noting that they receive between 30 to 50 mothers giving birth daily, alongside other patients.
The hospital's limited resources, including only four beds in the theatre, pose significant risks to patients, particularly those in critical condition.
According to him, the situation is compounded by the lack of space in the neonatal unit, particularly for premature babies.
Bwaga says the mothers' waiting area has been repurposed to accommodate infants, but the hospital is still overwhelmed.
L-R; UCREPP spokesperson Doreen Nshabohurira, Hoima Regional Referral Hospital director Dr Ibrahim Bwaga and Karimu Abdul, the project manager for Excel Construction company which undertook the construction works.
He highlights that the ICU facility will significantly relieve congestion and reduce the need to refer patients to other hospitals in Kampala.
Oxygen plant complete
According to him, the Government has completed the installation of the oxygen manufacturing plant at the facility and all the lower health facilities in the region get oxygen supplies from the facility.
Bwaga said that the oxygen plant currently produces over 100 oxygen cylinders daily, ensuring that the hospital never runs short of oxygen, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The new oxygen manufacturing facility fills ten cylinders per hour and in a day, it fills 100 cylinders compared to the previous one where we would only rely on eight cylinders a day,” he said on January 3, 2024.
Uganda COVID-19 Response and Emergency Preparedness Project (UCREPP) spokesperson Doreen Nshabohurira said after the completion of the civil works, they are now awaiting installation of equipment and then commissioning.
“We are waiting for the equipment to be shipped into the country so that they can be installed and it becomes operational,” she said.
Hoima Resident City Commissioner Badru Mugabi said the Government has also procured a CT scan, which has already been installed at the facility.
“There has been an outcry from the people over referrals from Hoima Regional Referral Hospital, we are optimistic that with the completion of the ICU unity, people will receive services on time,” he said.